Ceuta or Sebta? Why one city has two names and a disputed status

Spain’s King Felipe VI and Queen Letizia are due to visit Ceuta on October 13 and Melilla the following day, in Felipe’s first visit to either city as king since he ascended the throne in 2014.

The trip comes after a major migration crisis at the Ceuta border in July and as the long-running dispute between Spain and Morocco over the two cities on the North African coast remains unresolved.

Spain considers Ceuta and Melilla part of its territory, while Morocco regards both cities and several smaller Spanish-held territories in North Africa as part of its own territory.

The city that sits on the southern side of the Strait of Gibraltar also has different names in Spanish and Arabic.

In Spain, it is Ceuta. In Arabic, it is Sabta, commonly written as Sebta in Latin script.

So why does the same city have two names? And how did a city on the North African coast come under Spanish sovereignty?

Where does the name Ceuta come from?

The name is much older than either modern Spain or Morocco.

The city was known as Sabta in Arabic. Spain’s Ministry of Culture identifies Sabta with present-day Ceuta and traces its history through successive periods of Idrisid, Umayyad, Taifa, Almoravid, Almohad and Marinid rule.

The Spanish form, Ceuta, developed from earlier forms of the name. Sabta and Ceuta are different linguistic forms of the same city.

Who controlled Ceuta before Spain?

Ceuta passed through several political and dynastic systems in the Maghreb and al-Andalus.

Under the Idrisid dynasty, the city was in the hands of the Banu Isam before being taken by the Umayyad Caliph Abd al-Rahman III in 931, bringing it into the political sphere of al-Andalus.

In the 11th century, Ceuta became linked to the Taifa of Malaga. It later came under the Almoravids and Almohads. From the beginning of the 14th century, it became part of the Marinid sphere with periods when other local dynasties held power.

By the early 15th century, Ceuta was under Muslim rule.

That changed in 1415.

How did Ceuta become Portuguese?

On August 21, 1415, Portuguese forces led by King John I captured Ceuta.

The Portuguese conquest brought an end to more than seven centuries of Muslim rule in Ceuta. Ceuta’s own cultural heritage authority dates Muslim rule from 709 to the Portuguese conquest in 1415.

Ceuta remained Portuguese for more than two centuries.

Portugal and Spain were then ruled by the same monarchy from 1580 to 1640. When Portugal restored its independence in 1640, Ceuta remained under the Spanish monarchy rather than returning to Portuguese rule.

The 1668 Treaty of Lisbon, which formally recognised Portuguese independence, left Ceuta in Spanish hands.

That is how Ceuta came under Spanish sovereignty.

Why does Morocco claim Ceuta?

Morocco’s argument is rooted in the city’s history and geography.

Ceuta lies on the North African coast, surrounded by Morocco on its landward side. Morocco has claimed Ceuta and Melilla since gaining independence in 1956 and regards the two cities as occupied Moroccan territories.

Spain takes the opposite position.

Under Spanish law, Ceuta is an autonomous city. Its Statute of Autonomy describes Ceuta as an integral part of the Spanish nation and gives the city its own system of self-government.

The dispute, therefore, is not about who administers Ceuta. Spain does. It is about sovereignty.

Morocco says Ceuta should form part of Moroccan territory. Spain says its sovereignty over the city is established and Ceuta is part of Spain.

Neither side has accepted the other’s position.

Why doesn’t history settle the dispute?

Because the two sides interpret that history differently.

Morocco points to Ceuta’s long history within Muslim political systems in the Maghreb and its location on the North African coast. Spain points to centuries of Portuguese and Spanish control and to Ceuta’s present constitutional status as part of Spain.

The historical record does not provide a simple answer to a modern sovereignty dispute. The political systems that ruled Ceuta before 1415 were not nation-states with today’s borders, and the city’s current status is based on centuries of subsequent Portuguese and Spanish rule.

Morocco’s territorial claim dates from the period after independence in 1956, but Spain has continued to exercise sovereignty over Ceuta.

Why does Morocco call it Sebta?

Sebta, or Sabta, is the Arabic name for Ceuta and predates the modern sovereignty dispute.

In Morocco, Sebta is the Arabic name used for the city while Ceuta is the established Spanish form.

The choice of name can have political resonance because Morocco disputes Spanish sovereignty over the city. But using Sebta is not automatically a political statement. It is also simply the Arabic name.

What about Melilla?

Melilla’s history is different from Ceuta’s.

Spanish forces took control of Melilla in 1497 when it was incorporated into the Crown of Castile.

Ceuta, by contrast, was first Portuguese before remaining under the Spanish monarchy after Portugal regained its independence.

Today, both cities are Spanish autonomous cities, and Morocco claims sovereignty over both.

Why does Ceuta still matter?

Ceuta’s importance today goes beyond its size.

Ceuta is considered part of Spain, but it is not included in the European Union customs territory. Its border with Morocco is also an external border of the Schengen area.

That has made Ceuta a focal point for migration and border policy as well as a recurring issue in relations between Madrid and Rabat.

The issue returned sharply to the headlines on July 30 when more than 72,000 migrants entered Ceuta from Morocco, according to the Reuters news agency.

Now Felipe’s planned visits to Ceuta and Melilla are putting the two disputed cities back in the spotlight.