Aleppo
Encyclopedia
Aleppo is the largest city in Syria
and the capital of Aleppo Governorate
, the most populous Syrian governorate
. With an official population of 2,301,570 (2005 official estimate), expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant
. For centuries, Aleppo was Greater Syria
's largest city and the Ottoman Empire
's third, after Constantinople
and Cairo
. Although relatively close to Damascus
in distance, Aleppo is distinct in identity, architecture and culture, all shaped by a markedly different history and geography.
Aleppo is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world; it has been inhabited since perhaps as early as the 6th millennium BC. Excavations at Tell as-Sawda and Tell al-Ansari, just south of the old city of Aleppo, show that the area was occupied since at least the latter part of the 3rd millennium BC; and this is also when Aleppo is first mentioned in cuneiform tablets unearthed in Ebla
and Mesopotamia
, in which it is noted for its commercial and military proficiency. Such a long history is probably due to its being a strategic trading point midway between the Mediterranean Sea and Mesopotamia.
The city's significance in history has been its location at the end of the Silk Road
, which passed through central Asia and Mesopotamia. When the Suez Canal
was inaugurated in 1869, trade was diverted to sea and Aleppo began its slow decline. At the fall of the Ottoman Empire
after World War I, Aleppo ceded its northern hinterland to modern Turkey, as well as the important railway connecting it to Mosul
. Then in the 1940s it lost its main access to the sea, Antioch
and Alexandretta (Iskenderun), also to Turkey. Finally, the isolation of Syria in the past few decades further exacerbated the situation, although perhaps it is this very decline that has helped to preserve the old city of Aleppo, its mediaeval architecture and traditional heritage. Aleppo is now experiencing a noticeable revival and is slowly returning to the spotlight. It recently won the title of the "Islamic Capital of Culture 2006", and has also witnessed a wave of successful restorations of its historic landmarks.
and Romans
as Beroea (Βέροια). During the Crusades
, and again during the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon, the name Alep was used: "Aleppo" is an Italianised version of this.
The ancient name of the city, Halab, is also its Arabic name in the modern day. It is of obscure origin. Some have proposed that Halab means 'iron' or 'copper' in Amorite
languages since it was a major source of these metals in antiquity. Halaba in Aramaic means white, referring to the color of soil and marble abundant in the area. Another proposed etymology is that the name Halab means "gave out milk," coming from the ancient tradition that Abraham
gave milk to travelers as they moved throughout the region. The colour of his cows was ashen (Arab. shaheb); therefore the city is also called Halab ash-Shahba ("he milked the ash-coloured").
, on a plateau
380 meters above sea level
, 45 kilometers east of the Syrian-Turkish border checkpoint of Bab al-Hawa. The city is surrounded by farmlands from the north and the west, widely cultivated with olive and pistachio trees. To the east, Aleppo approaches the dry areas of the Syrian Desert
.
The city was originally founded a few kilometers south of the location of the current old city, on the right bank of river Quweiq which arises from the Aintab plateau
in the north and runs through Aleppo southward to the fertile country of Qinnasrin
. The old city of Aleppo lies on the left bank of the Quweiq. It was surrounded by a circle of eight hills surrounding a prominent central hill on which the castle (originally a temple dating to the 2nd millennium BC) was erected. The radius of the circle is about 10 km. The hills are Tell as-Sawda, Tell ʕāysha, Tell as-Sett, Tell al-Yāsmīn (Al-ʕaqaba), Tell al-Ansāri (Yārūqiyya), ʕan at-Tall, al-Jallūm, Baḥsīta. The old city was enclosed within an ancient walll that was last rebuilt by the Mamlukes. The wall has since disappeared. It had nine gates and was surrounded by a broad deep ditch.
Occupying an area of more than 190 km² (73.36 sq mi), Aleppo is one of the fastest growing cities in the Middle East. According to the new major plan of the city adopted in 2001, it is envisaged to increase the total area of Aleppo up to 420 km² (162.16 sq mi) by the end of 2015.
. The first record of Aleppo comes from the third millennium BC, when Aleppo was the capital of an independent kingdom closely related to Ebla
, known as Armi to Ebla and Arman to the Akkadians. Giovanni Pettinato describes Armi as Ebla's alter ego. Naram-Sin of Akkad (or his grandfather Sargon
) destroyed both Ebla and Arman in the 23rd century BC.
period, Aleppo's name appears as Ḥalab (Ḥalba) for the first time. Aleppo was the capital of the important Amorite
dynasty of Yamḥad
. The kingdom of Yamḥad (ca. 1800-1600 BC), alternatively known as the 'land of Ḥalab,' was the most powerful in the Near East at the time.
Yamḥad was destroyed by the Hittites
under Mursilis I in the 16th century BC. However, Aleppo soon resumed its leading role in Syria when the Hittite power in the region waned due to internal strife.
, king of the Hurrian kingdom of Mitanni
, conquered Aleppo in the 15th century BC. Subsequently, Aleppo found itself on the frontline in the struggle between the Mitanni and the Hittites and Egypt
.
The Hittite Suppiluliumas I permanently defeated Mitanni and conquered Aleppo in the 14th century BC. Aleppo had cult
ic importance to the Hittites for being the center of worship of the Storm-God
.
(Bit Agusi), and later it became capital of the Aramaean Syro-Hittite kingdom of Hatarikka-Luhuti.
In the 9th century BC, Aleppo was conquered by the Assyrians and became part of the Neo-Assyrian Empire until the late 7th century BC, before passing through the hands of the Neo-Babylonians and the Achamenid Persians.
settlement in the site between 301-286 BC. He called it Beroea (Βέροια), after Beroea
in Macedon
.
Northern Syria was the center of gravity of the Hellenistic colonizing activity, and therefore of Hellenistic culture in the Seleucid Empire
. As did other Hellenized cities of the Seleucid kingdom, Beroea probably enjoyed a measure of local autonomy, with a local civic assembly or boulē
composed of free Hellenes.
Beroea remained under Seleucid rule for nearly 300 years until the last holdings of the Seleucid dynasty were handed over to Pompey
in 64 BC, at which time they became a Roman province. Rome's presence afforded relative stability in northern Syria for over three centuries. Although the province was administered by a legate
from Rome, Rome did not impose its administrative organization on the Greek-speaking ruling class.
The Roman era saw an increase in the population of northern Syria that accelerated under the Byzantines
well into the 5th century. In Late Antiquity
, Beroea was the second largest Syrian city after Antioch
, the capital of Syria and the third largest city in the Roman world. Archaeological evidence indicates a high population density for settlements between Antioch and Beroea right up to the 6th century CE. This agrarian landscape holds now the remains of large estate houses and churches such as the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites. Saint Maron of the Maronite Church was probably born in this region; his tomb is located at Brad to the west of Aleppo.
Beroea is mentioned in 2 Macc.
13:3.
s under Khalid ibn al-Walid
in 637. In 944, it became the seat of an independent Emirate under the Hamdanid prince Sayf al-Daula
, and enjoyed a period of great prosperity, being home to the great poet al-Mutanabbi and the philosopher and polymath
al-Farabi
. The city was sacked by a resurgent Byzantine Empire in 962, while Byzantine forces occupied it briefly from 974 to 987. The city and its Emirate became an Imperial vassal from 969 until the Byzantine-Seljuk Wars
. The city was twice besieged by the Crusaders
, in 1098 and in 1124, but was not conquered.
On 9 August 1138, a deadly earthquake
ravaged the city and the surrounding area. Although estimates from this time are very unreliable, it is believed that 230,000 people died, making it the fifth deadliest earthquake in recorded history.
The city came under the control of Saladin
and then the Ayyubid Dynasty starting from 1183.
On 24 January 1260, the city was taken by the Mongols
under Hulagu in alliance with their vassals the Frank
knights of the ruler of Antioch
Bohemond VI and his father-in-law the Armenian ruler Hetoum I. The city was poorly defended by Turanshah, and as a result the walls fell after six days of bombardment, and the citadel fell four weeks later. The Muslim population was massacred and many Jews were also killed. The Christian population was spared. Turanshah was shown unusual respect by the Mongols, and was allowed to live because of his age and bravery. The city was then given to the former Emir of Homs
, al-Ashraf
, and a Mongol garrison was established in the city. Some of the spoils were also given to Hethoum I for his assistance in the attack. The Mongol Army then continued on to Damascus
, which surrendered, and the Mongols entered the city on 1 March 1260.
In September 1260, the Egyptian Mamluks negotiated for a treaty with the Franks of Acre which allowed them to pass through Crusader territory unmolested, and engaged the Mongols at the Battle of Ain Jalut
on September 3, 1260. The Mamluks won a decisive victory, killing the Mongols' Nestorian Christian general Kitbuqa
, and five days later they had re-taken Damascus. Aleppo was recovered by the Muslims within a month, and a Mamluk governor placed to govern the city. Hulagu sent troops to try to recover Aleppo in December. They were able to massacre a large number of Muslims in retaliation for the death of Kitbuqa, but after a fortnight could make no other progress and had to retreat.
The Mamluk governor of the city became insubordinate to the central Mamluk authority in Cairo, and in Autumn 1261 the Mamluk leader Baibars
sent an army to reclaim the city. In October 1271, the Mongols took the city again, attacking with 10,000 horsemen from Anatolia
, and defeating the Turcoman
troops who were defending Aleppo. The Mamluk garrisons fled to Hama
, until Baibars came north again with his main army, and the Mongols retreated.
On 20 October 1280, the Mongols took the city again, pillaging the markets and burning the mosques. The Muslim inhabitants fled for Damascus, where the Mamluk leader Qalawun
assembled his forces. When his army advanced, the Mongols again retreated, back across the Euphrates
.
Aleppo returned to native control only in 1317. In 1400, the Mongol-Turkic leader Tamerlane
captured the city again from the Mamluks. He massacred many of the inhabitants, ordering the building of a tower of 20,000 skulls outside the city. After the withdrawal of the Mongols, all the Muslim population returned to Aleppo. On the other hand, Christians who left the city during the Mongol invasion were unable to resettle back in their own quarter in the old town, a fact that led them to establish a new neighborhood in 1420, built outside the city walls, at the northern suburbs of Aleppo. This new quarter was called al-Jdeydeh ("the new district" in Arabic).
in 1516, when the city had around 50,000 inhabitants. It was the center of the Vilayet of Aleppo
and the capital of Syria.
Thanks to its strategic geographic location on the trade route between Anatolia
and the east, Aleppo rose to high prominence in the Ottoman era, at one point being second only to Constantinople
in the empire. By the middle of the 16th century, Aleppo had displaced Damascus
as the principal market for goods coming to the Mediterranean region from the east. This is reflected by the fact that the Levant Company of London, a joint-trading company founded in 1581 to monopolize England's trade with the Ottoman Empire, never attempted to settle a factor, or agnet, in Damascus, despite having had permission to do so. Aleppo served as the company's headquarters until the late 18th century.
As a result of the economic development, many European states had opened consulates in Aleppo during the 16th and the 17th centuries, such as the consulate of the Republic of Venice
in 1548, the consulate of France in 1562, the consulate of England in 1583 and the consulate of the Netherlands
in 1613.
However, the prosperity Aleppo experienced in the 16th and 17th century started to fade as silk production in Iran went into decline with the fall of the Safavid dynasty
in 1722. By mid-century, caravans were no longer bringing silk from Iran to Aleppo, and local Syrian production was insufficient for Europe's demand. European merchants left Aleppo and the city went into an economic decline that was not reversed until the mid-19th century when locally produced cotton and tobacco became the principal commodities of interest to the Europeans.
The economy of Aleppo was badly hit by the opening of the Suez Canal
in 1869. This, in addition to political instability that followed the implementation of significant reforms in 1841 by the central government, contributed to Aleppo's decline and the rise of Damascus as a serious economic and political competitor with Aleppo.
Reference is made to the city in 1606 in William Shakespeare's 'Macbeth.' The witches torment the captain of the ship the Tiger which was headed to Aleppo from England but endured a 567 day voyage before returning unsuccessfully to port. Reference is also made to the city in Shakespeare's 'Othello' when Othello speaks his final words (ACT V, ii, 349f.): "Set you down this/And say besides that in Aleppo once,/Where a malignant and a turbanned Turk/Beat a Venitia and traduced the state,/I took by th' throat the circumcised dog/And smote him--thus!" (Arden Shakespeare Edition, 2004). The English naval chaplain Henry Teonge
describes in his diary a visit he paid to the city in 1675, when there was a colony of West European merchants living there.
The city remained Ottoman until the empire's collapse, but was occasionally riven with internal feuds as well as attacks of cholera
from 1823. Aleppo lost some 20-25 percent of its population to plague in 1827. By 1901, the city's population was around 110,000.
At the end of World War I, the Treaty of Sèvres
made most of the Province of Aleppo part of the newly established nation of Syria
, while Cilicia was promised by France to become an Armenian state. However, Kemal Ataturk annexed most of the Province of Aleppo as well as Cilicia to Turkey
in his War of Independence
. The Arab residents in the province (as well as the Kurds) supported the Turks in this war against the French, a notable example being Ibrahim Hanano who directly coordinated with Ataturk and received weaponry from him. The outcome, however, was disastrous for Aleppo, because as per the Treaty of Lausanne
, most of the Province of Aleppo was made part of Turkey with the exception of Aleppo and Alexandretta; thus, Aleppo was cut from its northern satellites and from the Anatolian cities beyond on which Aleppo depended heavily in commerce. Moreover, the Sykes-Picot division of the Near East separated Aleppo from most of Mesopotamia
, which also harmed the economy of Aleppo. The situation exacerbated further in 1939 when Alexandretta was annexed to Turkey, thus depriving Aleppo from its main port of Iskenderun
and leaving it in total isolation within Syria.
The State of Aleppo
was declared by the French General Henri Gouraud in September 1920 as part of a French scheme to make Syria easier to control by dividing it into several smaller states. France became more hostile to the idea of a united Syria after the Battle of Maysaloun.
By separating Aleppo from Damascus, Gouraud wanted to capitalize on a traditional state of competition between the two cities and turn it into political division. The people in Aleppo were unhappy with the fact that Damascus was chosen as capital for the new nation of Syria. Gouraud sensed this sentiment and tried to manipulate it by making Aleppo the capital of a large and wealthier state with which it would have been hard for Damascus to compete. The State of Aleppo as drawn by France contained most of the fertile area of Syria— namely it contained the fertile country of Aleppo in addition to the entire fertile basin of river Euphrates
. The state also had access to sea via the autonomous Sanjak of Alexandretta. On the other hand, Damascus, which is basically an oasis on the fringes of the Syrian Desert
, had neither enough fertile land nor access to sea. Basically, Gouraud wanted to lure Aleppo by giving it control over most of the agricultural and mineral wealth of Syria so that it would never want to unite with Damascus again.
, and the Alawite State
. The capital of the federation was Aleppo at first, but it was relocated to Damascus. The president of the federation was Subhi Barakat, an Antioch
-born politician from Aleppo.
The federation ended in December 1924, when France merged Aleppo and Damascus into a single Syrian State and separated the Alawite State again. This action came after the federation decided to merge the three federated states into one and to take steps encouraging Syria's financial independence— steps which France viewed as too much.
, a demand that was firmly rejected by Damascus. Instead, Damascus favored a pro-Egyptian, pro-Saudi orientation and actively participated in the establishment of the Arab League
in Alexandria
in 1944, an organization that was seen by many Arab nationalists as a 'conspiracy' aimed against the unification of the Fertile Crescent
under the Hashimites.
The increasing disagreements between Aleppo and Damascus led eventually to the split of the National Block into two factions: the National Party, established in Damascus in 1947, and the People's Party, established in Aleppo in 1948 by Rushdi Kikhya and Nazim Qudsi. An underlying cause of the disagreement, in addition to the union with Iraq, was Aleppo's intention to relocate the capital from Damascus. The issue of the capital became an open debate matter in 1950 when the Popular Party presented a constitution draft that called Damascus a "temporary capital."
The first coup d'état in modern Syrian history was carried out in March 1949 by an army officer from Aleppo, Hussni Zaim. However, lured by the absolute power he enjoyed as a dictator, Zaim soon developed a pro-Egyptian, pro-Western orientation and abandoned the cause of union with Iraq. This incited a second coup only four months after his. The second coup, led by Sami Hinnawi (also from Aleppo), empowered the Popular Party and actively sought to realize the union with Iraq. The news of an imminent union with Iraq incited a third coup the same year: in December 1949, Adib Shishakly led a coup preempting a union with Iraq that was about to be declared.
Soon after Shishakly's domination ended in 1954, a union
with Egypt under Gamal Abdul Nasser was implemented in 1958. The union, however, collapsed only two years later when a junta of young Damascene officers carried out a separatist coup. Aleppo resisted the separatist coup, but eventually it had no choice but to recognize the new regime. The new regime tried to absorb Aleppo's dissent by appointing both a president and premier from Aleppo—Nazim Qudsi and Marouf Dawalibi.
In March 1963 a coalition of Baathists, Nasserists, and Socialists launched a new coup whose declared objective was to restore the union with Egypt. However, the new regime only restored the flag of the union. Soon thereafter disagreement between the Baathists and the Nasserists over the restoration of the union became a crisis, and the Baathists ousted the Nasserists from power. The Nasserists, most of whom were from the Aleppine middle class, responded with an insurgency in Aleppo in July 1963.
Again, the Baath regime tried to absorb the dissent of the Syrian middle class (whose center of political activism was Aleppo) by putting to the front Amin Hafiz
, a Baathist military officer from Aleppo.
President Hafez Assad, who came to power in 1970, relied on support from the business class in Damascus. This gave Damascus further advantage over Aleppo, and hence Damascus came to dominate the Syrian economy. The strict centralization of the Syrian state, the intentional direction of resources towards Damascus, and the hegemony Damascus enjoys over the Syrian economy made it increasingly hard for Aleppo to compete. Hence, Aleppo is no longer an economic or cultural capital of Syria as it once used to be.
In 2006, Aleppo was named by the Islamic Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) as the capital of Islamic culture.
On 12 August 2011, with the ongoing Syrian uprising, an anti-government protest was held in the city's Sakhour district and at least two others. The one in Sakhour was "1,000 people at most" and
it ended with two protesters being shot dead by Syrian security forces.
On 19 October 2011, in one of the most largest rallies ever held in Syria, more than 1.5 million Aleppines flocked to Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square
in support of the government of president Bashar al-Assad
.
There are various types of 13th and 14th centuries construction, such as caravanserais, Quranic schools and hammams, and the Christian and Islamic holy buildings of the old city and Jdeydeh quarter. The latter is home of numerous 16th and 17th-century houses of the Aleppine bourgeoisie, featuring stone engravings. Baroque architecture
of the 19th and early 20th centuries is common in the Azizyeh quarter, including the Villa Rose. The new Shahba quarter is a mixture of several styles, such as Neo-classic, Norman
, Oriental and even Chinese architecture
.
Since the old city is characterized with its large mansions, narrow alleys and covered suqs, the modern city's architecture has replenished the town with wide roads and large squares such as the Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square
, the Liberty Square
, the President's Square and Sabaa Bahrat Square
.
There is a relatively clear division between old and new Aleppo. The older portions were contained within a wall, 5 km in circuit with nine gates. The huge medieval castle
in the city – known as the Citadel of Aleppo
– occupies the center of the ancient part, in the shape of an acropolis
.
Being subjected to constant invasions and political instability, the inhabitants of the city were forced to build cell-like quarters and districts that were socially and economically independent. Each district was characterized by the religious and ethnic characteristics of its inhabitants.
The old city was built (mostly in white stone) within the historical walls of the city, pierced by the nine historical gates, while Jdeydeh is the Christian quarter which was built during the early 15th century, after the Mongol withdrawal from the city. Jdeydeh is one of the finest examples of a cell-like quarter in Aleppo. After Timur
invaded Aleppo in 1400 and destroyed it, the Christians migrated out of the city walls and established their own cell in 1420, at the northwestern region of the city, thus founding the quarter of Jdeydeh. The inhabitants of Jdeydeh were mainly brokers who facilitated trade between foreign traders and local merchants.
