Tunisia Through History: Who Ruled Its Lands
The land of today's Tunisia appears on 39 historical border maps from 500 BC to today. Over that time it was held, in whole or in part, by 19 different states, among them Tunisia, Hafsid Caliphate, Ottoman Empire, Fatimid Caliphate, Carthaginian Empire.
TunisiaExplore the history of Tunisia in the interactive map
Compare 1000 with today · Tunisia as a state on the map
Who ruled the land of Tunisia, map by map
Share of sample points inside today's borders held by each state on each map. Areas with no organised state on the map are left out.
| Map | Main states on this land |
|---|---|
| 500 BC | Carthaginian Empire 63% |
| 400 BC | Carthaginian Empire 63% |
| 323 BC | Carthaginian Empire 63% |
| 300 BC | Carthaginian Empire 63% |
| 200 BC | Carthage 50% · Kingdom of Gala 4% |
| 100 BC | Roman Republic 58% · Numidia 10% |
| 1 BC | Roman Empire 60% |
| AD 100 | Roman Empire 60% |
| AD 200 | Roman Empire 60% |
| AD 400 | Western Roman Empire 60% |
| AD 500 | Vandals 60% |
| AD 600 | Eastern Roman Empire 60% |
| AD 700 | Umayyad Caliphate 56% · Saharan Nomadic Tribes 38% · Aures 6% |
| AD 800 | Aghlabid Emirate 92% |
| AD 900 | Aghlabid Emirate 90% |
| 1000 | Fatimid Caliphate 92% |
| 1100 | Fatimid Caliphate 92% |
| 1200 | Fatimid Caliphate 90% · Tuareg Nomadic Tribes 10% |
| 1300 | Hafsid Caliphate 92% |
| 1400 | Hafsid Caliphate 92% |
| 1492 | Hafsid Caliphate 92% |
| 1500 | Hafsid Caliphate 92% |
| 1600 | Ottoman Empire 79% |
| 1650 | Ottoman Empire 79% |
| 1700 | Ottoman Empire 79% |
| 1783 | Tunis 77% |
| 1800 | Tunis 77% |
| 1815 | Tunis 77% |
| 1880 | Ottoman Empire 100% |
| 1900 | Tunisia 100% |
| 1914 | Tunisia 100% |
| 1920 | Tunisia 100% |
| 1930 | Tunisia 100% |
| 1938 | Tunisia 100% |
| 1945 | Tunisia 100% |
| 1960 | Tunisia 100% |
| 1994 | Tunisia 100% |
| 2010 | Tunisia 100% |
Historic cities in Tunisia
Famous people of Tunisia
| Lived | Person | |
|---|---|---|
| 1332 – 1406 | Ibn Khaldun | Historian |
Battles and historic sites
| Year | Battle or site |
|---|---|
| 202 BC | Battle of Zama |
Questions
Which empires and states ruled the territory of Tunisia?
On the border maps from 500 BC to today, the largest shares of the territory of modern Tunisia belonged to Tunisia, Hafsid Caliphate, Ottoman Empire, Fatimid Caliphate, Carthaginian Empire, Tunis, along with 13 other states.
What was Tunisia part of in 1000?
On the border map for 1000, most of the territory of today's Tunisia lay within Fatimid Caliphate.
What was Tunisia part of in 1500?
On the border map for 1500, most of the territory of today's Tunisia lay within Hafsid Caliphate.
What was Tunisia part of in 1900?
On the border map for 1900, most of the territory of today's Tunisia lay within Tunisia.
Further reading
Last updated 9 November 2026. Sources: border data from historical-basemaps, land and rivers from Natural Earth; texts written for Chronica Maps from standard reference works. How we make the maps.