Strait of Gibraltar, Latin Fretum Herculeum, channel connecting the Mediterranean Sea with the Atlantic Ocean, lying between southernmost Spain and northwesternmost Africa. It is 36 miles (58 km) long and narrows to 8 miles (13 km) in width between Point Marroquí (Spain) and Point Cires (Morocco). The strait’s western extreme is 27 miles (43 km) wide between the capes of Trafalgar (north) and Spartel (south), and the eastern extreme is 14 miles (23 km) wide between the Pillars of Heracles which have been identified as the Rock of Gibraltar to the north and one of two peaks to the south: Mount