| former name of Western Sahara. |
| a region in NW Africa on the Atlantic coast, bounded by Morocco, Algeria, and Mauritania: a former Spanish province comprising Río de Oro and Saguia el Hamra 1884–1976; divided between Morocco and Mauritania 1976; claimed entirely by Morocco 1979, but still under dispute. 165,000; ab. 102,700 sq. mi. (266,000 sq. km). |
| Spanish Sahara See Western Sahara. |
| Western Sahara also Spanish Sahara A region of northwest Africa on the Atlantic coast. Sparsely settled primarily by Berbers, the region was first visited by Portuguese navigators in 1434. Spain claimed it as a protectorate in 1884, establishing the province of Spanish Sahara in 1958, but transferred the territory to Morocco and Mauritania in 1976. Mauritania renounced all claims in 1979, with Morocco occupying its portion, but guerrilla resistance from the nationalist Polisario Front forced the Moroccans in 1991 to agree to a UN-monitored referendum on the region's status. |