The “Indigenous Village” of Sidi Bel Abbès: A Unique Form of Urban Segregation in the nineteenth-Century Colonial Algeria

Abstract

This article explores the history of colonial urban planning and the control policies over “indigenous” populations implemented by the French authorities in the nineteenth-century Algeria. Focusing on the case of the city of Sidi Bel Abbès and its indigenous village, this work offers a detailed analysis of colonial territorial management practices, examining their stakes, actors, and limitations. Drawing for the first time on unpublished archival documents, this study highlights the originality of this urban planning, marked by a triple spatial segregation. The analysis also extends to the impact of this segregation on the indigenous population.