Strait of Gibraltar



The Strait of Gibraltar (Arabic:مضيق جبل طارق, Spanish:Estrecho de Gibraltar) is a narrow strait that connects the Atlantic Ocean to the Mediterranean Sea and separates Gibraltar and Peninsular Spain in Europe from Morocco and Ceuta (Spain) in Africa. The name comes from the Rock of Gibraltar, which in turn originates from the Arabic Jebel Tariq (meaning "Tariq's mountain") named after Tariq ibn Ziyad. It is also known as the Straits of Gibraltar, the Gut of Gibraltar (although this is mostly archaic), STROG (Strait Of Gibraltar) in naval use, and in the ancient world as the "Pillars of Hercules" (Ancient Greek: αἱ Ἡράκλειοι στῆλαι).