The total area of the ancient city is around 350 hectares (3.5 km²) housing more than 120,000 residents.
and Mesopotamia
to the east, Europe
to the west, and the fertile crescent
and Egypt
to the south. The largest covered suq-market in the world is in Aleppo, with an approximate length of 13 kilometers.
The Suq al-Medina, as it is locally known, is an active trade centre for imported luxury goods, such as raw silk from Iran
, spices and dyes from India
, and coffee from Damascus
. The Medina also is home to local products such as wool, agricultural products and soap. Most of the souqs date back to the 14th century and are named after various professions and crafts, hence the wool souq, the copper souq, and so on. Aside from trading, the souq accommodated the traders and their goods in khans (caravanserai
s) and scattered in the souq. Other types of small market-places were called caeserias (قيساريات). Caeserias were smaller than khans in their sizes and functioned as workshops for craftsmen. Most of the khans took their names after their location in the souq and function, and are characterized with their beautiful façades and entrances with fortified wooden doors.
The most notable suqs of the old city include:
Many traditional khans are also functioning as suqs in Jdeydeh Christian quarter:
The most significant historic buildings of Jdeydeh Christian quarter include:
. They are a group of 700 abandoned settlements in northwest Syria. Those cities date back to before the 5th century AD and contain remains of Christian Byzantine architecture
. Many are located in the Mount Simeon and Jabal Halaqa regions at the western suburbs of Aleppo, within the range of Limestone Massif
.
Dead cities and archeological sites in Jabal Semaan (Mount Simeon) near Aleppo include:
.jpg)
Many other sites and dead cities in the area, are located on various distances around Aleppo such as Qal'at Najm, Ebla
, Serjilla
, Bara
, Qalb Lozeh Basilica, Baqirha Byzantine Church, Deir Mishmish Church, Benastur Monastery, Deir Amman churches, Sargible settlement, Tell A'de Church and Monastery and other settlements in Jabal Halaqa region.
, the city was significantly redesigned; in 1954 French architect André Gutton
had a number of wide new roads cut through the city to allow easier passage for modern traffic. Between 1954-1983 many buildings in the old city were demolished to allow for the construction of modern apartment blocks, particularly in the northwestern areas (Bab al-Faraj and Bab al-Jinan
). As awareness for the need to preserve this unique cultural heritage increased, Gutton's master plan was finally abandoned in 1979 to be replaced with a new plan presented by the Swiss expert and urban designer Stefano Bianca
, which adopted the idea of "preserving the traditional architectural style of Ancient Aleppo" paving the way for UNESCO
to declare the Old City of Aleppo as a World Heritage Site in 1986.
Several international institutions have joined efforts with local authorities and the Aleppo Archeological Society, to rehabilitate the old city by accommodating contemporary life while preserving the old one. The governorate and the municipality are implementing serious programmes directed towards the enhancement of the ancient city and Jdeydeh quarter.
The German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) and Aga Khan Foundation
(within the frames of Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme) have a great contribution in the preservation process of the old city.
According to the Aleppine historian Sheikh Kamel Al-Ghazzi (1853–1933), the population of Aleppo was around 400,000 before the disastrous earthquake of 1822. Followed by cholera and plague attacks in 1823 and 1827 respectively, the population of the city declined to 110,000 by the end of the 19th century. In 1901, the total population of Aleppo was 108,143 of which Muslims were 76,329 (70.58%), Christians -mostly Catholics- 24,508 (22.66%) and Jews 7,306 (6.76%).
Aleppo's large Christian population swelled with the influx of Armenian and Syriac Christian refugees during the early 20th-century and after the Armenian Genocide
of 1915. After the arrival of the first groups of Armenian refugees (1915–1922) the population of Aleppo in 1922 counted 156,748 of which Muslims were 97,600 (62.26%), native Christians -mostly Catholics- 22,117 (14.11%), Jews 6,580 (4.20%), Europeans 2,652 (1.70%), Armenian refugees 20,007 (12.76%) and others 7,792 (4.97%).
The second period of Armenian flow towards Aleppo marked with the withdrawal of the French troops from Cilicia
in 1923. After the arrival of more than 40,000 Armenian refugees between 1923–1925, the population of the city reached up to 210,000 by the end of 1925, where Armenians
formed more than 25% of it.
According to the historical data presented by Sheikh Kamel Al-Ghazzi, the vast majority of the Aleppine Christians were Catholics until the last days of the Ottoman rule. The growth of the Orthodox Christians is related with the arrival of the Armenian and Syrian Christian genocide-survivors from Cilicia and Southern Turkey, while on the other hand, large numbers of Orthodox Greeks from the Sanjak of Alexandretta
arrived in Aleppo, after the annexation of the Sanjak in 1939 in favour of Turkey.
In 1944, Aleppo's population was around 325,000, with 112,110 (34.5%) Christians among which Armenians have counted 60,200. Armenians formed more than half of the Christian community in Aleppo until 1947, when many groups of them left for Soviet Armenia within the frames of Armenian Repatriation Process (1946-1967).
More than 80% of Aleppo's inhabitants are Sunni Muslims. They are mainly Arabs followed by Kurds and Turkmens. Other Muslim groups include few numbers of ethnic Circassians, Chechens, Adyghe
, Albanians
, Bosnians
, Bulgarians
, and Kabardin.
Being one of the largest Christian
communities in the Middle East, Aleppo is home to many eastern Christian congregations, mainly Armenians
, Syrian Christians
and Melkite Greeks. Nowadays, more than 250,000 Christians live in the city representing about 12% of the total population. A significant number of the Syrian Christians in Aleppo speak the Armenian language
and hail from the city of Urfa in Turkey. The large community of Orthodox Christians belongs to the Armenian Apostolic
, Syrian Orthodox and Greek Orthodox Churches. There is also a strong presence of Catholic Christians in the city including Melkite Greeks, Maronites, Latins, Chaldeans and Syrian Catholics. Evangelical Christians of different groups are a minority in the city. Several areas have a Christian and Armenian majority, such as the old Christian quarter of Jdeydeh. Modern Christian districts include Aziziyeh, Suleimaniyeh, Gare de Baghdad, Ourubeh and Meydan. There are 45 operating churches in the city, possessed by the abovementioned Christian congregations.
The Arabic-speaking population of Aleppo uses the North Syrian dialect
of the Levantine Arabic
.
, built in the 5th century, housed the Aleppo codex
. In the early 20th-century, the towns Jews mainly lived in Al-Jamiliyah, Bab Al-Naser and the neighborhoods around the Great Synagogue. Unrest in Palestine in the years preceding the establishment of Israel in 1948 resulted in growing hostility towards Jews living in Arab countries. In December 1947, after the UN decided the partition of Palestine, an Arab mob attacked the Jewish quarter. Homes, schools and shops were badly damaged. Soon after, many of the town's remaining 6,000 Jews emigrated. In 1968, there were an estimated 700 Jews still remaining in Aleppo.
The houses and other properties of the Jewish families which were not sold after the migration, remain uninhabited under the protection of the Syrian Government. Most of these properties are in Al-Jamiliyah and Bab Al-Naser areas, and the neighborhoods around the Central synagogue of Aleppo
. Eventually, the Syrian government lifted restriction on its Jewish citizens with the sole condition that they did not travel to Israel to settle there. Most travelled to the USA, where a sizeable Syrian Jewish community currently exists in Brooklyn
, New York
. Today, only a handful of Jewish families live in Aleppo, and many of the buildings such as the synagogue and the Jewish school remain empty, only to be used for special events and religious ceremonies.
, the Tigris
and Euphrates
regions and the route coming from Damascus
in the South, which traced the base of the mountains rather than the rugged seacoast. Although trade was often directed away from the city for political reasons, it continued to thrive until the Europeans began to use the Cape route
to India
and later to utilize the route through Egypt
to the Red Sea
.
The commercial traditions in Aleppo have deep roots in the history. The Aleppo Chamber of commerce founded in 1885, is one of the oldest chambers in the Middle East
and the Arab world. According to many historians, Aleppo was the most developed commercial and industrial city in the Ottoman Empire
after Constantinople
and Cairo
.
Being the largest urban area in the Syrian Republic, the economy of Aleppo is driven by textiles, chemicals, pharmaceutics, agro-processing industries, electricals, alcoholic beverage
s, engineering and tourism. It is the country’s dominant manufacturing centre, with a share of more than 50% of manufacturing employment and an even greater export share. Being located in a highly productive agricultural region, Aleppo supplies agricultural inputs and processes much of its agricultural output.
Possessing the most developed commercial and industrial plants in Syria, Aleppo is a major centre for manufacturing precious metals and stones.
The industrial city of Aleppo in Sheikh Najjar district is one of the largest ones in Syria and the region. Occupying an area of 4412 hectares in the north-eastern suburbs of Aleppo, the total investments in the city counted more than US$ 3.4 billion during 2010. Still under development, it is envisaged to open hotels, exhibition centres and other facilities within the industrial city.
The old traditional crafts are well-preserved in the old part of the city. The famous laurel soap of Aleppo
is considered to be the world's first hard soap.
. Many villagers and inhabitants of other Syrian districts are migrating to Aleppo in an effort to find better job opportunities, a fact that always increases population pressure, with a growing demand for new residential capacity. New districts and residential communities have been built in the suburbs of Aleppo, many of them are still under construction .
Two major construction projects are scheduled in Aleppo: the "Old City Revival" project and the "Reopening of the stream bed of Quweiq River".
Like other major Syrian cities, Aleppo is suffering from the dispersal of informal settlements, with almost half of its population (around 1.2 million) are estimated to live in 22 informal settlements of different types.
through the city in 1912. The connections to Turkey and onwards to Ankara
still exist today, with a twice weekly train from Damascus. It is perhaps for this historical reason that Aleppo is the headquarters of Syria national railway network, Chemins de Fer Syriens
. As the railway has a relatively slow speed of passage, much of the passenger traffic to the port of Latakia
had moved to road based air-conditioned coaches. But this has reversed in recent years with the 2005 introduction of South Korea
n built DMU's proving regular bi-hourly express service to both Latakia and Damascus, which miss intermediate stations.
(IATA: ALP, ICAO: OSAP) is the international airport serving the city. The airport serves as a secondary hub for Syrian Arab Airlines
. The history of the airport dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. It was upgraded and developed within the years until 1999 when the new current terminal was inaugurated.
Aleppo is home to one of the most developed military academies in the region; the "Al-Assad Military Engineering Academy" .
As of 2010, there are three private universities operating in the city: Private University of Science and Arts (PUSA), Gulf University (GU), and Mamoun University for Science and Technology (MUST).
Branches of the state conservatory and the fine arts school are also operating in the city.
Aleppo is home to several Christian and Armenian community-schools, and two international schools: International School of Aleppo
and Lycée Français d'Alep
.
Aleppo is considered one of the main centres of Arabic traditional and classic music with the famous Aleppine Muwashshah
s, Qudoods and Maqams (religious and secular poetic-musical genres). Aleppines in general are fond of Arab classical music, the Tarab, and it is not a surprise that many artists from Aleppo are considered pioneers among the Arabs in classic and traditional music. The most prominent figures in this field are Sabri Mdallal, Sabah Fakhri
, Shadi Jameel, Abed Azrie
and Nour Mhanna
. Many iconic artists of the Arab music like Sayed Darwish
and Mohammed Abdel Wahab
were visiting Aleppo to recognize the legacy of Aleppine art and learn from its cultural heritage.
Aleppo is also known for its knowledgeable and cultivated listeners, known as sammi'a or "connoisseur listeners". Aleppine musicians often claim that no major Arab artist achieved fame without first earning the approval of the Aleppine sammi'a.
Aleppo hosts many music shows and festivals every year at the citadel amphitheatre, such as the "Syrian Song Festival", the "Silk Road Festival" and "Khan al-Harir Festival".
The most popular sport in Aleppo is football. Aleppo has many football clubs, among which only Al-Ittihad Aleppo
, plays in the Syrian National Football League's top division for the season 2009–2010. The city is the home of Syria's largest sports venue; the Aleppo International Stadium
with a capacity of 75,000 spectators.
Major sport clubs in the city include:
Al-Ittihad is the biggest and most popular club in Syria. The club has its own stadium with a capacity of 15,000 spectators, but due to the huge number of the supporters, they use the main stadiums of the city: Al-Hamadaniah Stadium
and the Aleppo International Stadium
. On the other hand, the 2nd division teams; Al-Horriya and Al Yarmouk, use the 7 April Municipal Stadium which can serve around 18,000 spectators.
Basketball
in its turn is also popular in Aleppo. 4 clubs out of 12 in the Syrian Basketball men's top division are from Aleppo, while five Aleppine clubs are included in the women's top division, making up to 50% of the total participants (as of 2010-2011 season).
Many other types of sports are being practiced by the abovementioned clubs as well as other small clubs. tennis
, handball
, volleyball
, table tennis
and swimming are among the favorites.
. Therefore, it's not a surprise that the International Academy of Gastronomy in France awarded Aleppo its culinary prize in 2007. But in fact, Aleppo was a food capital long before Paris
, because of its diverse communities combined by Arabs, Kurds, Armenians
, Circassians and a sizable Arab Christian population. All of those groups contributed food traditions, since Aleppo was part of the Ottoman Empire
.
The city has a vast selection of different types of dishes, such as kabab, kibbeh
, dolma
, hummus
, ful halabi, za'atar
halabi, etc. Ful halabi, is a typical Aleppine breakfast meal: fava bean soup with a splash of olive oil, lemon juice and Aleppo's red peppers. The kibbeh is one of the most favourite foods for the locals, and that's why the Aleppines have invented more than 17 types of kibbeh dishes, which is considered a form of art for them. The za'atar of Aleppo (thyme) is a type of Syrian oregano which is very popular among Arabs, Armenians and Turks. The most favourite drink is Arak
, which is usually consumed along with meze
, Aleppine grills and kibbehs. Al-Chark beer which is manufactured in Aleppo is also a favourite.
Aleppo is the origin of many different types of sweets and pastries. The Aleppine sweets are characterized to contain high rates of ghee butter and sugar, such as mabrumeh, swar es-sett, balloriyyeh, etc. Other sweets include mamuniyeh, shuaibiyyat, mushabbak, zilebiyeh, ghazel al-banat etc. Most of the pastries can contain the renowned Aleppine pistachios or other types of nuts.
The Programme has three fields of work:
The UDP cooperates closely with other interventions in the sector, namely the EU-supported 'Municipal Administration Modernization' programme. It is planned to operate from 2007 to 2016.
and the centre of Jabal Semaan
district. Aleppo City Council is the governing body of the city. The first municipality council was formed in 1868. However, the governor -in his turn- enjoys the highest authority over the city and the entire governorate.
The following quarters within the walls of the ancient city are centred by the citadel:
Significant old quarters outside the walls of the ancient city include:
Significant modern districts include:
, Turkey
since 5 May 1993. Lyon
, France since 18 October 2000. Gaziantep
, Turkey
since 13 November 2005. Brest
, Belarus
since 28 January 2010.
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
and the capital of Aleppo Governorate
Aleppo Governorate
Aleppo Governorate is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is the most populous governorate in Syria with a population of more than 4,744,000 , almost 23% of the total population of Syria. The governorate is the fifth in area with an area of 18,482 km², about 10% of the total area of...
, the most populous Syrian governorate
Governorates of Syria
Syria has fourteen governorates, or muhafazat . The governorates are divided into sixty districts, or manatiq , which are further divided into subdistricts, or nawahi...
. With an official population of 2,301,570 (2005 official estimate), expanding to over 2.5 million in the metropolitan area, it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant
Levant
The Levant or ) is the geographic region and culture zone of the "eastern Mediterranean littoral between Anatolia and Egypt" . The Levant includes most of modern Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Israel, the Palestinian territories, and sometimes parts of Turkey and Iraq, and corresponds roughly to the...
. For centuries, Aleppo was Greater Syria
Greater Syria
Greater Syria , also known simply as Syria, is a term that denotes a region in the Near East bordering the Eastern Mediterranean Sea or the Levant....
's largest city and the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
's third, after Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
and Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
. Although relatively close to Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
in distance, Aleppo is distinct in identity, architecture and culture, all shaped by a markedly different history and geography.
Aleppo is one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world; it has been inhabited since perhaps as early as the 6th millennium BC. Excavations at Tell as-Sawda and Tell al-Ansari, just south of the old city of Aleppo, show that the area was occupied since at least the latter part of the 3rd millennium BC; and this is also when Aleppo is first mentioned in cuneiform tablets unearthed in Ebla
Ebla
Ebla Idlib Governorate, Syria) was an ancient city about southwest of Aleppo. It was an important city-state in two periods, first in the late third millennium BC, then again between 1800 and 1650 BC....
and Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
, in which it is noted for its commercial and military proficiency. Such a long history is probably due to its being a strategic trading point midway between the Mediterranean Sea and Mesopotamia.
The city's significance in history has been its location at the end of the Silk Road
Silk Road
The Silk Road or Silk Route refers to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa...
, which passed through central Asia and Mesopotamia. When the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
was inaugurated in 1869, trade was diverted to sea and Aleppo began its slow decline. At the fall of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
after World War I, Aleppo ceded its northern hinterland to modern Turkey, as well as the important railway connecting it to Mosul
Mosul
Mosul , is a city in northern Iraq and the capital of the Ninawa Governorate, some northwest of Baghdad. The original city stands on the west bank of the Tigris River, opposite the ancient Assyrian city of Nineveh on the east bank, but the metropolitan area has now grown to encompass substantial...
. Then in the 1940s it lost its main access to the sea, Antioch
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
and Alexandretta (Iskenderun), also to Turkey. Finally, the isolation of Syria in the past few decades further exacerbated the situation, although perhaps it is this very decline that has helped to preserve the old city of Aleppo, its mediaeval architecture and traditional heritage. Aleppo is now experiencing a noticeable revival and is slowly returning to the spotlight. It recently won the title of the "Islamic Capital of Culture 2006", and has also witnessed a wave of successful restorations of its historic landmarks.
Etymology
Aleppo is the common modern-day English name for the city. It was known in antiquity as Khalpe, Khalibon, and to the GreeksAncient Greece
Ancient Greece is a civilization belonging to a period of Greek history that lasted from the Archaic period of the 8th to 6th centuries BC to the end of antiquity. Immediately following this period was the beginning of the Early Middle Ages and the Byzantine era. Included in Ancient Greece is the...
and Romans
Ancient Rome
Ancient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
as Beroea (Βέροια). During the Crusades
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
, and again during the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon, the name Alep was used: "Aleppo" is an Italianised version of this.
The ancient name of the city, Halab, is also its Arabic name in the modern day. It is of obscure origin. Some have proposed that Halab means 'iron' or 'copper' in Amorite
Amorite
Amorite refers to an ancient Semitic people who occupied large parts of Mesopotamia from the 21st Century BC...
languages since it was a major source of these metals in antiquity. Halaba in Aramaic means white, referring to the color of soil and marble abundant in the area. Another proposed etymology is that the name Halab means "gave out milk," coming from the ancient tradition that Abraham
Abraham
Abraham , whose birth name was Abram, is the eponym of the Abrahamic religions, among which are Judaism, Christianity and Islam...
gave milk to travelers as they moved throughout the region. The colour of his cows was ashen (Arab. shaheb); therefore the city is also called Halab ash-Shahba ("he milked the ash-coloured").
Geography and description
Aleppo lies about 120 km (75 mi) inland from the Mediterranean SeaMediterranean Sea
The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean surrounded by the Mediterranean region and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Anatolia and Europe, on the south by North Africa, and on the east by the Levant...
, on a plateau
Aleppo plateau
Aleppo plateau is a low, gently undulating plateau of northern Syria. It lies at the northern end of the junction between the Arabian Plate and the African Plate at the Dead Sea Rift. The plateau lies mostly in the Aleppo Governorate and Idlib Governorate...
380 meters above sea level
Sea level
Mean sea level is a measure of the average height of the ocean's surface ; used as a standard in reckoning land elevation...
, 45 kilometers east of the Syrian-Turkish border checkpoint of Bab al-Hawa. The city is surrounded by farmlands from the north and the west, widely cultivated with olive and pistachio trees. To the east, Aleppo approaches the dry areas of the Syrian Desert
Syrian Desert
The Syrian Desert , also known as the Syro-Arabian desert is a combination of steppe and true desert that is located in the northern Arabian Peninsula covering 200,000 square miles . also the desert is very rocky and flat...
