What is the name of the strait separating Europe from Africa at Gibraltar?

The Strait of Gibraltar separates Europe from Africa and connects the Atlantic Ocean with the Mediterranean Sea. At its narrowest point, it is about 14 kilometres wide, with Spain and Gibraltar to the north and Morocco to the south.

The strait is a strategically important maritime passage because ships traveling between the Atlantic and the Mediterranean must pass through it. It also links two very different water systems: Atlantic water flows eastward near the surface, while denser Mediterranean water flows westward at depth. This exchange helps maintain the Mediterranean’s circulation and salinity balance.

The name refers to Gibraltar, whose modern name derives from the Arabic Jabal Tariq, or “Mountain of Tariq,” honoring the 8th-century commander Tariq ibn Ziyad. The strait has been important since antiquity and was associated by Greek and Roman writers with the Pillars of Hercules. It is sometimes confused with the Bosporus, but the Bosporus lies in Turkey and connects the Black Sea with the Sea of Marmara.