Islam first came to North Africa in the seventh century. Until the arrival of the French twelve centuries later, control of the area remained in Muslim hands. During this period the native inhabitants, and ethnic vestiges from earlier conquests, converted to Islam. At the same time Jews, expelled or migrating from Spain, established communities in urban centers. By the end of the sixteenth century the Ottomans had settled along the coast as far as the borders of Morocco, remaining there until th…