.
The city was originally founded a few kilometers south of the location of the current old city, on the right bank of river Quweiq which arises from the Aintab plateau
Aintab plateau
Aintab plateau or Gaziantep plateau is a low, gently undulating plateau that forms the westernmost part of the Southeastern Anatolia Region in Turkey. It forms the northwestern end of the Arabian Plate where it meets the Anatolian Plate at the East Anatolian Fault. The plateau lies in the Turkish...
in the north and runs through Aleppo southward to the fertile country of Qinnasrin
Qinnasrin
Qinnasrin , was a historical town in northern Syria. It gained fame as an important religious and cultural centre of Syriac Christians before the coming of Islamic conquests....
. The old city of Aleppo lies on the left bank of the Quweiq. It was surrounded by a circle of eight hills surrounding a prominent central hill on which the castle (originally a temple dating to the 2nd millennium BC) was erected. The radius of the circle is about 10 km. The hills are Tell as-Sawda, Tell ʕāysha, Tell as-Sett, Tell al-Yāsmīn (Al-ʕaqaba), Tell al-Ansāri (Yārūqiyya), ʕan at-Tall, al-Jallūm, Baḥsīta. The old city was enclosed within an ancient walll that was last rebuilt by the Mamlukes. The wall has since disappeared. It had nine gates and was surrounded by a broad deep ditch.
Occupying an area of more than 190 km² (73.36 sq mi), Aleppo is one of the fastest growing cities in the Middle East. According to the new major plan of the city adopted in 2001, it is envisaged to increase the total area of Aleppo up to 420 km² (162.16 sq mi) by the end of 2015.
Climate
Aleppo has a semi-arid climate. The mountain series that run along the Mediterranean coast, namely Mount Alawites and Mount Amanus, largely block the effects of the Mediterranean on climate (rain shadow effect). The average temperature is 18-20 C. The average precipitation is 395 mm (15.55 in). 80% of precipitation occurs between October and March. Snow is rare. Average humidity is 58%.Pre-history and pre-classical era
Aleppo has scarcely been touched by archaeologists, since the modern city occupies its ancient site. The site has been occupied from around 5000 BC, as excavations in Tallet Alsauda show.Early Bronze Age
Aleppo appears in historical records as an important city much earlier than DamascusDamascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
. The first record of Aleppo comes from the third millennium BC, when Aleppo was the capital of an independent kingdom closely related to Ebla
Ebla
Ebla Idlib Governorate, Syria) was an ancient city about southwest of Aleppo. It was an important city-state in two periods, first in the late third millennium BC, then again between 1800 and 1650 BC....
, known as Armi to Ebla and Arman to the Akkadians. Giovanni Pettinato describes Armi as Ebla's alter ego. Naram-Sin of Akkad (or his grandfather Sargon
Sargon of Akkad
Sargon of Akkad, also known as Sargon the Great "the Great King" , was an Akkadian emperor famous for his conquest of the Sumerian city-states in the 23rd and 22nd centuries BC. The founder of the Dynasty of Akkad, Sargon reigned in the last quarter of the third millennium BC...
) destroyed both Ebla and Arman in the 23rd century BC.
Middle Bronze Age
In the Old BabylonianOld Babylonian
Old Babylonian may refer to:*the period of the First Babylonian Dynasty *the historical stage of the Akkadian language of that time...
period, Aleppo's name appears as Ḥalab (Ḥalba) for the first time. Aleppo was the capital of the important Amorite
Amorite
Amorite refers to an ancient Semitic people who occupied large parts of Mesopotamia from the 21st Century BC...
dynasty of Yamḥad
Yamhad
Yamhad was an ancient Amorite kingdom centered at Halab . A substantial Hurrian population also settled in the kingdom, and the Hurrian culture influenced the area. The kingdom was powerful during the Middle Bronze Age, ca. 1800-1600 BC. Its biggest rival was Qatna further south...
. The kingdom of Yamḥad (ca. 1800-1600 BC), alternatively known as the 'land of Ḥalab,' was the most powerful in the Near East at the time.
Yamḥad was destroyed by the Hittites
Hittites
The Hittites were a Bronze Age people of Anatolia.They established a kingdom centered at Hattusa in north-central Anatolia c. the 18th century BC. The Hittite empire reached its height c...
under Mursilis I in the 16th century BC. However, Aleppo soon resumed its leading role in Syria when the Hittite power in the region waned due to internal strife.
Late Bronze Age
Taking advantage of the power vacuum in the region, ParshatatarParshatatar
Parshatatar, or Paršatar, the name of a Hurrian king of Mitanni in the fifteenth century BC. He may be the same individual as king Barattarna.-Barattarna:...
, king of the Hurrian kingdom of Mitanni
Mitanni
Mitanni or Hanigalbat was a loosely organized Hurrian-speaking state in northern Syria and south-east Anatolia from ca. 1500 BC–1300 BC...
, conquered Aleppo in the 15th century BC. Subsequently, Aleppo found itself on the frontline in the struggle between the Mitanni and the Hittites and Egypt
Ancient Egypt
Ancient Egypt was an ancient civilization of Northeastern Africa, concentrated along the lower reaches of the Nile River in what is now the modern country of Egypt. Egyptian civilization coalesced around 3150 BC with the political unification of Upper and Lower Egypt under the first pharaoh...
.
The Hittite Suppiluliumas I permanently defeated Mitanni and conquered Aleppo in the 14th century BC. Aleppo had cult
Cult
The word cult in current popular usage usually refers to a group whose beliefs or practices are considered abnormal or bizarre. The word originally denoted a system of ritual practices...
ic importance to the Hittites for being the center of worship of the Storm-God
Teshub
Teshub was the Hurrian god of sky and storm. He was derived from the Hattian Taru. His Hittite and Luwian name was Tarhun , although this name is from the Hittite root *tarh- to defeat, conquer.- Depiction and myths :He is depicted holding a triple...
.
Iron Age
When the Hittite kingdom collapsed in the 12th century BC, Aleppo became part of the Aramaean Syro-Hittite kingdom of ArpadÁrpád
Árpád was the second Grand Prince of the Hungarians . Under his rule the Hungarian people settled in the Carpathian basin. The dynasty descending from him ruled the Hungarian tribes and later the Kingdom of Hungary until 1301...
(Bit Agusi), and later it became capital of the Aramaean Syro-Hittite kingdom of Hatarikka-Luhuti.
In the 9th century BC, Aleppo was conquered by the Assyrians and became part of the Neo-Assyrian Empire until the late 7th century BC, before passing through the hands of the Neo-Babylonians and the Achamenid Persians.
Classical Antiquity
Alexander the Great took over the city in 333 BC. Seleucus Nicator established a HellenicHellenic
Hellenic is a synonym for Greek and may refer to:* Hellenic languages* Hellenic Airlines* Hellenic College, a liberal arts college in Brookline, Massachusetts* Hellenic College of London* Hellenic FC, a football club in South Africa...
settlement in the site between 301-286 BC. He called it Beroea (Βέροια), after Beroea
Veria
Veria is a city built at the foot of Vermion Mountains in Greece. It is a commercial center of Macedonia, the capital of the prefecture of Imathia, the province of Imathia and the seat of a bishop of the Greek Orthodox Church...
in Macedon
Macedon
Macedonia or Macedon was an ancient kingdom, centered in the northeastern part of the Greek peninsula, bordered by Epirus to the west, Paeonia to the north, the region of Thrace to the east and Thessaly to the south....
.
Northern Syria was the center of gravity of the Hellenistic colonizing activity, and therefore of Hellenistic culture in the Seleucid Empire
Seleucid Empire
The Seleucid Empire was a Greek-Macedonian state that was created out of the eastern conquests of Alexander the Great. At the height of its power, it included central Anatolia, the Levant, Mesopotamia, Persia, today's Turkmenistan, Pamir and parts of Pakistan.The Seleucid Empire was a major centre...
. As did other Hellenized cities of the Seleucid kingdom, Beroea probably enjoyed a measure of local autonomy, with a local civic assembly or boulē
Boule (Ancient Greece)
In cities of ancient Greece, the boule meaning to will ) was a council of citizens appointed to run daily affairs of the city...
composed of free Hellenes.
Beroea remained under Seleucid rule for nearly 300 years until the last holdings of the Seleucid dynasty were handed over to Pompey
Pompey
Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus, also known as Pompey or Pompey the Great , was a military and political leader of the late Roman Republic...
in 64 BC, at which time they became a Roman province. Rome's presence afforded relative stability in northern Syria for over three centuries. Although the province was administered by a legate
Legatus
A legatus was a general in the Roman army, equivalent to a modern general officer. Being of senatorial rank, his immediate superior was the dux, and he outranked all military tribunes...
from Rome, Rome did not impose its administrative organization on the Greek-speaking ruling class.
The Roman era saw an increase in the population of northern Syria that accelerated under the Byzantines
Byzantine Empire
The Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
well into the 5th century. In Late Antiquity
Late Antiquity
Late Antiquity is a periodization used by historians to describe the time of transition from Classical Antiquity to the Middle Ages, in both mainland Europe and the Mediterranean world. Precise boundaries for the period are a matter of debate, but noted historian of the period Peter Brown proposed...
, Beroea was the second largest Syrian city after Antioch
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
, the capital of Syria and the third largest city in the Roman world. Archaeological evidence indicates a high population density for settlements between Antioch and Beroea right up to the 6th century CE. This agrarian landscape holds now the remains of large estate houses and churches such as the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites. Saint Maron of the Maronite Church was probably born in this region; his tomb is located at Brad to the west of Aleppo.
Beroea is mentioned in 2 Macc.
2 Maccabees
2 Maccabees is a deuterocanonical book of the Bible, which focuses on the Jews' revolt against Antiochus IV Epiphanes and concludes with the defeat of the Syrian general Nicanor in 161 BC by Judas Maccabeus, the hero of the work....
13:3.
Medieval period
The Sassanid Persians invaded Syria briefely in the early 7th century. Soon after Aleppo fell to ArabMuslim conquests
Muslim conquests also referred to as the Islamic conquests or Arab conquests, began with the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He established a new unified polity in the Arabian Peninsula which under the subsequent Rashidun and Umayyad Caliphates saw a century of rapid expansion of Muslim power.They...
s under Khalid ibn al-Walid
Khalid ibn al-Walid
Khālid ibn al-Walīd also known as Sayf Allāh al-Maslūl , was a companion of the Islamic prophet Muhammad. He is noted for his military tactics and prowess, commanding the forces of Medina and those of his immediate successors of the Rashidun Caliphate; Abu Bakr and Umar...
in 637. In 944, it became the seat of an independent Emirate under the Hamdanid prince Sayf al-Daula
Sayf al-Daula
Ali ibn Abi al-Hayja 'Abd Allah ibn Hamdan ibn al-Harith Sayf al-Dawla al-Taghlibi , more commonly known simply by his laqab of Sayf al-Dawla , was the ruler of northern Syria and the brother of al-Hasan ibn Hamdan , the founder and the most prominent prince of the Arab Hamdanid dynasty from...
, and enjoyed a period of great prosperity, being home to the great poet al-Mutanabbi and the philosopher and polymath
Polymath
A polymath is a person whose expertise spans a significant number of different subject areas. In less formal terms, a polymath may simply be someone who is very knowledgeable...
al-Farabi
Al-Farabi
' known in the West as Alpharabius , was a scientist and philosopher of the Islamic world...
. The city was sacked by a resurgent Byzantine Empire in 962, while Byzantine forces occupied it briefly from 974 to 987. The city and its Emirate became an Imperial vassal from 969 until the Byzantine-Seljuk Wars
Byzantine-Seljuk wars
The Byzantine–Seljuq Wars were a series of decisive battles that shifted the balance of power in Asia Minor and Syria from the Byzantine Empire to the Seljuq Turks...
. The city was twice besieged by the Crusaders
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars, blessed by the Pope and the Catholic Church with the main goal of restoring Christian access to the holy places in and near Jerusalem...
, in 1098 and in 1124, but was not conquered.
On 9 August 1138, a deadly earthquake
1138 Aleppo earthquake
The 1138 Aleppo earthquake was among the deadliest earthquakes history. Its name was taken from the city of Aleppo, in northern Syria, where the most casualties were sustain. The quake occurred on 11 October 1138 and was preceded by a smaller quake on the 10th...
ravaged the city and the surrounding area. Although estimates from this time are very unreliable, it is believed that 230,000 people died, making it the fifth deadliest earthquake in recorded history.
The city came under the control of Saladin
Saladin
Ṣalāḥ ad-Dīn Yūsuf ibn Ayyūb , better known in the Western world as Saladin, was an Arabized Kurdish Muslim, who became the first Sultan of Egypt and Syria, and founded the Ayyubid dynasty. He led Muslim and Arab opposition to the Franks and other European Crusaders in the Levant...
and then the Ayyubid Dynasty starting from 1183.
On 24 January 1260, the city was taken by the Mongols
Mongols
Mongols ) are a Central-East Asian ethnic group that lives mainly in the countries of Mongolia, China, and Russia. In China, ethnic Mongols can be found mainly in the central north region of China such as Inner Mongolia...
under Hulagu in alliance with their vassals the Frank
France
The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France...
knights of the ruler of Antioch
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
Bohemond VI and his father-in-law the Armenian ruler Hetoum I. The city was poorly defended by Turanshah, and as a result the walls fell after six days of bombardment, and the citadel fell four weeks later. The Muslim population was massacred and many Jews were also killed. The Christian population was spared. Turanshah was shown unusual respect by the Mongols, and was allowed to live because of his age and bravery. The city was then given to the former Emir of Homs
Homs
Homs , previously known as Emesa , is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is above sea level and is located north of Damascus...
, al-Ashraf
Al-Ashraf
Al-Ashraf Musa Abu'l-Fath al-Muzaffar ad-Din, called Al-Ashraf was a ruler of the Ayyubid dynasty. The son of Sultan Al-Adil I, Al-Ashraf was installed by his father in Harran in 1201 as Governor of the Jezireh...
, and a Mongol garrison was established in the city. Some of the spoils were also given to Hethoum I for his assistance in the attack. The Mongol Army then continued on to Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
, which surrendered, and the Mongols entered the city on 1 March 1260.
In September 1260, the Egyptian Mamluks negotiated for a treaty with the Franks of Acre which allowed them to pass through Crusader territory unmolested, and engaged the Mongols at the Battle of Ain Jalut
Battle of Ain Jalut
The Battle of Ain Jalut took place on 3 September 1260 between Mamluks and the Mongols in eastern Galilee, in the Jezreel Valley, not far from Ein Harod....
on September 3, 1260. The Mamluks won a decisive victory, killing the Mongols' Nestorian Christian general Kitbuqa
Kitbuqa
Kitbuqa Noyan was a Nestorian Christian and a member of the Naiman Turks, a group that was subservient to the Mongol Empire. He was a lieutenant and confidant of the Mongol Ilkhan Hulagu, assisting him in his conquests in the Middle East...
, and five days later they had re-taken Damascus. Aleppo was recovered by the Muslims within a month, and a Mamluk governor placed to govern the city. Hulagu sent troops to try to recover Aleppo in December. They were able to massacre a large number of Muslims in retaliation for the death of Kitbuqa, but after a fortnight could make no other progress and had to retreat.
The Mamluk governor of the city became insubordinate to the central Mamluk authority in Cairo, and in Autumn 1261 the Mamluk leader Baibars
Baibars
Baibars or Baybars , nicknamed Abu l-Futuh , was a Mamluk Sultan of Egypt. He was one of the commanders of the forces which inflicted a devastating defeat on the Seventh Crusade of King Louis IX of France and he led the vanguard of the Egyptian army at the Battle of Ain Jalut in 1260, which marked...
sent an army to reclaim the city. In October 1271, the Mongols took the city again, attacking with 10,000 horsemen from Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
, and defeating the Turcoman
Turkmen people
The Turkmen are a Turkic people located primarily in the Central Asian states of Turkmenistan, Afghanistan, and northeastern Iran. They speak the Turkmen language, which is classified as a part of the Western Oghuz branch of the Turkic languages family together with Turkish, Azerbaijani, Qashqai,...
troops who were defending Aleppo. The Mamluk garrisons fled to Hama
Hama
Hama is a city on the banks of the Orontes River in west-central Syria north of Damascus. It is the provincial capital of the Hama Governorate. Hama is the fourth-largest city in Syria—behind Aleppo, Damascus, and Homs—with a population of 696,863...
, until Baibars came north again with his main army, and the Mongols retreated.
On 20 October 1280, the Mongols took the city again, pillaging the markets and burning the mosques. The Muslim inhabitants fled for Damascus, where the Mamluk leader Qalawun
Qalawun
Saif ad-Dīn Qalawun aṣ-Ṣāliḥī was the seventh Mamluk sultan of Egypt...
assembled his forces. When his army advanced, the Mongols again retreated, back across the Euphrates
Euphrates
The Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia...
.
Aleppo returned to native control only in 1317. In 1400, the Mongol-Turkic leader Tamerlane
Timur
Timur , historically known as Tamerlane in English , was a 14th-century conqueror of West, South and Central Asia, and the founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, and great-great-grandfather of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Dynasty, which survived as the Mughal Empire in India until...
captured the city again from the Mamluks. He massacred many of the inhabitants, ordering the building of a tower of 20,000 skulls outside the city. After the withdrawal of the Mongols, all the Muslim population returned to Aleppo. On the other hand, Christians who left the city during the Mongol invasion were unable to resettle back in their own quarter in the old town, a fact that led them to establish a new neighborhood in 1420, built outside the city walls, at the northern suburbs of Aleppo. This new quarter was called al-Jdeydeh ("the new district" in Arabic).
Ottoman period
Aleppo became part of the Ottoman EmpireOttoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
in 1516, when the city had around 50,000 inhabitants. It was the center of the Vilayet of Aleppo
Vilayet of Aleppo
The Vilayet of Aleppo was a vilayet or province of the Ottoman Empire centered around Aleppo.-History:Thanks to its strategic geographic location on the trade route between Anatolia and the east, Aleppo rose to high prominence in the Ottoman era, at one point being second only to Constantinople in...
and the capital of Syria.
Thanks to its strategic geographic location on the trade route between Anatolia
Anatolia
Anatolia is a geographic and historical term denoting the westernmost protrusion of Asia, comprising the majority of the Republic of Turkey...
and the east, Aleppo rose to high prominence in the Ottoman era, at one point being second only to Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
in the empire. By the middle of the 16th century, Aleppo had displaced Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
as the principal market for goods coming to the Mediterranean region from the east. This is reflected by the fact that the Levant Company of London, a joint-trading company founded in 1581 to monopolize England's trade with the Ottoman Empire, never attempted to settle a factor, or agnet, in Damascus, despite having had permission to do so. Aleppo served as the company's headquarters until the late 18th century.
As a result of the economic development, many European states had opened consulates in Aleppo during the 16th and the 17th centuries, such as the consulate of the Republic of Venice
Republic of Venice
The Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
in 1548, the consulate of France in 1562, the consulate of England in 1583 and the consulate of the Netherlands
Netherlands
The Netherlands is a constituent country of the Kingdom of the Netherlands, located mainly in North-West Europe and with several islands in the Caribbean. Mainland Netherlands borders the North Sea to the north and west, Belgium to the south, and Germany to the east, and shares maritime borders...
in 1613.
However, the prosperity Aleppo experienced in the 16th and 17th century started to fade as silk production in Iran went into decline with the fall of the Safavid dynasty
Safavid dynasty
The Safavid dynasty was one of the most significant ruling dynasties of Iran. They ruled one of the greatest Persian empires since the Muslim conquest of Persia and established the Twelver school of Shi'a Islam as the official religion of their empire, marking one of the most important turning...
in 1722. By mid-century, caravans were no longer bringing silk from Iran to Aleppo, and local Syrian production was insufficient for Europe's demand. European merchants left Aleppo and the city went into an economic decline that was not reversed until the mid-19th century when locally produced cotton and tobacco became the principal commodities of interest to the Europeans.
