Hannibal's the obvious one for Tunisia.

For Tunisia, I agree with SFH.

For Morocco, how about Maimonides?

Nick

Did Calmus do any of his writing in Algeria?

Albert Camus does not have an "l" in his last name. Sorry.

For Tunisia the unfortunate answer is probably George Lucas because he filmed the first Star Wars there.

Hannibal? Pfft. I'm going with OBI-WAN KENOBI.

Star Wars in Tunisia

- AJ

I would disagree that Hannibal did the work for which he best known in Africa. Indeed, had he stayed in Africa, his name would probably be unknown. Cannae is in Italy.

how long must one have been there for it to be considered that they "lived" there?

Erwin Rommel and Bernard Law Montgomery might qualify, depending on definitions.

Maimonides seems to have spent a good deal more time in Egypt than he did in Morocco. Consequently, I'm not sure he should be the person selected for Morocco, although I don't have a good candidate yet.

Splunge: MarkM is right -- I deliberately phrased the question as "while what is now Morocco, Algeria, or Tunisia was their home" for precisely that reason.

The great Islamic philosopher Averroes, to whom we in the West owe a profound debt of gratitude for his commentaries on Aristotle (and thus the rescue Western philosophy from its eclipse in the Dark Ages). Although born in Spain (Andalusia), he wrote most of his philosophical and scientific works in Morocco.

I deliberately phrased the question as "while what is now Morocco, Algeria, or Tunisia was their home" for precisely that reason.

Yeah? Then you were sloppy, or deceiving, in the subsequent sentences about countries in which they "worked," viz.:

Also, of course many of these people are well known in the Western world despite not being widely known to have worked in those countries

First, I think that fourteen years is long enough to establish residency, so Hannibal Barca's home would reasonably count as Italy. Second, and similarly, we could reasonably count Tunisia as Erwin Rommel's home during a significant part of the late unpleasantness.

I understand that neither follows your intent, but since I'm a military brat, I argue that the rule of lenity works in favor of my answer (Rommel, though I had not previously posted it) being considered to be correct.

8-)

Oh, and for Morocco, I'll submit Ion Perdicaris. (There is, perhaps some question as to whether "being kidnapped" counts as 'doing' what made him famous, but there you go.)

For Algeria, it's Abd Al-Qadir.

He was so loved in the West that frontiersmen in America named Elkader, Iowa after him.

I don't see how anyone can seriously argue against St. Augustine for Algeria. The Barbarossas "pale" in comparison!

Second, and similarly, we could reasonably count Tunisia as Erwin Rommel's home during a significant part of the late unpleasantness.

I thought of Rommel, but most of his work in Africa took place in Libya, not Tunisia.

I don't know if Dido, Queen of Carthage, was a real person--but she is certainly extremely famous, at least to those who read Virgil (or even listen to Berlioz Operas).

Just for grins, and speaking of Libya (Tripolitania), just to the east of the modern countries in question, who would be the most famous and powerful person to come from that place, (not counting Qadaffi)?

Aneneas &Dido are better chioces for Tunisia than Hannibal, I think.

I almost said William Eaton &Stephen Decauter, but that was Libya.

If Hannibal was famous for his work in Italy. Scipio Africanus was famous for his work in Tunisia. Hannibal and his family spent a great part of his life in Spain ( Barcelona)

Gaiseric lived in Carthage

The artist Ben Shahn

What about Patton, Bowles, and Burroughs?

"while what is now Morocco, Algeria, or Tunisia was their home?" Where is the "home" of a soldier, where he fights or his homeland?

Hannibal left North African to make a name for himself in Europe, While Rommel left Europe to make a name for himself in North Africa.

Eisenhower, didn't make a name for himself in North Africa, at least compared to what he did later in the war, or later in life.

Hmm, for Algeria and Tunisia no doubt it's Augustine and Hannibal but who is there for Morocco? Perhaps someone 19th or 20th century - Maimonides I would disqualify on the "most" standard, most of the work was no doubt done while he lived in Spain and Egypt, his time in Morocco was limited and his most famous works seem to have been written in the period between his living in Morocco and Egypt (hard to be certain, the "convert or die" thing and attendant subterfuge make his biography somewhat unreliable).

Has anything happened there since the Romans salted it at the end of the Third Punic War? Aside from Rommel passing through on his way to suicide.

I'm going to have to concur with Maimonides.

What about Harrison Ford??

He played Han Solo while the movie was filmed in Tunisia, and of course, as Indiana Jones he spent most of the Raiders of the Lost Ark there as well.

Doug Sundseth: A serviceman's residence doesn't change no matter how long he is away, unless he wants to change it. I'd forgotten Hannibal's connections to Spain, so perhaps that would count as his home rather than Carthage, but Italy was not his home even if he did spend 14 years invading it.

Charles de Gaulle for Algeria? He lived in exile in Algiers for a time during World War II, and he had his headquarters there until the liberation of Paris.

Zacarius Moussaoui is from Morocco
Hicham el-Garrouj - the world record holder in the 1500m, mile and 2k and olympic gold medalist is from morocco

It's amazing that there are more voices against Maimonides than for him right now--and that, of course, is correct. He barely made a home in Morocco as this was more of a home away from home once he settled in Egypt. Although Egypt was not his original goal--he was on the way to Palestine--it was the next best thing. By the time of his arrival, Morocco was well past its prime as far as Arabic philosophy was concerned, but there were quite a few rather famous ones there earlier.

As for "famous in the West, but living in Morocco", I'd have to go with a handful of US and European writers, especially of the Beatnik variety. Burroughs certainly comes to mind. He spent nearly five years in Tangiers, prior to publication of Naked Lunch. What brought him to Tangiers, however, is the writing of another American expat Paul Bowles, who did the same thing for an even longer period 20-30 years prior.

Of course, there is also the relativism of "lived in". Arafat lived in Tunis for at least a year between stays in Lebanon. There is also the relativism of "known in the West"--many are better known in France than they are in the US, like most of the French generals involved in the Algiers actions.

"OTOH, I hope someone can think of a better offering from Morocco than the heroin-induced sexual fantasies of a gay remittance man..."

A closer reading of Burroughs would indicate that the sexual fantasies come when he's off the junk, not while he's on it. Hence the two books "Junky" and "Queer." Junky is a clear-eyed ethnography. But in Queer, Burroughs is off heroin, and so he becomes restless and horny.

I would propose Ahmed ben Bella for Algiers. Unlike him, neither St.Augustin nor Camus became Heroes of the Soviet Union. It that's not a loud recognition of fame (or at least notoriety) then I don't know what is. Only Nasser merited a similar award (ok, his sidekick too, but who counts). However, Egypt is not included in this survey, probably being too lousy with pharaohs and their ilk.