January 29, 1885 Earthquake: Bordjou, Arreridj, Algeria
An earthquake struck Bordjou, Arreridj, Algeria on January 29, 1885 at 07:30 UTC. It caused a tsunami.
Map
Where it struck, with the other significant earthquakes within 200 km. Circles are sized and colored by magnitude; select one for its page.
The earthquake
- Date
- January 29, 1885
- Time
- 07:30 UTC
- Place
- Bordjou, Arreridj, Algeria
- Tsunami
- Yes: the tsunami it caused
- Country
- Algeria
The toll
The record gives no deaths, injuries or damage for this earthquake.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
1885, January 29, 07h30m, tsunami reliability 0. Earthquake in Algeria felt in Bordjbou-Arreridj and in Sétif with no damage. Sea level changed rapidly on some Algerian coasts (Galbis Rodriguez). (reference #4139)
1885, January 31. Algeria, M'Sila. Intensity II which corresponds to buildings may be unroofed or shattered and some may fall, the ground may be badly cracked in places and small landslips occur. (reference #1055) [This might be the same event, but listed as Jan 31 vs Jan 29.]
Note: this earthquake is not listed in the following historical Algerian earthquake catalogs, therefore, it is a questionable earthquake:
M. Hamdache, et al., 2010, A Unified Catalog of Main Earthquakes for Northern Algeria from A.D. 856 to 2008, Seismological Research Letters, vol. 81, no. 5, p. 732-739; V. Karnik, 1971, Seismicity of the European Area, Part 2, 218 p.;
J. Mezcua and J.M. Martinez Solares, Sismicidad del Area Ibero-Mogrebi. Presidencia del Gobierno, Instituto Geografico Nacional, Madrid, 210 p.
More
Significant earthquakes of 1885The 1800sThis day in weather history
Sources
Significant earthquakes from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI earthquake 9912.