The economy of Aleppo was badly hit by the opening of the Suez Canal
Suez Canal
The Suez Canal , also known by the nickname "The Highway to India", is an artificial sea-level waterway in Egypt, connecting the Mediterranean Sea and the Red Sea. Opened in November 1869 after 10 years of construction work, it allows water transportation between Europe and Asia without navigation...
in 1869. This, in addition to political instability that followed the implementation of significant reforms in 1841 by the central government, contributed to Aleppo's decline and the rise of Damascus as a serious economic and political competitor with Aleppo.
Reference is made to the city in 1606 in William Shakespeare's 'Macbeth.' The witches torment the captain of the ship the Tiger which was headed to Aleppo from England but endured a 567 day voyage before returning unsuccessfully to port. Reference is also made to the city in Shakespeare's 'Othello' when Othello speaks his final words (ACT V, ii, 349f.): "Set you down this/And say besides that in Aleppo once,/Where a malignant and a turbanned Turk/Beat a Venitia and traduced the state,/I took by th' throat the circumcised dog/And smote him--thus!" (Arden Shakespeare Edition, 2004). The English naval chaplain Henry Teonge
Henry Teonge
Henry Teonge was an English cleric and Royal Navy chaplain who kept informative diaries of voyages he made in 1675–76 and 1678–79.-Life:...
describes in his diary a visit he paid to the city in 1675, when there was a colony of West European merchants living there.
Cholera
Cholera is an infection of the small intestine that is caused by the bacterium Vibrio cholerae. The main symptoms are profuse watery diarrhea and vomiting. Transmission occurs primarily by drinking or eating water or food that has been contaminated by the diarrhea of an infected person or the feces...
from 1823. Aleppo lost some 20-25 percent of its population to plague in 1827. By 1901, the city's population was around 110,000.
At the end of World War I, the Treaty of Sèvres
Treaty of Sèvres
The Treaty of Sèvres was the peace treaty between the Ottoman Empire and Allies at the end of World War I. The Treaty of Versailles was signed with Germany before this treaty to annul the German concessions including the economic rights and enterprises. Also, France, Great Britain and Italy...
made most of the Province of Aleppo part of the newly established nation of Syria
Syria
Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....
, while Cilicia was promised by France to become an Armenian state. However, Kemal Ataturk annexed most of the Province of Aleppo as well as Cilicia to Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
in his War of Independence
Turkish War of Independence
The Turkish War of Independence was a war of independence waged by Turkish nationalists against the Allies, after the country was partitioned by the Allies following the Ottoman Empire's defeat in World War I...
. The Arab residents in the province (as well as the Kurds) supported the Turks in this war against the French, a notable example being Ibrahim Hanano who directly coordinated with Ataturk and received weaponry from him. The outcome, however, was disastrous for Aleppo, because as per the Treaty of Lausanne
Treaty of Lausanne
The Treaty of Lausanne was a peace treaty signed in Lausanne, Switzerland on 24 July 1923, that settled the Anatolian and East Thracian parts of the partitioning of the Ottoman Empire. The treaty of Lausanne was ratified by the Greek government on 11 February 1924, by the Turkish government on 31...
, most of the Province of Aleppo was made part of Turkey with the exception of Aleppo and Alexandretta; thus, Aleppo was cut from its northern satellites and from the Anatolian cities beyond on which Aleppo depended heavily in commerce. Moreover, the Sykes-Picot division of the Near East separated Aleppo from most of Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
, which also harmed the economy of Aleppo. The situation exacerbated further in 1939 when Alexandretta was annexed to Turkey, thus depriving Aleppo from its main port of Iskenderun
Iskenderun
İskenderun is a city and urban district in the province of Hatay on the Mediterranean coast of Turkey. The current mayor is Yusuf Hamit Civelek .-Names:...
and leaving it in total isolation within Syria.
Aleppo State
State of Aleppo
The State of Aleppo was one of the five states that were established by the French High Commissioner in Syria and Lebanon General Henri Gouraud in the French Mandate of Syria which followed the San Remo conference and the collapse of King Faisal I's short-lived monarchy in Syria.The other states...
was declared by the French General Henri Gouraud in September 1920 as part of a French scheme to make Syria easier to control by dividing it into several smaller states. France became more hostile to the idea of a united Syria after the Battle of Maysaloun.
By separating Aleppo from Damascus, Gouraud wanted to capitalize on a traditional state of competition between the two cities and turn it into political division. The people in Aleppo were unhappy with the fact that Damascus was chosen as capital for the new nation of Syria. Gouraud sensed this sentiment and tried to manipulate it by making Aleppo the capital of a large and wealthier state with which it would have been hard for Damascus to compete. The State of Aleppo as drawn by France contained most of the fertile area of Syria— namely it contained the fertile country of Aleppo in addition to the entire fertile basin of river Euphrates
Euphrates
The Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia...
. The state also had access to sea via the autonomous Sanjak of Alexandretta. On the other hand, Damascus, which is basically an oasis on the fringes of the Syrian Desert
Syrian Desert
The Syrian Desert , also known as the Syro-Arabian desert is a combination of steppe and true desert that is located in the northern Arabian Peninsula covering 200,000 square miles . also the desert is very rocky and flat...
, had neither enough fertile land nor access to sea. Basically, Gouraud wanted to lure Aleppo by giving it control over most of the agricultural and mineral wealth of Syria so that it would never want to unite with Damascus again.
Syrian Federation
The limited economic resources of the Syrian states made the option of completely independent states undesirable for France, because it threatened an opposite result— the states collapsing and being forced back into unity. This was why France proposed the idea of a Syrian federation that was realized in 1923. Initially, Gouraud envisioned the federation as encompassing all the states— even Lebanon. In the end however, only three states participated: Aleppo, DamascusState of Damascus
The State of Damascus was one of the six states established by the French General Henri Gouraud in the French Mandate of Syria which followed the San Remo conference and the defeat of King Faisal's short-lived monarchy in Syria....
, and the Alawite State
Alawite State
The Alawite State , also known in French as Alaouites, after the locally dominant Alawite sect of Shi'a, was a French mandate territory in the coastal area of present-day Syria after World War I.-History:...
. The capital of the federation was Aleppo at first, but it was relocated to Damascus. The president of the federation was Subhi Barakat, an Antioch
Antioch
Antioch on the Orontes was an ancient city on the eastern side of the Orontes River. It is near the modern city of Antakya, Turkey.Founded near the end of the 4th century BC by Seleucus I Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals, Antioch eventually rivaled Alexandria as the chief city of the...
-born politician from Aleppo.
The federation ended in December 1924, when France merged Aleppo and Damascus into a single Syrian State and separated the Alawite State again. This action came after the federation decided to merge the three federated states into one and to take steps encouraging Syria's financial independence— steps which France viewed as too much.
Secession attempt
When the Syrian Revolt erupted in southern Syria in 1925, the French held in Aleppo State new elections that were supposed to lead to the breaking of the union with Damascus and restore the independence of Aleppo State. The French were driven to believe by pro-French Aleppine politicians that the people in Aleppo were supportive of such a scheme. After the new council was elected, however, it surprisingly voted to keep the union with Damascus. Syrian nationalists had waged a massive anti-secession public campaign that vigorously mobilized the people against the secession plan, thus leaving the pro-French politicians no choice but to support the union. The result was a big embarrassment for France, which wanted the secession of Aleppo to be a punitive measure against Damascus, which had participated in the Syrian Revolt. This was the last time that independence was proposed for Aleppo.Post-independence
The period immediately following independence from France was marked by increasing rivalry between Aleppo and Damascus. Aleppo feverishly called for an immediate union between Syria and Hashimite IraqKingdom of Iraq
The Kingdom of Iraq was the sovereign state of Iraq during and after the British Mandate of Mesopotamia. The League of Nations mandate started in 1920. The kingdom began in August 1921 with the coronation of Faisal bin al-Hussein bin Ali al-Hashemi as King Faisal I...
, a demand that was firmly rejected by Damascus. Instead, Damascus favored a pro-Egyptian, pro-Saudi orientation and actively participated in the establishment of the Arab League
Arab League
The Arab League , officially called the League of Arab States , is a regional organisation of Arab states in North and Northeast Africa, and Southwest Asia . It was formed in Cairo on 22 March 1945 with six members: Egypt, Iraq, Transjordan , Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and Syria. Yemen joined as a...
in Alexandria
Alexandria
Alexandria is the second-largest city of Egypt, with a population of 4.1 million, extending about along the coast of the Mediterranean Sea in the north central part of the country; it is also the largest city lying directly on the Mediterranean coast. It is Egypt's largest seaport, serving...
in 1944, an organization that was seen by many Arab nationalists as a 'conspiracy' aimed against the unification of the Fertile Crescent
Fertile Crescent
The Fertile Crescent, nicknamed "The Cradle of Civilization" for the fact the first civilizations started there, is a crescent-shaped region containing the comparatively moist and fertile land of otherwise arid and semi-arid Western Asia. The term was first used by University of Chicago...
under the Hashimites.
The increasing disagreements between Aleppo and Damascus led eventually to the split of the National Block into two factions: the National Party, established in Damascus in 1947, and the People's Party, established in Aleppo in 1948 by Rushdi Kikhya and Nazim Qudsi. An underlying cause of the disagreement, in addition to the union with Iraq, was Aleppo's intention to relocate the capital from Damascus. The issue of the capital became an open debate matter in 1950 when the Popular Party presented a constitution draft that called Damascus a "temporary capital."
The first coup d'état in modern Syrian history was carried out in March 1949 by an army officer from Aleppo, Hussni Zaim. However, lured by the absolute power he enjoyed as a dictator, Zaim soon developed a pro-Egyptian, pro-Western orientation and abandoned the cause of union with Iraq. This incited a second coup only four months after his. The second coup, led by Sami Hinnawi (also from Aleppo), empowered the Popular Party and actively sought to realize the union with Iraq. The news of an imminent union with Iraq incited a third coup the same year: in December 1949, Adib Shishakly led a coup preempting a union with Iraq that was about to be declared.
Soon after Shishakly's domination ended in 1954, a union
United Arab Republic
The United Arab Republic , often abbreviated as the U.A.R., was a sovereign union between Egypt and Syria. The union began in 1958 and existed until 1961, when Syria seceded from the union. Egypt continued to be known officially as the "United Arab Republic" until 1971. The President was Gamal...
with Egypt under Gamal Abdul Nasser was implemented in 1958. The union, however, collapsed only two years later when a junta of young Damascene officers carried out a separatist coup. Aleppo resisted the separatist coup, but eventually it had no choice but to recognize the new regime. The new regime tried to absorb Aleppo's dissent by appointing both a president and premier from Aleppo—Nazim Qudsi and Marouf Dawalibi.
In March 1963 a coalition of Baathists, Nasserists, and Socialists launched a new coup whose declared objective was to restore the union with Egypt. However, the new regime only restored the flag of the union. Soon thereafter disagreement between the Baathists and the Nasserists over the restoration of the union became a crisis, and the Baathists ousted the Nasserists from power. The Nasserists, most of whom were from the Aleppine middle class, responded with an insurgency in Aleppo in July 1963.
Again, the Baath regime tried to absorb the dissent of the Syrian middle class (whose center of political activism was Aleppo) by putting to the front Amin Hafiz
Amin Hafiz
Amin al-Hafiz was a Syrian politician, general and member of the Ba'th Party.-Early life:Al-Hafiz was born in the city of Aleppo....
, a Baathist military officer from Aleppo.
President Hafez Assad, who came to power in 1970, relied on support from the business class in Damascus. This gave Damascus further advantage over Aleppo, and hence Damascus came to dominate the Syrian economy. The strict centralization of the Syrian state, the intentional direction of resources towards Damascus, and the hegemony Damascus enjoys over the Syrian economy made it increasingly hard for Aleppo to compete. Hence, Aleppo is no longer an economic or cultural capital of Syria as it once used to be.
In 2006, Aleppo was named by the Islamic Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) as the capital of Islamic culture.
On 12 August 2011, with the ongoing Syrian uprising, an anti-government protest was held in the city's Sakhour district and at least two others. The one in Sakhour was "1,000 people at most" and
it ended with two protesters being shot dead by Syrian security forces.
On 19 October 2011, in one of the most largest rallies ever held in Syria, more than 1.5 million Aleppines flocked to Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square
Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square
Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square is the central town square at the heart of the Syrian city of Aleppo. It is the most important square in the city, experiencing most of the celebrations and festivals in Aleppo....
in support of the government of president Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad
Bashar al-Assad is the President of Syria and Regional Secretary of the Ba'ath Party. His father Hafez al-Assad ruled Syria for 29 years until his death in 2000. Al-Assad was elected in 2000, re-elected in 2007, unopposed each time.- Early Life :...
.
Main sights
Aleppo is characterized by mixed architectural styles, having been ruled, among the other, by Romans, Byzantines, Seljuqs, Mamluks and Ottomans.There are various types of 13th and 14th centuries construction, such as caravanserais, Quranic schools and hammams, and the Christian and Islamic holy buildings of the old city and Jdeydeh quarter. The latter is home of numerous 16th and 17th-century houses of the Aleppine bourgeoisie, featuring stone engravings. Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture
Baroque architecture is a term used to describe the building style of the Baroque era, begun in late sixteenth century Italy, that took the Roman vocabulary of Renaissance architecture and used it in a new rhetorical and theatrical fashion, often to express the triumph of the Catholic Church and...
of the 19th and early 20th centuries is common in the Azizyeh quarter, including the Villa Rose. The new Shahba quarter is a mixture of several styles, such as Neo-classic, Norman
Norman architecture
About|Romanesque architecture, primarily English|other buildings in Normandy|Architecture of Normandy.File:Durham Cathedral. Nave by James Valentine c.1890.jpg|thumb|200px|The nave of Durham Cathedral demonstrates the characteristic round arched style, though use of shallow pointed arches above the...
, Oriental and even Chinese architecture
Chinese architecture
Chinese architecture refers to a style of architecture that has taken shape in East Asia over many centuries. The structural principles of Chinese architecture have remained largely unchanged, the main changes being only the decorative details...
.
Since the old city is characterized with its large mansions, narrow alleys and covered suqs, the modern city's architecture has replenished the town with wide roads and large squares such as the Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square
Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square
Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square is the central town square at the heart of the Syrian city of Aleppo. It is the most important square in the city, experiencing most of the celebrations and festivals in Aleppo....
, the Liberty Square
Liberty Square (Aleppo)
The Liberty Square is an important square at the Aziziyah district, downtown Aleppo, Syria.Intersected by Yusuf al-Azma street from the south to the north, the square is considered to be the beginning of Qestaki al-Homsi street and the end of Faris al-Khoury street from the east, where the church...
, the President's Square and Sabaa Bahrat Square
Sabaa Bahrat Square (Aleppo)
Sabaa Bahrat Square is is one of the most important squares in Aleppo, Syria.Located at the intersection of "Abdel Menem Riyad street" with "Al-Mutanabbi" street within the ancient part of the city, the square is an important junction between the old city and modern Aleppo.Many important official...
.
There is a relatively clear division between old and new Aleppo. The older portions were contained within a wall, 5 km in circuit with nine gates. The huge medieval castle
Castle
A castle is a type of fortified structure built in Europe and the Middle East during the Middle Ages by European nobility. Scholars debate the scope of the word castle, but usually consider it to be the private fortified residence of a lord or noble...
in the city – known as the Citadel of Aleppo
Citadel of Aleppo
The Citadel of Aleppo is a large medieval fortified palace in the centre of the old city of Aleppo, northern Syria. It is considered to be one of the oldest and largest castles in the world. Usage of the Citadel hill dates back at least to the middle of the 3rd millennium BC...
– occupies the center of the ancient part, in the shape of an acropolis
Acropolis
Acropolis means "high city" in Greek, literally city on the extremity and is usually translated into English as Citadel . For purposes of defense, early people naturally chose elevated ground to build a new settlement, frequently a hill with precipitous sides...
.
Being subjected to constant invasions and political instability, the inhabitants of the city were forced to build cell-like quarters and districts that were socially and economically independent. Each district was characterized by the religious and ethnic characteristics of its inhabitants.
The old city was built (mostly in white stone) within the historical walls of the city, pierced by the nine historical gates, while Jdeydeh is the Christian quarter which was built during the early 15th century, after the Mongol withdrawal from the city. Jdeydeh is one of the finest examples of a cell-like quarter in Aleppo. After Timur
Timur
Timur , historically known as Tamerlane in English , was a 14th-century conqueror of West, South and Central Asia, and the founder of the Timurid dynasty in Central Asia, and great-great-grandfather of Babur, the founder of the Mughal Dynasty, which survived as the Mughal Empire in India until...
invaded Aleppo in 1400 and destroyed it, the Christians migrated out of the city walls and established their own cell in 1420, at the northwestern region of the city, thus founding the quarter of Jdeydeh. The inhabitants of Jdeydeh were mainly brokers who facilitated trade between foreign traders and local merchants.
The total area of the ancient city is around 350 hectares (3.5 km²) housing more than 120,000 residents.
Suqs and Khans
The city's strategic trading position attracted settlers of all races and beliefs who wished to take advantage of the commercial roads that met in Aleppo from as far as ChinaChina
Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture...
and Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a toponym for the area of the Tigris–Euphrates river system, largely corresponding to modern-day Iraq, northeastern Syria, southeastern Turkey and southwestern Iran.Widely considered to be the cradle of civilization, Bronze Age Mesopotamia included Sumer and the...
to the east, Europe
Europe
Europe is, by convention, one of the world's seven continents. Comprising the westernmost peninsula of Eurasia, Europe is generally 'divided' from Asia to its east by the watershed divides of the Ural and Caucasus Mountains, the Ural River, the Caspian and Black Seas, and the waterways connecting...
to the west, and the fertile crescent
Fertile Crescent
The Fertile Crescent, nicknamed "The Cradle of Civilization" for the fact the first civilizations started there, is a crescent-shaped region containing the comparatively moist and fertile land of otherwise arid and semi-arid Western Asia. The term was first used by University of Chicago...
and Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
to the south. The largest covered suq-market in the world is in Aleppo, with an approximate length of 13 kilometers.
The Suq al-Medina, as it is locally known, is an active trade centre for imported luxury goods, such as raw silk from Iran
Iran
Iran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
, spices and dyes from India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, and coffee from Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
. The Medina also is home to local products such as wool, agricultural products and soap. Most of the souqs date back to the 14th century and are named after various professions and crafts, hence the wool souq, the copper souq, and so on. Aside from trading, the souq accommodated the traders and their goods in khans (caravanserai
Caravanserai
A caravanserai, or khan, also known as caravansary, caravansera, or caravansara in English was a roadside inn where travelers could rest and recover from the day's journey...
s) and scattered in the souq. Other types of small market-places were called caeserias (قيساريات). Caeserias were smaller than khans in their sizes and functioned as workshops for craftsmen. Most of the khans took their names after their location in the souq and function, and are characterized with their beautiful façades and entrances with fortified wooden doors.
The most notable suqs of the old city include:
- Khan Al-Qadi, built in 1450, is one of the oldest khans in Aleppo.
- Khan Al-Burghul (or bulgurBulgurBulgur is a cereal food made from several different wheat species, most often from durum wheat. In the United States it is most often made from white wheat. Its use is most common in Middle Eastern cuisine, Iran, Turkey, Greece, Armenia and Bulgaria...
), built in 1472, hosted the British general consulate of Aleppo until the beginning of the 20th century. - Suq Al-Saboun or the soap khan, built in the beginning of the 16th century, located near the Aleppo soapAleppo soapAleppo soap is a handmade, hard bar soap. Aleppo soap is also known as savon d'Alep, laurel soap, or ghar soap . It derives its English and French names from the city of Aleppo, Syria, where it is reputed to have been made for thousands of years...
markets. - Suq Khan Al-Nahhaseen or the coopery suq, built in 1539. It hosted the general consulate of BelgiumBelgiumBelgium , officially the Kingdom of Belgium, is a federal state in Western Europe. It is a founding member of the European Union and hosts the EU's headquarters, and those of several other major international organisations such as NATO.Belgium is also a member of, or affiliated to, many...
during th 16th century. Nowadays, it is known for its traditional and modern shoe-trading shops with 84 stores. - Khan Al-Shouneh, built in 1546. Currently functions as a market for trades and traditional handicrafts of the Aleppine art.
