Sefrou

Sefrou belongs to the Fez-Meknes region and gives its name to one of its provinces.¹ At the 2024 census the municipality had 86,903 inhabitants in 24,625 households and the whole province 304,748; the province also includes Imouzzer Kandar with 21,943 and Bhalil with 13,727 inhabitants.² Until 2015 Sefrou province was part of the Fès-Boulemane region.³

The town lies at the foot of the Middle Atlas, 28 kilometres south of Fez, at about 850 metres, on the old trade route known as Trik as-Soultane. The Oued Aggaï flows through it, its water making the gardens fertile; Sefrou is also known for its waterfalls, about ten metres high.⁴

In the medieval chronicles the place is called Sofroui or Sofrou. According to Ibn Khaldun it belonged to the domain of Fez at the beginning of the 11th century, until Wanudin, a Maghrawa ruler from Sijilmasa, took it; in 1063 the Almoravids captured it.⁵ The Rawd al-Qirtas dates the capture of Sofrou by the Almoravid Yusuf ibn Tashfin to 1073.⁶

The medina is enclosed by high crenellated walls with seven gates from the 18th century; numerous fondouks also date from that period, when Sefrou was a stop on the caravan trade.⁷

Since 2012 the cherry festival of Sefrou has been inscribed on the Representative List of the Intangible Cultural Heritage of Humanity.⁸ For three days every June the town celebrates the cherry and the newly chosen Cherry Queen, a title for which young women from the region and the whole country compete. The highlight is a parade with music and dance troupes, majorettes, bands and floats of local producers, at the centre of which the queen hands out cherries to the onlookers.⁹

According to the nomination file that Sefrou’s municipal council submitted to UNESCO, the festival was founded in 1920 and is the oldest in Morocco; the national portal gives 1919 as the year of its founding.¹⁰ Since 2010 young women from all over Morocco have been able to compete for the title of Miss Cerisette. The festival involves craftswomen who make silk buttons for djellabas and kaftans, Ahidous dance troupes and fruit growers, including some from Imouzzer Kandar and El Hajeb, who bring their cherries.¹¹

In Sefrou the cherry is called Habb Lemlouk, the fruit of kings; the variety is black, very sweet and weighs more than 14 grams.¹² The 101st edition of the festival took place from 11 to 14 June 2025, with concerts on two stages, a carnival in honour of Miss Cerisette, exhibitions of farm produce and crafts, and displays of the equestrian art of tbourida.¹³ The 102nd edition, from 24 to 27 June 2026, was organised by the Ministry of Youth, Culture and Communication together with the province and the municipality of Sefrou.¹⁴

The Fès-Saïss weather station, at 571 metres, is the nearest with official climate normals. There, around 488 millimetres of precipitation fall per year on average over 1991 to 2020, most of it from October to April; the mean daily maximum ranges from 16.0 °C in January to 35.1 °C in July and August.¹⁵