The Numidian city of Thagaste (or Tagaste), on whose ruins Souk Ahras was built, was the birthplace of Augustine of Hippo and a center of Berber culture.

[1][2] The name derives from the Arabic word souk which means "market", and the Chaoui Berber word ahra (plural ahras) which means "lion", in reference to the Barbary lions which existed in the neighboring forests until their extinction in 1930; hence Souk Ahras means "market of lions" (see also Oran (Wahran) and Tahert for names with a related etymology).

[3] Souk Ahras (Thagaste) has played an important role in the political and cultural history of the region because of its strategic position at the crossroads of Numide, Ancient Roman, and Berber civilizations.

Thagaste was a town of Numidia in Roman North Africa, on the banks of the Oued Hamise river.

The Numidian city of Thagaste or Tagaste, on whose ruins Souk Ahras was built, was situated in the north-eastern highlands of Numidia.

During the Algerian War of Independence (1954–1962), Souk Ahras housed the Ouled Bechiah Mounts as an autonomous military base of the Army of National Liberation (ALN), called "Basis of the East".

The climate of Souk Ahras, like that of other Atlas cities, features wet winters and dry summers.

Souk Ahras on average receives roughly 840.74 mm (33.10 inches) of precipitation per year, the bulk of which is seen between October and April.

Tourism in Souk Ahras focuses largely on a variety of historical and natural sites.