- Suq Khan Al-Harir or the silk khan. Built in the second half of the 16th century, the khan has 43 stores mainly specialized in textile trading. It hosted the IranIranIran , officially the Islamic Republic of Iran , is a country in Southern and Western Asia. The name "Iran" has been in use natively since the Sassanian era and came into use internationally in 1935, before which the country was known to the Western world as Persia...
ian consulate until 1919. - Suq Khan Al-Gumrok or the customs' khan, a textile trading centre with 55 stores. Built in 1574, Khan Al-Gumrok is considered to be the largest khan in ancient Aleppo.
- Suq Khan Al-Wazir, built in 1682, believed to be the main suq of cotton products in Aleppo.
- Suq Al-Attareen or the herbals' market. Traditionally, was the main spice-selling market of Aleppo. Currently, it is functioning as a textile-selling centre with 82 stores.
- Suq Az-Zirb, originally known as Suq Ad-Dharb. Was a place where coins were being struck during the Mamluk period. Nowadays, the suq has 71 shops, most of them deal with textiles and the basic needs of the Bedouins.
- Suq Al-Behramiyeh located near the Behramiyeh mosque with 52 stores of food trade.
- Suq Al-Haddadeen is the old traditional balcksmiths' suq with its 37 workshopes.
- Suq Al-Atiq or the old suq, specialized in raw leather trading with 48 stores.
- Suq As-Siyyagh or the jewelry market, is the main jewelry trade centre in Aleppo and Syria with 99 stores.
- The Venetians' Khan, was the home of the consul of VeniceRepublic of VeniceThe Republic of Venice or Venetian Republic was a state originating from the city of Venice in Northeastern Italy. It existed for over a millennium, from the late 7th century until 1797. It was formally known as the Most Serene Republic of Venice and is often referred to as La Serenissima, in...
and the Venetian merchants. - Suq An-Niswan or the women's market, the place where all necessary accessories, clothes and wedding equipments of the bride could be found.
- As-Suweiqa or Sweiqat Ali (Suweiqa means "small suq" in ArabicArabic languageArabic is a name applied to the descendants of the Classical Arabic language of the 6th century AD, used most prominently in the Quran, the Islamic Holy Book...
), a large suq contains a group of khans and markets mainly specialized in home and kitchen equipment.
Many traditional khans are also functioning as suqs in Jdeydeh Christian quarter:
- Suq Al-Hokedun or "Khan Al-Quds". Hokedun means "the spiritual house" in ArmenianArmenian languageThe Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...
, as it was built to serve as a settlement for the Armenian pilgrims on their way to Jerusalem. The old part of the Hokedun dates back to the late 15th and early 16th centuries while the newer part was built during the 17th century. Nowadays, it is turned into a big suq with a large number of stores specialized in garment trade. - Suq Al-Souf or the wool market, located at Salibeh street, surrounded with the old churches of the quarter.
- Bawabet Al-Qasab, a centre of wooden products.
Historic buildings
The most significant historic buildings of the old city include:- The CitadelCitadel of AleppoThe Citadel of Aleppo is a large medieval fortified palace in the centre of the old city of Aleppo, northern Syria. It is considered to be one of the oldest and largest castles in the world. Usage of the Citadel hill dates back at least to the middle of the 3rd millennium BC...
, a large fortress built atop a huge, partially artificial mound rising 50 m above the city, dates back to the first millennium BC. Recent excavations unearthed a temple and 25 statues dating back to the first millennium BC. Many of the current structure dates from the 13th century. The Citadel had been extensively damaged by earthquakes, notably in 1822. - Madrasa Halawiye, built in 1124 on the original site of the Cathedral of Saint Helen, where, according to tradition, a RomanAncient RomeAncient Rome was a thriving civilization that grew on the Italian Peninsula as early as the 8th century BC. Located along the Mediterranean Sea and centered on the city of Rome, it expanded to one of the largest empires in the ancient world....
temple had stood. Then Saint HelenaHelena of ConstantinopleSaint Helena also known as Saint Helen, Helena Augusta or Helena of Constantinople was the consort of Emperor Constantius, and the mother of Emperor Constantine I...
, mother of Constantine the Great, built a great ByzantineByzantine architectureByzantine architecture is the architecture of the Byzantine Empire. The empire gradually emerged as a distinct artistic and cultural entity from what is today referred to as the Roman Empire after AD 330, when the Roman Emperor Constantine moved the capital of the Roman Empire east from Rome to...
cathedral there. When the CrusadersCrusadersThe Crusaders are a New Zealand professional rugby union team based in Christchurch that competes in the Super Rugby competition. They are the most successful team in Super Rugby history with seven titles...
were pillaging the surrounding countryside, the city's chief judge converted St. Helena's cathedral into a mosque and finally, in the middle of the 12th century, Nur al-Din founded a madrasa or religious school here. Parts of the 6th century Christian construction, turned into an Islamic school after the Crusaders invasion, and including 6th century Byzantine columns, can be seen in the hall. It has also a fine 14th century mihrabMihrabA mihrab is semicircular niche in the wall of a mosque that indicates the qibla; that is, the direction of the Kaaba in Mecca and hence the direction that Muslims should face when praying...
. - Al-Matbakh Al-Ajami, an early 12th century palace located near the citadel, built by the ZengidZengid dynastyThe Zengid dynasty was a Muslim dynasty of Turkic origin, which ruled parts of Syria and northern Iraq on behalf of the Seljuk Empire.-History:...
emir Majd ad-Din bin ad-Daya. The building was renovated during the 15th century. It was the home of the Popular Traditions Museum between 1967-1975. - Al-Shibani Cultural CentreAl-Shibani ChurchAl-Shibani Building , also called Al-Shibani School and Church is a 12th century religious and cultural centre in the "Al-Jalloum" district, at the heart of the ancient city of Aleppo...
of the 12th century, an old church and school of the Franciscan Missionaries of MaryFranciscan Missionaries of MaryFranciscan Missionaries of Mary, or the Franciscan Missionary Sisters of Mary is a Roman Catholic order founded by Sister Mary of the Passion, Helene de Chappotin, in 1877 at Ootacamund, India....
located in the old city, currently used as a cultural centre. - Madrasa Moqaddamiye, one of the oldest theological school in the city built in 1168, with a porch sporting arabesque medallions. It was also converted to this use after the Crusades.
- Madrasa ZahiriyeAl-Zahiriyah MadrasaAl-Zahiriyah Madrasa is a madrasah complex located between the Kamiliyah and the Firdaws madrasas, about south of Bab al-Maqam, in Aleppo, Syria. It was built by Az-Zahir Ghazi in 1217...
, built in 1217 to the south of Bab al-MaqamBab al-MaqamBab al-Maqam is one of the Gates of Aleppo. It was built by al-Aziz Muhammad in 1230 on the road that connected the Maqamat with the Citadel. It is unique in its planning and form. The design's innovative quality implies a monumental, ceremonial function rather than a military one.Yasser Tabbaa...
, by Az-Zahir Ghazi. - Madrasa SultaniyeAl-Sultaniyah MadrasaAl-Sultaniyah Madrasa is a madrasah complex located across from the Citadel entrance in Aleppo, Syria. It is a religious, educational and funerary complex. It contains the tomb of sultan Malik al-Zaher the son of Ayyubid Sultan Saladin.-See also:...
, begun by Aleppo governor Az-Zahir Ghazi and completed between 1223–1225 by his son Malek al-Aziz Mohammed. The building is most famous for the mirhab of the prayer room. - Madrasa Al-FirdawsAl-Firdaws MadrasaAl-Firdaws Madrasa is a madrasah complex located southwest of Bab al-Maqam in Aleppo, Syria. It is the largest and best known of the Ayyubid madrasas in Aleppo. Due to its location outside the city walls, the madrasa was developed as a freestanding structure....
mosque, defined as "the most beautiful of the mosques of Aleppo". It was built by the widow of governor Az-Zahir Ghazi in 1234–1237, then regent for the Ayyubid ruler An-Nasir YusufAn-Nasir YusufAn-Nasir Yusuf An-Nasir Yusuf (Arabic: الناصر يوسف ) An-Nasir Yusuf (Arabic: الناصر يوسف ) (Royal Name: al-Malik al-Nasir Salah al-Din Yusuf (Arabic: الملك الناصر صلاح الدين يوسف )(1228–1260 ) was the Ayyubid ruler of most of Syria, including Aleppo (1236–1260) and Damascus (1250–1260)...
. Notable is the courtyard, which has a pool in the middle surrounded by arches with ancient columns, sporting capitals with a honeycomb pattern. The same style characterizes the domes of the prayer hall. Also fine is the mirhab, decorated with arabesque motifs. - Khanqah AL-Farafira, a 13th century sufi monastery built in 1237.
- Bimaristan Arghun al-Kamili, an asylum functioned from 1354 until the early 20th century.
- Dar Rajab Pasha, a large mansion built during the 16th century near Al-Khandaq street. Recently, the house was renovated and turned into an important cultural centre attached with a big theatre hall.
- Beit Jonblat, an old palace built at the end of the 16th century by the Kurdish ruler of Aleppo Hussein Pasha Jan Polad.
- Madrasa Al-UthmaniyahAl-Uthmaniyah MadrasaAl-Uthmaniyah Madrasa is a madrasah complex located in the northern Bab al-Nasr district of the old city of Aleppo, Syria. It was established by Ottoman Pasha Al-Duraki in 1730 and was originally named Madrasa Ridaiya. The madrasa, which includes a mosque, boasts one of the tallest minarets in...
, an islamic educational complex located in the northern neighborhood of Bab al-NasrBab al-NasrBab al-Nasr may refer to:*Bab al-Nasr , Syria*Bab al-Nasr, Cairo, Egypt...
. It was established by the Ottoman pasha Al-Duraki in 1730, and was originally named Madrasa Ridaiya. - Beit Marrash, an old Aleppine mansion located in Al-Farafira quarter, built at the end of the 18th century by the Marrash family.
- Bab Al-Faraj Clock Tower, built in 1898-1899 by the Austrian architect Chartier.
- Grand Seray d'Alep, the former seat of the governor of Aleppo, built during the 1920s and opened in 1933.
- National Library of Aleppo, built during the 1930s and opened in 1945.
The most significant historic buildings of Jdeydeh Christian quarter include:
- Beit Wakil, an Aleppine mansion built in 1603, with unique wooden decorations. One of its decorations was taken to BerlinBerlinBerlin is the capital city of Germany and is one of the 16 states of Germany. With a population of 3.45 million people, Berlin is Germany's largest city. It is the second most populous city proper and the seventh most populous urban area in the European Union...
and exhibited in Pergamon MuseumPergamon MuseumThe Pergamon Museum is situated on the Museum Island in Berlin. The site was designed by Alfred Messel and Ludwig Hoffmann and was constructed in twenty years, from 1910 to 1930. The Pergamon houses original-sized, reconstructed monumental buildings such as the Pergamon Altar and the Market Gate...
, known as the Aleppo Room. - Beit Achiqbash, an old Aleppine house built in 1757. The building is home to the Popular Traditions Museum since 1975, showing fine decorations of the Aleppine art.
- Beit Ghazaleh, an old 17th century mansion characterized with fine decorations, carved by the Armenian sculptor Khachadur Bali in 1691. It was used as an Armenian elementary school during the 20th century.
- Dar Zamaria, built at the end of the 17th century and owned by Zamaria family since the early 18th century. Nowadays, the house is turned into a boutiqe hotel.
- Dar Basile, an early 18th century Aleppine house, turned into Business school since 2001.
- Beit Dallal or Dallal House, built in 1826 on the place of an old church and a monastery, now converted into a hotel.
Religious buildings
- Al-Shuaibiyah mosque, also known as al-Omari, al-Tuteh and al-Atras mosque, is the oldest mosque in Aleppo, built in 637. It includes the ancient Roman triumphal arch, which once marked the beginning of the decumanus. The building was entirely renovated in 1146. It is known for its 12th century kuficKuficKufic is the oldest calligraphic form of the various Arabic scripts and consists of a modified form of the old Nabataean script. Its name is derived from the city of Kufa, Iraq, although it was known in Mesopotamia at least 100 years before the foundation of Kufa. At the time of the emergence of...
inscription and decorations. - Great Mosque of AleppoGreat Mosque of AleppoThe Great Mosque of Aleppo or the Ummayad Mosque of Aleppo is the largest and oldest mosque in the city of Aleppo in northern Syria. The present mosque dates form the 13th century Mamluk period, only the Seljuk minaret of 1090 is older...
(Jāmi‘ Bani Omayya al-Kabīr), founded c. 715 by Umayyad caliph Walid I and most likely completed by his successor SulaymanSulayman ibn Abd al-MalikSulayman bin Abd al-Malik was an Umayyad caliph who ruled from 715 until 717. His father was Abd al-Malik ibn Marwan, and he was a younger brother of the previous caliph, al-Walid I.-Early years:...
. The building contains a tomb associated with ZacharyZechariah (priest)In the Bible, Zechariah , is the father of John the Baptist, a priest of the sons of Aaron, a prophet in , and the husband of Elisabeth who is the cousin of Mary the mother of Jesus.In the Qur'an, Zechariah plays a similar role as the father of John the Baptist and ranks him as a prophet alongside...
, father of John the BaptistJohn the BaptistJohn the Baptist was an itinerant preacher and a major religious figure mentioned in the Canonical gospels. He is described in the Gospel of Luke as a relative of Jesus, who led a movement of baptism at the Jordan River...
. Construction of the present structure for Nur al-Din commenced in 1158. However, it was damaged during the Mongol invasion of 1260, and was rebuilt. The 45 m-high tower (described as "the principal monument of medieval Syria") was erected in 1090–1092 under the first Seljuk sultan, Tutush ITutush IAbu Sa'id Taj ad-Dawla Tutush I was the Seljuq ruler of Damascus from 1079 to 1095, succeeding Abaaq al-Khwarazmi. He finished the construction of the Citadel of Damascus, a project that had begun under the direction of Abaaq al Khwarizmi...
. It has four façades with different styles. - Al-Nuqtah MosqueAl-Nuqtah MosqueThe Masjid al-Nuqtah is a mosque located on Mount Jawshan in Aleppo, Syria. The main feature of the mosque is a stone believed to be stained with the blood of Husayn ibn ‘Alī by Shī‘ah Muslims....
("Mosque of the drop [of blood]"), a Shī‘ah mosque, which contains a stone said to be marked by a drop of HusaynHusayn ibn AliHussein ibn ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib was the son of ‘Alī ibn Abī Ṭālib and Fātimah Zahrā...
's blood. The site is believed to have previously been a monastery, which was converted into a mosque in 944. - Altun Bogha Mamluk-era mosque, built in 1318.
- Al-Sahibiyah mosque built in 1350, adjacent to Khan Al-Wazir.
- Al-Tawashi mosque built in 1398 and restored in 1537. Has a great façade decorated with colonnettes.
- The small funerary of Al-Otrush mosque, built in 1409, in Mameluke style. It has a highly decorated entrance portal in its façade. It was resotred in 1922.
- Al-Saffahiyah MosqueAl-Saffahiyah MosqueThe Al-Saffahiyah Mosque is a mosque in Aleppo, located to the south-west of the Citadel, at the Al-Jalloum district of the ancient city, to the east of Al-Shibani Church-School...
, erected in 1425 and partly renovated in 1925. It is famous for its preciously decorated octagonal minaret. - Khusruwiyah MosqueKhusruwiyah MosqueThe Khusruwiyah Mosque is a mosque complex in Aleppo, Syria. It is located south of the Citadel, facing its main entrance. The mosque was built under the patronage of the Hüsrev Pasha, while he was serving as the fourth vizier under Sultan Suleiman I...
completed in 1547, designed by the famous Armenian-Ottoman architect Mimar Sinan. - Al-Adiliyah MosqueAl-Adiliyah MosqueAl-Adiliyah Mosque is a mosque complex in Aleppo, located to the west of the Citadel, in "Al-Jalloum" district of the ancient city, few meters away from Al-Saffahiyah mosque. The mosque was built by the Ottoman governor of Aleppo Muhammed Pasha in 1557...
, built in 1557 by the Ottoman governor of Aleppo Muhammed Pasha. It has a prayer hall preceded by an arcade, with a dome, a mihrab with local faienceFaienceFaience or faïence is the conventional name in English for fine tin-glazed pottery on a delicate pale buff earthenware body, originally associated with Faenza in northern Italy. The invention of a white pottery glaze suitable for painted decoration, by the addition of an oxide of tin to the slip...
tiles. - Al-Qaiqan mosque ("Mosque of the Crows"), decorated with two ancient columns in basalt at the entrance. It includes a stone block with a Anatolian hieroglyphsAnatolian hieroglyphsAnatolian hieroglyphs are an indigenous logographic script native to central Anatolia, consisting of some 500 signs. They were once commonly known as Hittite hieroglyphs, but the language they encode proved to be Luwian, not Hittite, and the term Luwian hieroglyphs is used in English publications...
inscription. - The old church of the Holy Mother of God of the Armenian Apostolic ChurchArmenian Apostolic ChurchThe Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest National Church, is part of Oriental Orthodoxy, and is one of the most ancient Christian communities. Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion in 301 AD, in establishing this church...
at Jdeydeh quarter, built before 1429. - The Forty MartyrsCathedral of the Forty Martyrs (Aleppo)The Forty Martyrs Armenian Cathedral of Aleppo, Syria is a 15th century Armenian Apostolic church located in the old Christian district of Aleppo, at Salibeh street of Jdeydeh quarter. It is significant among Armenian churches for having three altars. The church has no dome, but the bell tower is...
Armenian Apostolic cathedral of the 15th century located in Jdeydeh quarter. - Mar Assia Al-Hakim Syrian Catholic church of the 15th century in Jdeydeh.
- The Dormition of Our Lady Greek Orthodox church of the 15th century in Jdeydeh.
- Churches of Jdeydeh Christian quarter such as the Maronite Saint Elias Cathedral, the Armenian Catholic Cathedral of Our Mother of Reliefs and the Melkite Greek Catholic Cathedral of Virgin Mary.
- The Central Synagogue of AleppoCentral Synagogue of AleppoThe Central Synagogue of Aleppo, , also known as the Great Synagogue of Aleppo or Joab's Synagogue, has been a Jewish place of worship since the 5th century C.E. When it functioned, it was considered the main synagogue of the Syrian Jewish community. The synagogue is noted as being the location...
or Al-Bandara synagogue, completed as early as the 9th century by the efforts of the Jewish community. The synagogue was ruined several times until 1428 when it was restored. Recently, the building was renovated by the efforts of Aleppine Jewish migrants in USA.
Gates
The old part of the city is surrounded with 5 kilometers long thick walls, pierced by the nine historical gates (many of them are well-preserved) of the old town. These are, clockwise from the north-east of the citadel:- Bab al-HadidBab al-HadidBab al-Hadid is a monument located in Aleppo, Syria, was planned during the reign of al-Zahir Ghazi and built by his son Mohammed as Bab al-Qanat . It was rebuilt by the final Mamluk sultan Al-Ashraf Qansuh al-Ghawri in 1509. The gate and surrounding quarters of the old city are some of the best...
(Iron Gate) - Bab al-Ahmar (Red Gate, completely ruined)
- Bab al-Nairab (Gate of Nairab, completely ruined)
- Bab al-MaqamBab al-MaqamBab al-Maqam is one of the Gates of Aleppo. It was built by al-Aziz Muhammad in 1230 on the road that connected the Maqamat with the Citadel. It is unique in its planning and form. The design's innovative quality implies a monumental, ceremonial function rather than a military one.Yasser Tabbaa...
(Gate of the Shrine) - Bab QinnasrinBab QinnasrinBab Qinnasrin is one of the Gates of Aleppo.-History:It was originally built by Saif ad-Daula al-Hamadani but was completely rebuilt in 1256 by An-Nasir Yusuf who renewed the southwestern part of the city wall between the Qinnasrin and Antakeya gates. The architecture of Bab Qinnasrin was formed...
(Gate of Qinnasrin) - Bab AntakeyaBab AntakeyaBāb Antakiya formed one of the most important defense gates in Aleppo, protecting the city from the west. Baba Antakiya is located in the centre of the western wall of the old city of Aleppo, and its name was derived from Antioch, the capital of ancient Syria, as the gate was the main exit which...
