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Ifni was a Spanish colony on the African coast in what is now Morocco, south of Casablanca and across from the Canary Islands.
It had a total area of 1,502 km² (580 sq mi), and a population of 51,517 in 1964. The main industry was fishing.
Spain had a settlement called Santa Cruz de la Mar Pequeña (1476-1524), but it's unknown if it was at the current site of Ifni.
The territory and its main town, Sidi Ifni, were ceded by Morocco to Spain on October 22, 1859 following a short war, but there was little Spanish presence until 1934, when the governor-general of Spanish Sahara took up residence. Spain returned Ifni to Morocco on January 4 (or June 30?), 1969.
Postage stamps
Spain began issuing postage stamps for Ifni in 1941, initially overprinting Spanish stamps with "TERRITORIO DE IFNI", then issuing new designs in 1943. Issues followed at the rate of about 10/year, the last on November 23, 1968. Most are commonly available, but far more often seem unused, raising suspicion that the stamps were primarily issued to make money from stamp collectors, not to cope with a flood of mail from the residents.
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