This fascinating region begins at the southern edge of the High Atlas, where desert and mountains meet. The stony desert is broken by green oases where shade-giving date palms grow in profusion. Cut by steep canyons and studded with arid hills, it is criss-crossed by wadis right up to the edge of the Sahara. Here, the light is intensely bright and the colours sumptuously rich. The history of Morocco is closely linked to this region bordering the Sahara desert, the birthplace of the great Moroccan dynasties. In the 11th century, Almoravid warriors, who came from the Sahara, set out from the south to extend their empire from Senegal to Spain. In the 16th century, the Saadians, who came from Arabia, left the Draa valley to conquer Morocco. Lastly, the Alaouites, the dynasty that holds power in Morocco today, settled in the Tafilalt region in the 13th century. Trade in gold, salt and slaves between black Africa and Morocco melded the local populations, so that Arabs, Berbers and Haratines, descendants of ancient black populations, lived side by side. Life here centres on three great wadis, the Draa, the Dadès and the Ziz. These rivers have created stunning landscapes, carving gorges and canyons out of the sides of the High Atlas and Anti-Atlas. The date palm that brings welcome shade to small plots of corn and barley accounts for the region’s wealth. The palm groves are punctuated by hundreds of kasbahs and ksour. These fortified villages and houses protected the sedentary populations against attack from nomadic tribes. Many of them are still inhabited today, although they are slowly crumbling. The desert begins south of the oases. Every year, aided by drought, it encroaches further on arable land.