(Gate of Antioch) - Bāb Jnēn (Gate of Gardens, completely ruined)
- Bab al-Faraj, completely ruinedBab al-Faraj (Aleppo)Bab al-Faraj or Bab al-Faradis is located to the north of the old city of Aleppo, Syria. It was built by al-Zaher Ghazi and reopened later by al-Nasir Yusuf II. In 1904 it was torn down with a portion of the surrounding fabric to become a public square known by the same name...
(Gate of Deliverance) - Bab al-NasrBab al-Nasr (Aleppo)-History:It was originally called Bab al-Yahud because of its location next to the Jewish Quarter. It was rebuilt and renamed by al-Zaher Ghazi in 1212 to become the most important northern gate of the city. Its simple, direct access form became more complex under the reconstruction with the...
(Victory Gate, partially ruined)
Other
- HammamHammamA Turkish bath is the Turkish variant of a steam bath, sauna or Russian Bath, distinguished by a focus on water, as distinct from ambient steam....
s of Aleppo include: Hammam YalbughaHammam YalbughaHammam Yalbugha is a Mamluk-era public bath in Aleppo, Syria. The hammam was built in 1491 by the Emir of Aleppo Yalbugha al-Naseri. It is located next to the entrance of the Citadel of Aleppo, on the banks of the Quweiq river.-History:...
, Hammam Al-Nahhaseen and Hammam Bab Al-Ahmar. - The Public Park of Aleppo which was opened in the 1940s is the largest in Syria. It is located in Aziziyeh area, where Quweiq river breaks through the green park.
- The Blue Lagoon is a modern water park located just outside Aleppo. It has several pools, toboggans, bars and restaurants.
Museums
- National Museum of AleppoNational Museum of AleppoThe National Museum of Aleppo is the largest museum in the city of Aleppo, founded in 1931. It is located in the heart of the northern city on Baron Street, adjacent to the famous Baron Hotel and near the Bab al-Faraj clock tower...
. - Museum of the popular traditions -the Aleppine House- at Beit Achiqbash in Jdeydeh.
- Aleppo Citadel museum.
- Museum of medicine and science at Bimaristan Arghun al-Kamili.
- Aleppo Memory Museum at Beit Ghazaleh in Jdeydeh.
- Museum of the Armenian Apostolic Church -Zarehian Treasury- at the old Armenian church of the Holy Mother of God, Jdeydeh.
Nearby attractions and the Dead Cities
Aleppo is surrounded by historical sites, or Dead CitiesDead Cities
-History:The Dead Cities are a group of 700 abandoned settlements in northwest Syria between Aleppo and Hama. They date back to before the fifth century CE and contain many remains of Christian Byzantine architecture...
. They are a group of 700 abandoned settlements in northwest Syria. Those cities date back to before the 5th century AD and contain remains of Christian Byzantine architecture
Byzantine architecture
Byzantine architecture is the architecture of the Byzantine Empire. The empire gradually emerged as a distinct artistic and cultural entity from what is today referred to as the Roman Empire after AD 330, when the Roman Emperor Constantine moved the capital of the Roman Empire east from Rome to...
. Many are located in the Mount Simeon and Jabal Halaqa regions at the western suburbs of Aleppo, within the range of Limestone Massif
Limestone Massif
The Limestone Massif or Belus Massif is a name applied to the highlands on the weastern part of the Aleppo plateau in northwestern Syria. The Massif is famed for having the Dead Cities of Syria....
.
Dead cities and archeological sites in Jabal Semaan (Mount Simeon) near Aleppo include:
- Kalota Castle and churches, located 20 km northwest of Aleppo. The castle was originally built as a Roman temple during the 2nd century AD. After converting to ChristianityChristianityChristianity is a monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus as presented in canonical gospels and other New Testament writings...
, the temple was turned into a basilica within the 5th century. As a result of the wars between the HamadanidsHamdanid dynastyThe Hamdanid dynasty was a Shi'a Muslim Arab dynasty of northern Iraq and Syria . They claimed to have been descended from the ancient Banu Taghlib Christian tribe of Mesopotamia....
and the Byzantine EmpireByzantine EmpireThe Byzantine Empire was the Eastern Roman Empire during the periods of Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, centred on the capital of Constantinople. Known simply as the Roman Empire or Romania to its inhabitants and neighbours, the Empire was the direct continuation of the Ancient Roman State...
, the church was turned into a castle during the 10th century. There are two well-preserved churches near the castle: the eastern church built in 492 and the western church of the 6th century.
- Kharab Shams Basilica, one of the oldest best-preserved Christian instructures in the Levant. The Byzantine church which is located 21 km (13 mi) northwest of Aleppo; dates back to the 4th century.
- Fafertin Church, a half-ruined Roman basilica dates back to 372 AD, located 22 km (14 mi) northwest of Aleppo. According to the Aleppine historian Abdallah Hajjar, Fafertin Basilica is considered to be one of the oldest dated church-structures in the world.
- Surqanya village, located 23 km (14 mi) northwest of Aleppo, the site of the remains of an old Byzantine settlement with a half-ruined 6th century chapel.
- Kafr Kira settlement in Burj Heidar village, located 24 km (15 mi) northwest of Aleppo. The site is home to many half-ruined Christian structures dating back to the 4th and 6th centuries.
- Sinhar historic settlement, commonly known as Simkhar, located 24 km (15 mi) northwest of Aleppo. Situated in an isolated valley, the village was inhabited between the 2nd and 7th centuries. The Basilic church of Sinhar is one of the most oldest churches in Syria and dates back to the 4th century, while the nearby chapel is from the 6th century.
- Mushabbak Basilica, a well-preserved church from the second half of the 5th century (around 470), located 25 km (16 mi) west of Aleppo, near the town of Daret A'zzeh.
- Barjaka or Burj Suleiman village, a historic settlement located 26 km (16 mi) northwest of Aleppo, the site of an old hermit tower and a well-preserved chapel from the 6th century.
- Churches of Sheikh Suleiman village, located 28 km (17 mi) west of Aleppo. The village is home to 3 ancient churches: the ruined church which is located at the centre of the village, the well-preserved southern basilica which was built in 602 and the Virgin Mary Church of the late 5th century which is considered to be one of the most beautiful churches in northern Syria. There is a hermit tower in the northern side of the village.
- Kafr Nabo settlement, located 29 km (18 mi) west of Aleppo. An old Assyrian settlement of the 9th century BC and the site of an old Roman temple which was converted into a church. There ar many well-preserved residential buildings from the 5th and 6th centuries.
- Brad, an ancient settlement, located 32 km (20 mi) west of Aleppo; the site of many old basilicas such as Saint JulianusJulian of AntiochSaint Julian of Antioch is venerated as a Christian martyr of the fourth century. His date of death is given as 305 AD . He is sometimes confused with another saint of the same name.Of senatorial rank, he was killed during the persecutions of Diocletian...
Maronite monastery (399-402 AD) where the shrine of Saint MaronMaronSaint Maroun was a 5th century Syriac Christian monk who after his death was followed by a religious movement that became known as the Maronites. The Church that grew from this movement is the Maronite Church. St. Maroun was known for his missionary work, healing and miracles, and teachings of a...
is located, and a basilica at the northern part of the village built in 561. - Kimar settlement near Basuta village, located 35 km (22 mi) northwest of Aleppo. A historical village of the Roman and the Byzantine eras, dates back to the 5th century AD, contains many well-preserved churches, towers and old water reservoirs.
- Church of Saint Simeon Stylites (Deir Semaan), a well-preserved church and one of the most celebrated ecclesiastical monuments in Syria, dates back to the 5th century, located about 35 km (22 mi) northwest of Aleppo. Deir Semaan is one of the oldest standing Christian churches in the world.
- Sugane village, located 40 km (25 mi) northwest of Aleppo. It is home to two half-ruined churches and old water reservoires.
- Ain Dara templeAin Dara templeThe Ain Dara temple, located northwest of Aleppo, Syria, is an Iron Age Syro-Hittite temple noted for its similarities to Solomon's Temple as described in the Hebrew Bible...
, an Iron AgeIron AgeThe Iron Age is the archaeological period generally occurring after the Bronze Age, marked by the prevalent use of iron. The early period of the age is characterized by the widespread use of iron or steel. The adoption of such material coincided with other changes in society, including differing...
Syro-Hittite templeTempleA temple is a structure reserved for religious or spiritual activities, such as prayer and sacrifice, or analogous rites. A templum constituted a sacred precinct as defined by a priest, or augur. It has the same root as the word "template," a plan in preparation of the building that was marked out...
dating back to between the 10th and 8th centuries BC, located 45 km (28 mi) northwest of Aleppo. - Bab Al-Hawa village, located 50 km (31 mi) west of Aleppo on the Turkish border; the site of many old churches of the 4th century and a well preserved historical gate from the 6th century AD.
- CyrrhusCyrrhus, SyriaCyrrhus, or Kyrros was a city in ancient Syria founded by Seleucus Nicator, one of Alexander the Great's generals. Other names for the city include Hagioupolis, Nebi Huri نبي حوري, Khoros . Its ruins are located in northern Syria, near the Turkish border. It lies about 70 km northwest of Aleppo...
, an ancient city located 65 km (40 mi) north of Aleppo; the site of Saints Cosmas and DamianSaints Cosmas and DamianSaints Cosmas and Damian were twin brothers, physicians, and early Christian martyrs born in Cilicia, part of today's Turkey. They practiced their profession in the seaport of Ayas, Adana, then in the Roman province of Syria...
Church (commonly known as Nabi Houri church) as well as an old Roman amphitheatre and two old Roman bridges.
Many other sites and dead cities in the area, are located on various distances around Aleppo such as Qal'at Najm, Ebla
Ebla
Ebla Idlib Governorate, Syria) was an ancient city about southwest of Aleppo. It was an important city-state in two periods, first in the late third millennium BC, then again between 1800 and 1650 BC....
, Serjilla
Serjilla
Serjilla is one of the best preserved of the Dead Cities in northwestern Syria. It is located in the Jebel Riha, approx. 65 km north from Hama and approx. 80 km southwest from Aleppo, very close to ruins of another "dead city" of Bara....
, Bara
Bara, Syria
Bara also called Al-Bara is one of the former "Dead Cities" in northwestern Syria. It is located in the Jebel Riha, approx. 65 km north from Hama and approx. 80 km southwest from Aleppo....
, Qalb Lozeh Basilica, Baqirha Byzantine Church, Deir Mishmish Church, Benastur Monastery, Deir Amman churches, Sargible settlement, Tell A'de Church and Monastery and other settlements in Jabal Halaqa region.
Preservation of the ancient city
As an ancient trading centre, Aleppo's impressive suqs, khans, hammams, madrasas, mosques and churches are all in need of more care and preservation work. After World War IIWorld War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
, the city was significantly redesigned; in 1954 French architect André Gutton
André Gutton
André Gutton was a French architect.He became employed by the French government in 1927 as a town planner, and was successively chief architect of civil buildings and palaces in 1936...
had a number of wide new roads cut through the city to allow easier passage for modern traffic. Between 1954-1983 many buildings in the old city were demolished to allow for the construction of modern apartment blocks, particularly in the northwestern areas (Bab al-Faraj and Bab al-Jinan
Bab al-Jinan
Bāb Jnēn was one of the gates of Aleppo that used to lead to gardens on the banks of the Quwēq river. The gate was demolished about 120 years ago in order to widen the road. There used to be numerous exchangers and storage houses for goods near the gate, and a pine dating back to the 16th century...
). As awareness for the need to preserve this unique cultural heritage increased, Gutton's master plan was finally abandoned in 1979 to be replaced with a new plan presented by the Swiss expert and urban designer Stefano Bianca
Stefano Bianca
Stefano Bianca is a swiss architectural historian and an urban designer. Biancas has been published in the fields of Islamic architecture, cities, gardens and arts.He is currently working as Director of the Historic Cities Support Program;-References:...
, which adopted the idea of "preserving the traditional architectural style of Ancient Aleppo" paving the way for UNESCO
UNESCO
The United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization is a specialized agency of the United Nations...
to declare the Old City of Aleppo as a World Heritage Site in 1986.
Several international institutions have joined efforts with local authorities and the Aleppo Archeological Society, to rehabilitate the old city by accommodating contemporary life while preserving the old one. The governorate and the municipality are implementing serious programmes directed towards the enhancement of the ancient city and Jdeydeh quarter.
The German Technical Cooperation (GTZ) and Aga Khan Foundation
Aga Khan Foundation
The Aga Khan Foundation is a private, not-for-profit international development agency, which was founded in 1967 by . AKF seeks to provide long-term solutions to problems of poverty, hunger, illiteracy and ill health in the poorest parts of South and Central Asia, Eastern and Western Africa, and...
(within the frames of Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme) have a great contribution in the preservation process of the old city.
History
Aleppo's large Christian population swelled with the influx of Armenian and Syriac Christian refugees during the early 20th-century and after the Armenian Genocide
Armenian Genocide
The Armenian Genocide—also known as the Armenian Holocaust, the Armenian Massacres and, by Armenians, as the Great Crime—refers to the deliberate and systematic destruction of the Armenian population of the Ottoman Empire during and just after World War I...
of 1915. After the arrival of the first groups of Armenian refugees (1915–1922) the population of Aleppo in 1922 counted 156,748 of which Muslims were 97,600 (62.26%), native Christians -mostly Catholics- 22,117 (14.11%), Jews 6,580 (4.20%), Europeans 2,652 (1.70%), Armenian refugees 20,007 (12.76%) and others 7,792 (4.97%).
The second period of Armenian flow towards Aleppo marked with the withdrawal of the French troops from Cilicia
Cilicia
In antiquity, Cilicia was the south coastal region of Asia Minor, south of the central Anatolian plateau. It existed as a political entity from Hittite times into the Byzantine empire...
in 1923. After the arrival of more than 40,000 Armenian refugees between 1923–1925, the population of the city reached up to 210,000 by the end of 1925, where Armenians
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
formed more than 25% of it.
According to the historical data presented by Sheikh Kamel Al-Ghazzi, the vast majority of the Aleppine Christians were Catholics until the last days of the Ottoman rule. The growth of the Orthodox Christians is related with the arrival of the Armenian and Syrian Christian genocide-survivors from Cilicia and Southern Turkey, while on the other hand, large numbers of Orthodox Greeks from the Sanjak of Alexandretta
Hatay Province
Hatay Province is a province in southern Turkey, on the Mediterranean coast. It is bordered by Syria to the south and east and the Turkish provinces of Adana and Osmaniye to the north. The province is part of Çukurova, a geographical, economical and cultural region that covers the provinces of...
arrived in Aleppo, after the annexation of the Sanjak in 1939 in favour of Turkey.
In 1944, Aleppo's population was around 325,000, with 112,110 (34.5%) Christians among which Armenians have counted 60,200. Armenians formed more than half of the Christian community in Aleppo until 1947, when many groups of them left for Soviet Armenia within the frames of Armenian Repatriation Process (1946-1967).
Current status
Aleppo is the most populous city in Syria, with a population of 2,181,061 as indicated in the official census of 2004. According to the official estimate announced by Aleppo City Council, the population of the city reached up to 2,301,570 by the end of 2005.More than 80% of Aleppo's inhabitants are Sunni Muslims. They are mainly Arabs followed by Kurds and Turkmens. Other Muslim groups include few numbers of ethnic Circassians, Chechens, Adyghe
Adyghe people
The Adyghe or Adygs , also often known as Circassians or Cherkess, are in origin a North Caucasian ethnic groupwho were displaced in the course of the Russian conquest of the Caucasus in the 19th century, especially after the Russian–Circassian War of 1862.Adyghe people mostly speak Adyghe and most...
, Albanians
Albanians
Albanians are a nation and ethnic group native to Albania and neighbouring countries. They speak the Albanian language. More than half of all Albanians live in Albania and Kosovo...
, Bosnians
Bosnians
Bosnians are people who reside in, or come from, Bosnia and Herzegovina. By the modern state definition a Bosnian can be anyone who holds citizenship of the state. This includes, but is not limited to, members of the constituent ethnic groups of Bosnia and Herzegovina: Bosniaks, Bosnian Serbs and...
, Bulgarians
Bulgarians
The Bulgarians are a South Slavic nation and ethnic group native to Bulgaria and neighbouring regions. Emigration has resulted in immigrant communities in a number of other countries.-History and ethnogenesis:...
, and Kabardin.
Being one of the largest Christian
Christian
A Christian is a person who adheres to Christianity, an Abrahamic, monotheistic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus of Nazareth as recorded in the Canonical gospels and the letters of the New Testament...
communities in the Middle East, Aleppo is home to many eastern Christian congregations, mainly Armenians
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
, Syrian Christians
Syriac Christianity
Syriac or Syrian Christianity , the Syriac-speaking Christians of Mesopotamia, comprises multiple Christian traditions of Eastern Christianity. With a history going back to the 1st Century AD, in modern times it is represented by denominations primarily in the Middle East and in Kerala, India....
and Melkite Greeks. Nowadays, more than 250,000 Christians live in the city representing about 12% of the total population. A significant number of the Syrian Christians in Aleppo speak the Armenian language
Armenian language
The Armenian language is an Indo-European language spoken by the Armenian people. It is the official language of the Republic of Armenia as well as in the region of Nagorno-Karabakh. The language is also widely spoken by Armenian communities in the Armenian diaspora...
and hail from the city of Urfa in Turkey. The large community of Orthodox Christians belongs to the Armenian Apostolic
Armenian Apostolic Church
The Armenian Apostolic Church is the world's oldest National Church, is part of Oriental Orthodoxy, and is one of the most ancient Christian communities. Armenia was the first country to adopt Christianity as its official religion in 301 AD, in establishing this church...
, Syrian Orthodox and Greek Orthodox Churches. There is also a strong presence of Catholic Christians in the city including Melkite Greeks, Maronites, Latins, Chaldeans and Syrian Catholics. Evangelical Christians of different groups are a minority in the city. Several areas have a Christian and Armenian majority, such as the old Christian quarter of Jdeydeh. Modern Christian districts include Aziziyeh, Suleimaniyeh, Gare de Baghdad, Ourubeh and Meydan. There are 45 operating churches in the city, possessed by the abovementioned Christian congregations.
The Arabic-speaking population of Aleppo uses the North Syrian dialect
North Syrian Arabic
North Syrian Arabic is the variety of Arabic spoken in Northern Syria. This dialect is spoken mainly in the region of Aleppo. It is a variant of Levantine Arabic.-External links:*...
of the Levantine Arabic
Levantine Arabic
Levantine Arabic is a broad variety of Arabic spoken in the 100 to 200 km-wide Eastern Mediterranean coastal strip...
.
Jews in Aleppo
The city was home to a significant Jewish population from ancient times. The Great SynagogueCentral Synagogue of Aleppo
The Central Synagogue of Aleppo, , also known as the Great Synagogue of Aleppo or Joab's Synagogue, has been a Jewish place of worship since the 5th century C.E. When it functioned, it was considered the main synagogue of the Syrian Jewish community. The synagogue is noted as being the location...
, built in the 5th century, housed the Aleppo codex
Aleppo Codex
The Aleppo Codex is a medieval bound manuscript of the Hebrew Bible. The codex was written in the 10th century A.D.The codex has long been considered to be the most authoritative document in the masorah , the tradition by which the Hebrew Scriptures have been preserved from generation to generation...
. In the early 20th-century, the towns Jews mainly lived in Al-Jamiliyah, Bab Al-Naser and the neighborhoods around the Great Synagogue. Unrest in Palestine in the years preceding the establishment of Israel in 1948 resulted in growing hostility towards Jews living in Arab countries. In December 1947, after the UN decided the partition of Palestine, an Arab mob attacked the Jewish quarter. Homes, schools and shops were badly damaged. Soon after, many of the town's remaining 6,000 Jews emigrated. In 1968, there were an estimated 700 Jews still remaining in Aleppo.
The houses and other properties of the Jewish families which were not sold after the migration, remain uninhabited under the protection of the Syrian Government. Most of these properties are in Al-Jamiliyah and Bab Al-Naser areas, and the neighborhoods around the Central synagogue of Aleppo
Central Synagogue of Aleppo
The Central Synagogue of Aleppo, , also known as the Great Synagogue of Aleppo or Joab's Synagogue, has been a Jewish place of worship since the 5th century C.E. When it functioned, it was considered the main synagogue of the Syrian Jewish community. The synagogue is noted as being the location...
