Houmt Souk (Tunisian Arabic: حومة السوق Ḥūmet es Sūqⓘ), meaning literally: "The Market neighbourhood", is a commune and the main town of the island of Djerba, Tunisia.

[1] Many besides the Romans lived there, including Numidians, Punics, Arabs, Spanish, and Turks; the town was also home to many merchants and pirates for many years.

Fondouks in town, dating back several centuries, often follow the same building style; a generally square courtyard with a group of stores may be found at ground level, along with a door with a heavy lock.

The first floor, reached by a single staircase, has a gallery supported by columns and arches; this is often the point of access for a number of rooms or storerooms.

The Jemaâ Ettrouk (mosque of the Turks), of the Hanafi rite, dates back to the 18th century and is equipped with a minaret typical of Ottoman style.

Called Lella Gmira, this is visited most often by women suffering from infertility; they wash and light a candle there in the hope of gaining a blessing, and perhaps giving birth.

Another story concerns Jemaâ El Guellal: supposedly a potter in the eighteenth century put his pots, which had taken months to craft, on a cart to be taken to market.

The Borj El K'bir is a castle and fort that was constructed on the waterfront in 1432 under Sultan Abû Fâris `Abd Al `Azîz Al-Mutawakkil.

A commemorative statue in marble, originally sealed in one of the fort's interior walls, is now on display at the Bardo National Museum in Tunis.

From the top of the walls may be had a panoramic view over the port; also visible from this location is the nine-meter-high obelisk which indicates the site of Borj-er-Rous, the Tower of Skulls, built using the bones of Dragut's enemies executed after his victory, in July 1560, against a coalition made up of soldiers from Spain, Naples, Sicily, Lombardy, Germany, France, and the Knights of Malta.

The cupola of the combatants (Goubbat El Moujahdine), near Jemaâ Ettrouk, is a small square construction, with wrought iron, which shelters three tombs that of venerated inhabitants of Houmt Souk and is regarded as a zaouïa.

[9] The Errbaâ souk, market hall formed in a labyrinth with the roofs in semi-vaults, gathered the craftsmen tailors, shoe-makers, jewellers.

A large theatre in the open air, built in 2004 between the zone of the port and Borj El K' to bir, shelters the great cultural events including those of the annual festival of Ulysses.

[10] From the 1950s a migratory movement primarily turned towards France reduced the population considerably; European and Jewish inhabitants of Houmt Souk.

The coexistence of various ethnicities (in particular Sephardi Jews and black African) and of various religious beliefs contributed to the richness and the variety of the cultures and traditions of this locality.

Installed in an old a zaouïa built at the end of the 18th century to honour of Sidi Zitouni and Sidi Ameur, not far from the "Mosque from Abroad", it is possible to discover the folklore of the island, its traditions and its economy from jewels and colored glass, pottery, weaving looms, and the traditional costumes of various social groups, kitchen utensils, one workshop of pottery, and jars which were used to preserve foodstuffs such as barley, sorghum, olive oil or dried meat.

These earthenware jars bear different names ( sefri, khabia' ' , tass' ' or zir) and their opening depends on the intended products to be preserved there.

The Jews of Houmt Souk, both male and female wear traditional clothes similar to those of the Muslim inhabitants but who can however be distinguished by a black band at the bottom of the trousers, known as a seroual arbi.

With the interior, the woman of Houmt Souk typically wear a houli, multicoloured, made out of cotton or natural silk and increasingly in modern society out of synthetic fibre.

During the new year the families of Houmt Souk still nowadays send to their married daughters a large meal, often dried meat (' ' kaddid' ') sheep or calf killed at the time of the festival, with hard-boiled eggs, chickpeas and broad beans.

There are several specialised markets that existing catering for cattle, fish, fruit and vegetables, herbs and spices, goldsmiths, antique dealers, ironmongers, etc.

On the island each important locality has its own market day such as, for example, Friday for Midoun or Sunday for Guellala whereas Houmt Souk has two of them: Monday and Thursday.

One of the survivors of the Battles of Djerba said in 1560, according to a book reproduced by Charles Monchicourt “the inhabitants weave with fine wool of very beautiful baracans (covers) out of thin fabric, and decorate silk longer than an ordinary carpet”.

[13] Weaving, performed on the island for over 1,000 years grew during the 19th century which turned it into one of the principal textile centres for wool in North Africa, and remains, in spite of the competition of textile industries an important activity in Houmt Souk [14] The wool industry employs a larger number of families and the activities range from washing in sea water, washing in the sun, then come carding, spinning, dyeing and then weaving followed by marketing.

In addition to fishing, the port is used nowadays for excursions towards the island of which is used as a refuge for migratory birds; in particular for pink flamingos as well as dolphins which can sometimes be observed off the city coastline.