Sidi Bouqnadil mausoleum

This mausoleum with its white dome stands on a small hill below the Kasbah of Agadir Oufella, facing the sea. Sidi Bougnadil, patron saint of the village of Founty, protected fishermen and, according to legends, provided light to those who sailed at night, hence its name, which means “man with lanterns’ with “Lqandil” the Arabic word for any lit flame.

If collective memory has today lost the real name of the eminent leader of the resistance against the Portuguese occupation in Santa Cruz (505-1541), the name refers to the sanctuary protecting the city’s northern gate to the port.

Destroyed during the 1960 earthquake, Bouqnadil mausoleum was rebuilt in 1962. Leaning against the foot of the hill, it is an eminent embodiment of memory and religion respectfully nestled in the heart of the old Founty district.