. Eventually, the Syrian government lifted restriction on its Jewish citizens with the sole condition that they did not travel to Israel to settle there. Most travelled to the USA, where a sizeable Syrian Jewish community currently exists in Brooklyn
Brooklyn
Brooklyn is the most populous of New York City's five boroughs, with nearly 2.6 million residents, and the second-largest in area. Since 1896, Brooklyn has had the same boundaries as Kings County, which is now the most populous county in New York State and the second-most densely populated...
, New York
New York
New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east...
. Today, only a handful of Jewish families live in Aleppo, and many of the buildings such as the synagogue and the Jewish school remain empty, only to be used for special events and religious ceremonies.
Trade and industry
The main role of the city was as a trading place throughout the history, as it sat at the crossroads of two trade routes and mediated the trade from IndiaIndia
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
, the Tigris
Tigris
The Tigris River is the eastern member of the two great rivers that define Mesopotamia, the other being the Euphrates. The river flows south from the mountains of southeastern Turkey through Iraq.-Geography:...
and Euphrates
Euphrates
The Euphrates is the longest and one of the most historically important rivers of Western Asia. Together with the Tigris, it is one of the two defining rivers of Mesopotamia...
regions and the route coming from Damascus
Damascus
Damascus , commonly known in Syria as Al Sham , and as the City of Jasmine , is the capital and the second largest city of Syria after Aleppo, both are part of the country's 14 governorates. In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major...
in the South, which traced the base of the mountains rather than the rugged seacoast. Although trade was often directed away from the city for political reasons, it continued to thrive until the Europeans began to use the Cape route
Cape of Good Hope
The Cape of Good Hope is a rocky headland on the Atlantic coast of the Cape Peninsula, South Africa.There is a misconception that the Cape of Good Hope is the southern tip of Africa, because it was once believed to be the dividing point between the Atlantic and Indian Oceans. In fact, the...
to India
India
India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world...
and later to utilize the route through Egypt
Egypt
Egypt , officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, Arabic: , is a country mainly in North Africa, with the Sinai Peninsula forming a land bridge in Southwest Asia. Egypt is thus a transcontinental country, and a major power in Africa, the Mediterranean Basin, the Middle East and the Muslim world...
to the Red Sea
Red Sea
The Red Sea is a seawater inlet of the Indian Ocean, lying between Africa and Asia. The connection to the ocean is in the south through the Bab el Mandeb strait and the Gulf of Aden. In the north, there is the Sinai Peninsula, the Gulf of Aqaba, and the Gulf of Suez...
.
The commercial traditions in Aleppo have deep roots in the history. The Aleppo Chamber of commerce founded in 1885, is one of the oldest chambers in the Middle East
Middle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
and the Arab world. According to many historians, Aleppo was the most developed commercial and industrial city in the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
after Constantinople
Constantinople
Constantinople was the capital of the Roman, Eastern Roman, Byzantine, Latin, and Ottoman Empires. Throughout most of the Middle Ages, Constantinople was Europe's largest and wealthiest city.-Names:...
and Cairo
Cairo
Cairo , is the capital of Egypt and the largest city in the Arab world and Africa, and the 16th largest metropolitan area in the world. Nicknamed "The City of a Thousand Minarets" for its preponderance of Islamic architecture, Cairo has long been a centre of the region's political and cultural life...
.
Being the largest urban area in the Syrian Republic, the economy of Aleppo is driven by textiles, chemicals, pharmaceutics, agro-processing industries, electricals, alcoholic beverage
Alcoholic beverage
An alcoholic beverage is a drink containing ethanol, commonly known as alcohol. Alcoholic beverages are divided into three general classes: beers, wines, and spirits. They are legally consumed in most countries, and over 100 countries have laws regulating their production, sale, and consumption...
s, engineering and tourism. It is the country’s dominant manufacturing centre, with a share of more than 50% of manufacturing employment and an even greater export share. Being located in a highly productive agricultural region, Aleppo supplies agricultural inputs and processes much of its agricultural output.
Possessing the most developed commercial and industrial plants in Syria, Aleppo is a major centre for manufacturing precious metals and stones.
The industrial city of Aleppo in Sheikh Najjar district is one of the largest ones in Syria and the region. Occupying an area of 4412 hectares in the north-eastern suburbs of Aleppo, the total investments in the city counted more than US$ 3.4 billion during 2010. Still under development, it is envisaged to open hotels, exhibition centres and other facilities within the industrial city.
The old traditional crafts are well-preserved in the old part of the city. The famous laurel soap of Aleppo
Aleppo soap
Aleppo soap is a handmade, hard bar soap. Aleppo soap is also known as savon d'Alep, laurel soap, or ghar soap . It derives its English and French names from the city of Aleppo, Syria, where it is reputed to have been made for thousands of years...
is considered to be the world's first hard soap.
Construction
Aleppo is one of the fastest-growing cities in Syria and the Middle EastMiddle East
The Middle East is a region that encompasses Western Asia and Northern Africa. It is often used as a synonym for Near East, in opposition to Far East...
. Many villagers and inhabitants of other Syrian districts are migrating to Aleppo in an effort to find better job opportunities, a fact that always increases population pressure, with a growing demand for new residential capacity. New districts and residential communities have been built in the suburbs of Aleppo, many of them are still under construction .
Two major construction projects are scheduled in Aleppo: the "Old City Revival" project and the "Reopening of the stream bed of Quweiq River".
- The Old City revival project completed its first phase by the end of 2008, and the second phase started in early 2010. The purpose of the project is the preservation of the old city of Aleppo with its souqs and khans, and restoration of the narrow alleys of the old city and the roads around the citadel.
- The restoration of Quweiq River is directed towards the revival of the flow of the Quweiq River, demolishing both the artificial cover of the stream bed and the reinforcement of the stream banks along the river in the city centre. The flow of the river was blocked during the 1960s by the Turks, turning the river into a tiny sewage channel, leading the authorities to cover the stream. In 2006 the flow of pure water was restored through the efforts of the Syrian government, thus granting a new life to the Quweiq River.
Like other major Syrian cities, Aleppo is suffering from the dispersal of informal settlements, with almost half of its population (around 1.2 million) are estimated to live in 22 informal settlements of different types.
Railway
Aleppo was one of the first parts of Syria to obtain railway connection, with the Ottoman Empire building the Baghdad RailwayBaghdad Railway
The Baghdad Railway , was built from 1903 to 1940 to connect Berlin with the Ottoman Empire city of Baghdad with a line through modern-day Turkey, Syria, and Iraq....
through the city in 1912. The connections to Turkey and onwards to Ankara
Ankara
Ankara is the capital of Turkey and the country's second largest city after Istanbul. The city has a mean elevation of , and as of 2010 the metropolitan area in the entire Ankara Province had a population of 4.4 million....
still exist today, with a twice weekly train from Damascus. It is perhaps for this historical reason that Aleppo is the headquarters of Syria national railway network, Chemins de Fer Syriens
Chemins de Fer Syriens
Chemins de Fer Syriens is the national railway operator for the state of Syria, headquartered in Aleppo.-History:The first railway in Syria opened when the country was part of the Ottoman Empire, with the gauge line from Damascus to the port city of Beirut in present day Lebanon opened in 1895...
. As the railway has a relatively slow speed of passage, much of the passenger traffic to the port of Latakia
Latakia
Latakia, or Latakiyah , is the principal port city of Syria, as well as the capital of the Latakia Governorate. In addition to serving as a port, the city is a manufacturing center for surrounding agricultural towns and villages...
had moved to road based air-conditioned coaches. But this has reversed in recent years with the 2005 introduction of South Korea
South Korea
The Republic of Korea , , is a sovereign state in East Asia, located on the southern portion of the Korean Peninsula. It is neighbored by the People's Republic of China to the west, Japan to the east, North Korea to the north, and the East China Sea and Republic of China to the south...
n built DMU's proving regular bi-hourly express service to both Latakia and Damascus, which miss intermediate stations.
Airport
Aleppo International AirportAleppo International Airport
Aleppo International Airport is an international airport serving Aleppo, Syria. The airport serves as a secondary hub for Syrian Arab Airlines.The history of the airport dates back to the beginning of the 20th century...
(IATA: ALP, ICAO: OSAP) is the international airport serving the city. The airport serves as a secondary hub for Syrian Arab Airlines
Syrian Arab Airlines
Syrian Arab Airlines , operating as Syrian Air , is the flag carrier airline of Syria. It operates scheduled international services to over 40 destinations in Asia, Europe and North Africa, as well as domestic services. Its main base is Damascus International Airport. Syrian Air has a fleet of...
. The history of the airport dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. It was upgraded and developed within the years until 1999 when the new current terminal was inaugurated.
Education
As the main economical centre of Syria, Aleppo has a large number of educational institutions. Along with the Aleppo University, there are state colleges and private universities which attract large numbers of students from other regions of Syria and the Arab countries. The number of the students in Aleppo University is more than 60 thousand. The university has 18 faculties and 8 technical colleges in the city of Aleppo.Aleppo is home to one of the most developed military academies in the region; the "Al-Assad Military Engineering Academy" .
As of 2010, there are three private universities operating in the city: Private University of Science and Arts (PUSA), Gulf University (GU), and Mamoun University for Science and Technology (MUST).
Branches of the state conservatory and the fine arts school are also operating in the city.
Aleppo is home to several Christian and Armenian community-schools, and two international schools: International School of Aleppo
International School of Aleppo
Founded in 1977,, the private English language International School of Aleppo is the only International Baccalaureate World School in Syria. It offers the IB Primary Years Programme and IB Diploma Programme...
and Lycée Français d'Alep
Lycée Francais D'Alep
The Lycée Français d'Alep , known also as MLF lycée d'Alep, École Française or the French school, is a French lycée in the city of Aleppo, Syria founded in 1997 by the Mission laïque française, an organization which also helped found other lycées all over the world.The school is located at Cordoba...
.
Arts
Muwashshah
Muwashshah or muwaššaḥ can mean:...
s, Qudoods and Maqams (religious and secular poetic-musical genres). Aleppines in general are fond of Arab classical music, the Tarab, and it is not a surprise that many artists from Aleppo are considered pioneers among the Arabs in classic and traditional music. The most prominent figures in this field are Sabri Mdallal, Sabah Fakhri
Sabah Fakhri
Sabah Fakhri : is an iconic Arabic traditional singer from Aleppo, Syria.Over the past 50 years of fame and popularity as a singer, Mr. Sabah Fakhri modified and popularized the then-fading form of traditional Arabic music, Muwashahat and Koodood Halabiya...
, Shadi Jameel, Abed Azrie
Abed Azrie
Abed Azrie or Abed Azrié , is a Syrian singer who performs Arab classical music, although he claims to belong to no particular music tradition...
and Nour Mhanna
Nour Mhanna
Nour Mhanna is a Syrian singer.Mhanna started his musical career as a reciter of the Qur'an, before switching to secular music. His most famous album to date is Wala Kan Albal with 3alayhi al Awaad the first track becoming an instant hit all over the Middle East.On 1 July 2004 he performed at...
. Many iconic artists of the Arab music like Sayed Darwish
Sayed Darwish
Sayed Darwish was an Egyptian singer and composer who was considered the father of Egyptian popular music and one of their greatest musicians and their single greatest composer. He was born in Alexandria on March 17, 1892. Darwish died of a heart attack in Alexandria on September 15, 1923 . The...
and Mohammed Abdel Wahab
Mohammed Abdel Wahab
Mohammed Abdel Wahab , also transliterated Mohammed Abd el-Wahaab was a prominent 20th-century Arab Egyptian singer and composer...
were visiting Aleppo to recognize the legacy of Aleppine art and learn from its cultural heritage.
Aleppo is also known for its knowledgeable and cultivated listeners, known as sammi'a or "connoisseur listeners". Aleppine musicians often claim that no major Arab artist achieved fame without first earning the approval of the Aleppine sammi'a.
Aleppo hosts many music shows and festivals every year at the citadel amphitheatre, such as the "Syrian Song Festival", the "Silk Road Festival" and "Khan al-Harir Festival".
Sports
Al-Ittihad
Ittihad Football Club or Ittihad Jeddah or Al-Ittihad is a Saudi Arabian sports club based in the Red Sea port city of Jeddah. Officially formed in 1927, it is the oldest surviving club in Saudi Arabia, and one of the most popular and successful in Asia.-History:In 1927 a group of young men from...
, plays in the Syrian National Football League's top division for the season 2009–2010. The city is the home of Syria's largest sports venue; the Aleppo International Stadium
Aleppo International Stadium
Aleppo International Stadium is an Olympic-standard, multi-use, all-covered and all-seater stadium in the Syrian city of Aleppo. It is the largest stadium in Syria, and is currently used mostly for football matches. It serves as a home ground of the Syrian football team and hosts some matches of...
with a capacity of 75,000 spectators.
Major sport clubs in the city include:
| Club |
|---|
| Al-Ittihad Aleppo | Al-Horriya Al-Horriya Hurriya Sporting Club is a Syrian football club based in Aleppo. It was founded in 1952. They play at the Hamadaniah Stadium.-Current squad:... |
Jalaa Sporting Club | Al-Yarmouk SC Aleppo Al-Yarmouk SC Aleppo Al-Yarmouk Sporting Club is a Syrian football club based in Aleppo. Founded in 1925, Al-Yarmouk is the oldest sports club and organization in Syria. The club has won the Syrian regions football championship for several times before the establishment of the official Syrian football league in 1966... |
Ourubeh Club |
Al-Ittihad is the biggest and most popular club in Syria. The club has its own stadium with a capacity of 15,000 spectators, but due to the huge number of the supporters, they use the main stadiums of the city: Al-Hamadaniah Stadium
Al-Hamadaniah Stadium
Al-Hamadaniah Stadium is an all-seater multi-purpose stadium in Aleppo, Syria. It is mostly used for football matches and has a capacity of 20,000 spectators....
and the Aleppo International Stadium
Aleppo International Stadium
Aleppo International Stadium is an Olympic-standard, multi-use, all-covered and all-seater stadium in the Syrian city of Aleppo. It is the largest stadium in Syria, and is currently used mostly for football matches. It serves as a home ground of the Syrian football team and hosts some matches of...
. On the other hand, the 2nd division teams; Al-Horriya and Al Yarmouk, use the 7 April Municipal Stadium which can serve around 18,000 spectators.
Basketball
Basketball
Basketball is a team sport in which two teams of five players try to score points by throwing or "shooting" a ball through the top of a basketball hoop while following a set of rules...
in its turn is also popular in Aleppo. 4 clubs out of 12 in the Syrian Basketball men's top division are from Aleppo, while five Aleppine clubs are included in the women's top division, making up to 50% of the total participants (as of 2010-2011 season).
Many other types of sports are being practiced by the abovementioned clubs as well as other small clubs. tennis
Tennis
Tennis is a sport usually played between two players or between two teams of two players each . Each player uses a racket that is strung to strike a hollow rubber ball covered with felt over a net into the opponent's court. Tennis is an Olympic sport and is played at all levels of society at all...
, handball
Team handball
Handball is a team sport in which two teams of seven players each pass a ball to throw it into the goal of the other team...
, volleyball
Volleyball
Volleyball is a team sport in which two teams of six players are separated by a net. Each team tries to score points by grounding a ball on the other team's court under organized rules.The complete rules are extensive...
, table tennis
Table tennis
Table tennis, also known as ping-pong, is a sport in which two or four players hit a lightweight, hollow ball back and forth using table tennis rackets. The game takes place on a hard table divided by a net...
and swimming are among the favorites.
Cuisine
The Syrian cuisine in general and especially the Aleppine cuisine is very rich of its multiple types of dishes. Being surrounded by olive, nut and fruit orchards, Aleppo is famous for a love of eating, as the cuisine is the product of fertile land and location along the Silk RoadSilk Road
The Silk Road or Silk Route refers to a historical network of interlinking trade routes across the Afro-Eurasian landmass that connected East, South, and Western Asia with the Mediterranean and European world, as well as parts of North and East Africa...
. Therefore, it's not a surprise that the International Academy of Gastronomy in France awarded Aleppo its culinary prize in 2007. But in fact, Aleppo was a food capital long before Paris
Paris
Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region...
, because of its diverse communities combined by Arabs, Kurds, Armenians
Armenians
Armenian people or Armenians are a nation and ethnic group native to the Armenian Highland.The largest concentration is in Armenia having a nearly-homogeneous population with 97.9% or 3,145,354 being ethnic Armenian....
, Circassians and a sizable Arab Christian population. All of those groups contributed food traditions, since Aleppo was part of the Ottoman Empire
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman EmpireIt was usually referred to as the "Ottoman Empire", the "Turkish Empire", the "Ottoman Caliphate" or more commonly "Turkey" by its contemporaries...
.
The city has a vast selection of different types of dishes, such as kabab, kibbeh
Kibbeh
Kibbeh or kibbe is an Arab dish made of bulgur or rice and chopped meat. The best-known variety is a torpedo-shaped fried croquette stuffed with minced beef or lamb. Other types of kibbeh may be shaped into balls or patties, and baked or cooked in broth.Kibbeh is a popular dish in Levantine...
, dolma
Dolma
Dolma is a family of stuffed vegetable dishes in the cuisines of the former Ottoman Empire and surrounding regions such as Russia, Middle East and the Caucasus and Central and South Asia. Perhaps the best-known is the grape-leaf dolma. Common vegetables to stuff include onion, zucchini, eggplant,...
, hummus
Hummus
Hummus is high in iron and vitamin C and also has significant amounts of folate and vitamin B6. The chickpeas make it a good source of protein and dietary fiber; the tahini consists mostly of sesame seeds, which are an excellent source of the amino acid methionine, complementing the proteins in the...
, ful halabi, za'atar
Za'atar
Za'atar is a generic name for a family of related Middle Eastern herbs from the genera Origanum , Calamintha , Thymus vulgaris and Satureja . It is also the name for a condiment made from the dried herb, mixed together with sesame seeds, dried sumac, and often salt, as well as other spices...
halabi, etc. Ful halabi, is a typical Aleppine breakfast meal: fava bean soup with a splash of olive oil, lemon juice and Aleppo's red peppers. The kibbeh is one of the most favourite foods for the locals, and that's why the Aleppines have invented more than 17 types of kibbeh dishes, which is considered a form of art for them. The za'atar of Aleppo (thyme) is a type of Syrian oregano which is very popular among Arabs, Armenians and Turks. The most favourite drink is Arak
Arak (distilled beverage)
Arak or Araq , is a highly alcoholic spirit from the anis drinks family. It is a clear, colorless, unsweetened anise-flavoured distilled alcoholic drink...
, which is usually consumed along with meze
Meze
Meze or mezze is a selection of small dishes served in the Mediterranean and Middle East as dinner or lunch, with or without drinks. In Levantine cuisines and in the Caucasus region, meze is served at the beginning of all large-scale meals....
, Aleppine grills and kibbehs. Al-Chark beer which is manufactured in Aleppo is also a favourite.
Aleppo is the origin of many different types of sweets and pastries. The Aleppine sweets are characterized to contain high rates of ghee butter and sugar, such as mabrumeh, swar es-sett, balloriyyeh, etc. Other sweets include mamuniyeh, shuaibiyyat, mushabbak, zilebiyeh, ghazel al-banat etc. Most of the pastries can contain the renowned Aleppine pistachios or other types of nuts.
Integrated Urban Development in Aleppo
The "Integrated Urban Development in Aleppo" (UDP) is a joint programme between the German Development Cooperation (GTZ) and the Municipality of Aleppo. The programme promotes capacities for sustainable urban management and development at the national and municipal level.The Programme has three fields of work:
- Aleppo City Development Strategy (CDS): promoting support structures for the municipality, including capacity building, networking, and developing municipal strength in the national development dialogue.
- Informal Settlements (IS): includes strategy and management development of informal settlements.
- The Project for the Rehabilitation of the Old City of Aleppo (OCA): includes further support to the rehabilitation of the Old City, as well as to a long-term oriented city development strategy.
