Description : Misrata (also spelt Misurata or Misratah; Arabic: مصراتة) is a city in the Misrata District in northwestern Libya, situated 187 km (116 mi) to the east of Tripoli and 825 km (513 mi) west of Benghazi on the Mediterranean coast near Cape Misrata. Modern Misrata was established around the 7th century AD during the beginning of modern Libya's rule by the Caliphate. Some contemporary sources claim the town existed prior to Islamic rule, during the Roman Empire era and that its initial Arabic name derived from its Roman name Thubactis. David Mattingly, author of Tripolitania, a comprehensive reference book on northwestern Libya, stated that identification of Misrata as the ancient Thubactis is particularly problematic, complicated and "defies an easy answer." Nonetheless the Roman town was located at some point on the oasis upon which the modern city sits. The two common identifications are at the eastern and western anchorages of modern Misrata or south and inland of the city, respectively. The Roman town was recorded as one of the six municipia (small self-governing cities) of the Tripolitania province, a rank below coloniae (cities with full citizenship rights.) In any case, in the 7th century, it served as a caravan supply center and an important port. Merchant traders from Misrata were well known throughout the Sahara during the years of the Caliphate (7th–19th centuries) In addition to its strategic location, the city established itself as one of Libya's oldest producers of luxury carpets. The Misrata tribe, a section of the larger Berber Hawwara confederacy, inhabited the coastal region of Tripolitania during the Roman and early Arab eras.
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