Carthage

Carthage, set along the azure coastline of Tunisia, is a place where ruins, sea breeze, and sunlight keep alive the memory of Phoenician merchants and Roman emperors. Founded in the 9th century BCE by Phoenician settlers, it grew into a powerful maritime city-state and the heart of a Mediterranean empire. The Punic Wars with Rome, especially the Third Punic War in 146 BCE, ended in its destruction, yet the city rose again under Roman rule as a key center of the province of Africa, leaving behind sites such as the Antonine Baths and Byrsa Hill.

Today, Carthage is part of the Tunis Governorate and holds no separate political status, but its past shapes Tunisia’s cultural and archaeological identity. Tourism drives the local economy, with museums and excavations attracting visitors and scholars from around the world. The population reflects Arab, Berber, and European influences, with Arabic predominant and French widely spoken. Festivals, crafts like pottery and mosaics, Islamic traditions, and dishes such as brik and couscous all express a heritage formed at the crossroads of Mediterranean and African worlds.