The UDP cooperates closely with other interventions in the sector, namely the EU-supported 'Municipal Administration Modernization' programme. It is planned to operate from 2007 to 2016.
Municipality and International relations
The city of Aleppo is the capital of Aleppo GovernorateAleppo Governorate
Aleppo Governorate is one of the fourteen governorates of Syria. It is the most populous governorate in Syria with a population of more than 4,744,000 , almost 23% of the total population of Syria. The governorate is the fifth in area with an area of 18,482 km², about 10% of the total area of...
and the centre of Jabal Semaan
Mount Simeon (district)
Mount Simeon , also known as Jabal Sam'an, is a district of the Aleppo Governorate in Syria. At the 2004 Census it had a population of 2,490,751...
district. Aleppo City Council is the governing body of the city. The first municipality council was formed in 1868. However, the governor -in his turn- enjoys the highest authority over the city and the entire governorate.
Subdivisions
Aleppo is divided into many districts:The following quarters within the walls of the ancient city are centred by the citadel:
- Al-A'ajam الأعجام
- Altunbogha ألتونبوغا
- Aqabeh العقبة
- Bahsita بحسيتا
- Bandara البندرة
- Bayadah البياضة
- Farafira الفرافرة
- Jalloum الجلوم
- Jbeileh الجبيلة
- Maghazleh المغازلة
- Mustadmiyeh المستدمية
- Oghlubek أوغلبك
- Qala'at al-Sharif قلعة الشريف
- Al-Qasileh القصيلة
- Saffahiyah السفاحية
- Sahet Bizzeh ساحة بزة
- Suq al-Madina سوق المدينة
- Tallet Alsauda تلة السودة
Significant old quarters outside the walls of the ancient city include:
- Abraj الأبراج
- Aghyol أقيول
- Almaji ألمجي
- Ballat البلاط
- Basatneh البساتنة
- Banqusa بانقوسا
- Fardos الفردوس
- Hazzazeh (Sayed Ali) (الهزازة (السيد علي
- Jdeydeh quarter (Beit Meheb) (الجديدة (بيت محب
- Ma'adi المعادي
- Maghayer المغاير
- Qarleq قرلق
- Qastal Harami قسطل الحرامي
- Sajlikhan صاجليخان
- Shara'sous الشرعسوس
- Tadribeh التدريبة
- Wakiliyeh الوكيلية
Significant modern districts include:
- A'zamaiyeh الأعظمية
- Andalus الأندلس
- Ansari الأنصاري
- Ashrafiyeh الأشرفية
- Al-Assad neighborhood ضاحية الأسد
- Aziziyeh العزيزية
- Bostan Kelab بستان كل آب
- Furqan الفرقان
- Gare de Baghdad محطة بغداد
- Hamdaniyeh الحمدانية
- Hamidiyeh الحميدية
- Hanano city مدينة هنانو
- Hariri الحريري
- Jamiliyeh الجميلية
- Kallaseh الكلاسة
- Kawakibi (Martini) (الكواكبي (المارتيني
- Khalidiyeh الخالدية
- Masharqa المشارقة
- Midan الميدان
- Muhafaza المحافظة
- New Aleppo حلب الجديدة
- New Shahba الشهباء الجديدة
- Omran العمران
- Ourubeh العروبة
- As-Sabil السبيل
- Saif al-Daulah سيف الدولة
- Sakhur الصاخور
- Salah ad-Din صلاح الدين
- Salheen الصالحين
- Sha'ar الشعار
- Shahba (Mogambo) (الشهباء (موغامبو
- Share' an-Nil شارع النيل
- Sheikh Maqsoud الشيخ مقصود
- Shuhada الشهداء
- Suleimaniyeh السليمانية
- The Syriac quarter السريان
- Tariq ibn Ziyad طارق بن زياد
- Az-Zahra الزهراء
- Az-Zuhoor الزهور
Twin towns — sister cities
Currently, Aleppo has four sister and partner cities: IzmirIzmir
Izmir is a large metropolis in the western extremity of Anatolia. The metropolitan area in the entire Izmir Province had a population of 3.35 million as of 2010, making the city third most populous in Turkey...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
since 5 May 1993. Lyon
Lyon
Lyon , is a city in east-central France in the Rhône-Alpes region, situated between Paris and Marseille. Lyon is located at from Paris, from Marseille, from Geneva, from Turin, and from Barcelona. The residents of the city are called Lyonnais....
, France since 18 October 2000. Gaziantep
Gaziantep
Gaziantep , Ottoman Turkish: Ayintab) previously and still informally called Antep; ʻayn tāb is a city in southeast Turkey and amongst the oldest continually inhabited cities in the world. The city is located 185 kilometres northeast of Adana and 127 kilometres by road north of Aleppo, Syria...
, Turkey
Turkey
Turkey , known officially as the Republic of Turkey , is a Eurasian country located in Western Asia and in East Thrace in Southeastern Europe...
since 13 November 2005. Brest
Brest, Belarus
Brest , formerly also Brest-on-the-Bug and Brest-Litovsk , is a city in Belarus at the border with Poland opposite the city of Terespol, where the Bug River and Mukhavets rivers meet...
, Belarus
Belarus
Belarus , officially the Republic of Belarus, is a landlocked country in Eastern Europe, bordered clockwise by Russia to the northeast, Ukraine to the south, Poland to the west, and Lithuania and Latvia to the northwest. Its capital is Minsk; other major cities include Brest, Grodno , Gomel ,...
since 28 January 2010.
Notable people
- Saint Simeon StylitesSimeon StylitesSaint Simeon Stylites or Symeon the Stylite was a Christian ascetic saint who achieved fame because he lived for 39 years on a small platform on top of a pillar near Aleppo in Syria. Several other stylites later followed his model...
, prominent figure in Christianity - Saint MaronMaronSaint Maroun was a 5th century Syriac Christian monk who after his death was followed by a religious movement that became known as the Maronites. The Church that grew from this movement is the Maronite Church. St. Maroun was known for his missionary work, healing and miracles, and teachings of a...
, prominent figure in Christianity - Jacob of EdessaJacob of EdessaJacob of Edessa was one of the most distinguished of Syriac writers.-Life:Jacob of Edessa was born in Aindaba near Aleppo, around 640...
, Syrian writer and theologian, 7th century - Al-BuhturiBuhturiBuhturi , Arabic, أبو الوليد بن عبيدالله البحتري التنوخي was an Arab poet born at Hierapolis Bambyce in Syria, between Aleppo and the Euphrates...
, poet - Saif al-Daula al-Hamdani, ruler of Hamadanid dynasty
- Abu Firas al-HamdaniAbu Firas al-HamdaniAbu Firas al-Hamdani was an Arab poet. He was a member of the noble family of the Hamanids, who were rulers in northern Syria and upper Mesopotamia during the 10th century. His most famous work is a collection of poems titled al-Rûmiyât .Abū Firās al-Ḥamdānī, poetic cognomen of al-Ḥārit̲h̲ b. Abi...
, poet - Paul of AleppoPaul of AleppoPaul Zaim, known sometime also as Paul of Aleppo was a Syrian Melkite clergyman and chronicler...
, 17th century Archdeacon of Aleppo, traveler and chronicler - Phillip StammaPhillip StammaPhilipp Stamma , a native of Aleppo, Syria, later resident of England and France, was a chess master and a pioneer of modern chess. His reputation rests largely on his authorship of the early chess book Essai sur le jeu des echecs published 1737 in France...
chessplayer and writer - FrancisFrancis MarrashFrancis bin Fathallah bin Nasrallah Marrash , also known as Francis al-Marrash or Francis Marrash al-Halabi, was a Syrian writer and poet of the Nahda movement...
, AbdallahAbdallah MarrashAbdallah bin Fathallah bin Nasrallah Marrash , was a writer involved in various Arabic-language newspaper ventures in London and Paris.-Life:...
and Maryana MarrashMaryana MarrashMaryana bint Fathallah bin Nasrallah Marrash , was a Syrian writer and poet of the Nahda movement . She brought the tradition of literary salons back into the Middle East. She was the first Syrian female poet to publish a collection of poetry...
, writers and poets - Abd al-Rahman al-KawakibiAbd al-Rahman al-Kawakibi‘Abd al-Raḥman al-Kawākibī was a Syrian author and Pan-Islamic Arab solidarity supporter from Aleppo. He was one of the most prominent intellectuals of his time; however, his thoughts and writings continue to be relevant to the issues of Islamic identity and Pan-Arabism...
, thinker and religious reformer - Rizqallah Hassoun, Armenian journalist, founded the first Arabic newspaper in 1855
- Qestaki al-HomsiQestaki al-HomsiQusṭākī al-Ḥimṣī was a Syrian writer and poet of the Nahda movement , a prominent figure in the Arabic literature of the 19th and 20th centuries and one of the first reformers of the traditional Arabic poetry...
, writer and poet - Sati' al-Husari, founder of Arab nationalismArab nationalismArab nationalism is a nationalist ideology celebrating the glories of Arab civilization, the language and literature of the Arabs, calling for rejuvenation and political union in the Arab world...
- Mar'i Pasha Al MallahMar'i Pasha Al MallahMar'i Pasha Al Mallah : Syrian political leader and Statesman. Born in Aleppo . Graduated from the Galatasaray Mekteb-i Sultanisi , Constantinople, 1876...
, politician, governor general of the State of Aleppo 1924–26 - Subhi Barakat, politician, president of the State of Syria 1925–1926
- Saadallah al-JabiriSaadallah al-JabiriSaadallah al-Jabiri , is a Syrian politician and a two-time prime minister of Syria. He was born in Aleppo, and became the leader of the National Bloc during the French mandate era. He also served as foreign minister in a number of cabinets....
, prime minister (1947) and patriotic leader - Husni al-Za'imHusni al-Za'imHusni al-Za'im was a Syrian military man and politician. Husni al-Za'im, whose family is of Kurdish ancestry, had been an officer in the Ottoman Army. After France instituted its colonial mandate over Syria after the First World War, he became an officer in the French Army...
, first Syrian military dictator following independence - Sami al-HinnawiSami al-HinnawiColonel Sami Hilmy al-Hinnawi was a Syrian politician and military man. He was born in Aleppo and had sereved in the Ottoman army before serving in the French-Syrian army during the French Mandate of Syria....
, leader of the second military coup in 1949 - Aram Karamanougian, Syrian Artillery Commander of Armenian origin (1940s-1950s)
- Nazim al-KudsiNazim al-KudsiNazim al-Kudsi, also spelled "Koudsi", "al-Qudsi" or "al-Cudsi" , was a Syrian politician and head of state . He was born in and raised in Aleppo...
, former president of Syria - Amin al-Hafiz, former president of Syria
- Sabri Mdallal, (1918–2006) classical songs performer
- Wahbi Al-HaririWahbi Al-HaririMohamed Wahbi Al-Hariri Rifai , OAL, was an Arab-American artist, architect, and author.-Biography:Wahbi Al-Hariri was born in 1914 in Aleppo, Syria. He also lived in France, Italy, Lebanon, Saudi Arabia, and the United States of America....
, artist and architect - Antranig DzarugianAntranig DzarugianAntranig Dzarugian was an influential diasporan Armenian writer, poet, educator and journalist in the 20th century....
, Armenian novelist and poet - Omar Abu-RicheOmar Abu-RicheOmar Abu-Riche was an influential Syrian poet known for his pioneering works.Abu-Riche was born in Manbij, near Aleppo. He received his educational upbringing in Syria and continued his tertiary studies at the University of Damascus. He also studied at the American University in Beirut in 1931,...
, poet - Jean CarzouJean CarzouJean Carzou , born Garnik Zouloumian, was a French-Armenian artist. Jean arrived in Paris in 1924 to study architecture. He started working as a theater decorator but he then quickly realized he preferred drawing and painting...
, French-Armenian painter
- Fateh MoudarresFateh MoudarresFateh al-Moudarres was a Syrian painter and one of the leaders of the modern art movement in Syria. Moudarres studied at the Accademia di Belle Arti in Rome, where he was influenced by Surrealism...
, painter - Ali SarminiAli Sarmini"I have represented their crimes on the weapon they used to commit them"-- Ali SarminiDr. Ali Sarmini , is a world renowned Syrian painter, best known for his work Quneitra on Remains painted on parts of an Israeli Air Force F-4 Phantom shot down over Syrian territories, in about 1972.- Biography...
, painter - Hilarion CapucciHilarion CapucciHilarion Capucci is the retired titular archbishop of Caesarea for the Melkite Greek Catholic Church.He was ordained a priest of the Basilian Aleppian Order on 20 July, 1947. On 30 July 1965 he was appointed archbishop and consecrated...
, militant, Archbishop of Caesarea in exile - Moustafa Akkad, film producer and director
- Sabah FakhriSabah FakhriSabah Fakhri : is an iconic Arabic traditional singer from Aleppo, Syria.Over the past 50 years of fame and popularity as a singer, Mr. Sabah Fakhri modified and popularized the then-fading form of traditional Arabic music, Muwashahat and Koodood Halabiya...
, traditional songs performer - Najdat Anzour, TV director
- Abed AzrieAbed AzrieAbed Azrie or Abed Azrié , is a Syrian singer who performs Arab classical music, although he claims to belong to no particular music tradition...
, composer, classical songs performer - Hala GoraniHala GoraniHala Basha-Gorani , is an American anchor/correspondent for CNN International based in the network's headquarters in Atlanta, Georgia. She anchors CNN Internationals 1 p.m. ET International Desk from the CNN Center...
, news anchor of CNN InternationalCNN InternationalCNN International is an international English language television network that carries news, current affairs, politics, opinions, and business programming worldwide. CNN is one of the world's largest news organizations. It is owned by Time Warner, and is affiliated with CNN, which is mainly... - Abd al-Rahman MowakketAbd al-Rahman MowakketAbdul Rahman Mowakket is a contemporary sculptor from Syria.Abdul Rahman's career as a sculptor spans more than 40 years. He has been fully devoted to artistic work since 1976. He has a private workshop.-Background:...
, prize winner contemporary sculptor - Muhammad Naji al-OtariMuhammad Naji al-OtariMuhammad Naji al-Otari is a Syrian politician who was Prime Minister of Syria from 2003 to 2011.-Early life, education and career:...
, current Syrian prime minister - Toros Raskelenyan, Syrian-French prize-winning sculptor of Armenian origin
- George TutunjianGeorge TutunjianGeorge Tutunjian was a singer of Armenian patriotic and revolutionary songs and life-long supporter of Armenian Revolutionary Federation .He started singing at the age of 22...
, (1930–2006) Armenian revolutionary songsArmenian Revolutionary SongsArmenian Revolutionary Songs are songs that promote Armenian patriotism. The origins of these songs lay largely in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when Armenian political parties were established to struggle for the political and civil rights of Armenians living in the Ottoman...
performer - Karnig SarkissianKarnig SarkissianKarnig Sarkissian is a popular Armenian singer born in Aleppo, Syria and a naturalized American citizen. He is well-known for his Armenian patriotic songs throughout the Armenian diaspora and a big supporter of the Armenian Revolutionary Federation .-Prison:In 1982, Sarkissian was convicted in...
, Armenian revolutionary songsArmenian Revolutionary SongsArmenian Revolutionary Songs are songs that promote Armenian patriotism. The origins of these songs lay largely in the late nineteenth and early twentieth centuries, when Armenian political parties were established to struggle for the political and civil rights of Armenians living in the Ottoman...
performer - Paul BaghdadlianPaul BaghdadlianPaul Baghdadlian was often known simply as Paul, was an Armenian singer, songwriter, musician, entertainer, and businessman. Referred to as the King of Love Songs...
, Armenian singer - Levon Ter-PetrossianLevon Ter-PetrossianLevon Ter-Petrossian , sometimes transliterated Levon Ter-Petrosyan or Ter-Petrosian , was the first President of Armenia from 1991 to 1998...
, president of the Republic of Armenia between 1991–1998 - Vardan OskanyanVardan OskanyanVartan Oskanian is former Foreign Minister of Armenia and founder of the Civilitas Foundation.-Early life and career:Born into the Armenian diaspora in Syria, Oskanian was educated in the Armenian schools of Aleppo. After graduating from high school in 1973 he left for Armenia, where he attended...
, minister of foreign affairs of Armenia between 1998–2008 - Harut SassounianHarut SassounianHarut Sassounian is an Armenian-American writer, public activist and publisher of The California Courier which is known for Sassounian's weekly opinion column...
, Armenian-American writer, publisher of The California CourierThe California CourierThe California Courier is an English-language Armenian weekly newspaper published since 1958 in USA. The publisher of the weekly is Harut Sassounian.-External links:*... - Muhammed FarisMuhammed FarisMuhammed Ahmed Faris is a Syrian military aviator. He was the first Syrian and the second Arab in space.Born in Aleppo, Syria, he was a pilot in the Syrian Air Force with the rank of a colonel...
, first Syrian cosmonaut - Bassam KousaBassam KousaBassam Kousa is a prominent Syrian film and TV actor. He played many important roles in popular TV series including Bab al-Hara and Ayyam Shamiyah. He is also an accomplished film actor.-Filmography:...
, prominent actor - Raghda, contemporary actress
- Loay Kayyali, painter
- Tony RezkoTony RezkoAntoin "Tony" Rezko is a Assyrian -American businessman, political fundraiser, restaurateur, and real estate developer in Chicago, Illinois, convicted on several counts of fraud and bribery in 2008. Rezko has been involved in fundraising for local Illinois Democratic and Republican politicians...
, restaurateur and political fundraiser, convicted of corruption in Chicago - Sarkis AssadourianSarkis AssadourianSarkis Assadourian is an Armenian-Canadian politician from the Liberal Party of Canada. He became the first Armenian-Canadian to be elected to the House of Commons, with great support of the Armenian community of Toronto.Assadourian has grown distant to some in the Armenian-Canadian community by...
, former member of Canadian Parliament - Mohammad Afash, Syrian soccer player notable for playing in Europe
- Nour MhannaNour MhannaNour Mhanna is a Syrian singer.Mhanna started his musical career as a reciter of the Qur'an, before switching to secular music. His most famous album to date is Wala Kan Albal with 3alayhi al Awaad the first track becoming an instant hit all over the Middle East.On 1 July 2004 he performed at...
, singer - Avraam RussoAvraam RussoAvraam Russo is a Russian-Armenian pop singer. In 2006 he suffered an assassination attempt in Russia and was heavily injured. He recovered and is living in New York City....
, Russian pop singer of Syrian-Armenian origin
Photo gallery
See also
- North Syrian ArabicNorth Syrian ArabicNorth Syrian Arabic is the variety of Arabic spoken in Northern Syria. This dialect is spoken mainly in the region of Aleppo. It is a variant of Levantine Arabic.-External links:*...
- Al-Shibani ChurchAl-Shibani ChurchAl-Shibani Building , also called Al-Shibani School and Church is a 12th century religious and cultural centre in the "Al-Jalloum" district, at the heart of the ancient city of Aleppo...
- List of churches in Aleppo
- Aleppo CodexAleppo CodexThe Aleppo Codex is a medieval bound manuscript of the Hebrew Bible. The codex was written in the 10th century A.D.The codex has long been considered to be the most authoritative document in the masorah , the tradition by which the Hebrew Scriptures have been preserved from generation to generation...
- Central Synagogue of AleppoCentral Synagogue of AleppoThe Central Synagogue of Aleppo, , also known as the Great Synagogue of Aleppo or Joab's Synagogue, has been a Jewish place of worship since the 5th century C.E. When it functioned, it was considered the main synagogue of the Syrian Jewish community. The synagogue is noted as being the location...
External links
- Aleppo City official website
- Aleppo City Council
- Aleppo Governorate
- 3-D Old Aleppo map
- Organization of World Heritage Cities
- Aleppo news and services (eAleppo)
- Ernst Herzfeld Papers, Series 5: Drawings and Maps, Records of Aleppo Collections Search Center, S.I.R.I.S., Smithsonian Institution, Washington, D.C.
- Lynn Teo Simarski, The Lure of Aleppo, 1987, Saudi Aramco World
- William Graves, Restoring Old Aleppo, 1999, Saudi Aramco World
- Louis Werner, 4000 Years Behind the Counters in Aleppo, 2004, Saudi Aramco World