Erfoud
Moroccan town in Errachidia Province, Drâa-Tafilalet
Erfoud or Arfoud (Berber languages: ⴰⵔⴼⵓⴷ, Arfud; Arabic: أرفود) is an oasis town in the Sahara, in the Drâa-Tafilalet region, eastern Morocco. It belongs to ait atta tribe, divided into several districts: Hay Salam, Hay Jdid, Hay Ziz, Hay el Bathaa, Hay Annahda, and Hay el Hamri.
Due to its proximity to Merzouga desert village in the Erg Chebbi Dunes, Erfoud has developed tourist-related infrastructures such as hotels and restaurants.
History
Jewish community
Erfoud's Jewish community traced its roots to the French protectorate period in the early 20th century, when several hundred individuals from nearby towns, particularly El Mâadid, settled in the region encouraged by French plans to develop the town. The community gained prominence as a base of the Abuhatzeira family, known for its esteemed rabbis, including Abir Yakkov, the Baba Lu Ḥazzan, and the Baba Sali. Due to the absence of an Alliance Israélite Universelle school in Erfoud, although one existed in nearby Rissani, many Jewish children attended a French school.
By 1931, the Jewish population constituted approximately one-third of Erfoud's total residents, numbering 1,172 out of a total population of 3,534. Following World War II, the number of Jewish inhabitants exceeded 700. Following Morocco's independence in 1956, the majority of Erfoud's Jewish population emigrated, mainly to Israel.
Filming location
Due to the beauty of the surrounding Sahara Desert and the town's oasis areas, Erfoud has been a filming location for many films, including:
March or Die (1977)
In the film archeologists are uncovering an ancient city near Erfoud buried by a sand storm 3,000 years ago.
The public source identifies “Erfoud” as moroccan town in Errachidia Province, Drâa-Tafilalet. This brief keeps that definition visible, then builds a research path around Erfoud, Moroccan and town.
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A short description can identify a subject without explaining its stakes. For “Erfoud”, the useful work is to connect “moroccan town in Errachidia Province, Drâa-Tafilalet” to the records capable of establishing context and consequence.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 12, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q648987. Authority coordinates are 31.436, -4.233. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1931, 1956 and 1977.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
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This entry incorporates text from “Erfoud” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.