Elkader, Iowa named for an Algerian emir

An Iowa town is named for Emir Abdelkader, the Algerian scholar and resistance leader, a rare U.S. city named for an Arab and Muslim figure. In 1860 he sheltered thousands of Christians during sectarian violence in Damascus, drawing honors from world leaders including a gift of pistols from the US president.

Timothy Davis, an abolitionist frontier lawyer, chose the name to honor Abdelkader's principled stand against imperial force. Elkader and Mascara, Algeria have been sister cities since 1984.