Ariqah or ‘Arīqah is a village in southern 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....

 with a population of about 3,000. It is located in the heart of the rocky volcanic plateau

Volcanic plateau

A volcanic plateau is a plateau produced by volcanic activity. There are two main types: lava plateaus and pyroclastic plateaus.-Lava plateau:...

 of Lejah

Argob

Argob , a region located east of the Jordan River, on an island of rock which was approximately by , and rose 20 or above the table-land of Bashan. An extremely rugged region, sixty walled cities were on the island, which was ruled over by Og. In the New Testament, it is called Trachonitis...

 also called (Lajat). Administratively Ariqah is situated in the Mantiqat Shahba

Shahba District

Shahba' District is a Syrian district administratively belonging to As-Suwayda Governorate. It is located in the south-west of the country and in the north of the As-Suwayda Governorate. At the 2004 Census it had a population of 71,949. Its administrative centre is the city of Shahba....

 (Shahba district) of As Suwayda Governorate

As Suwayda' Governorate

As-Suwayda is the southernmost of Syria's 14 governorates. It has an area of 5,550 km² and forms part of the historic Hawran region. Its capital and major city is As-Suwayda....

.

Historically ‘Arīqah was considered the centre of the inaccessible Lajat, many houses from the Byzantine

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...

 epoch were found in the town and they are still inhabited by locals, there is also an old ruined Byzantine monastery

Monastery

Monastery denotes the building, or complex of buildings, that houses a room reserved for prayer as well as the domestic quarters and workplace of monastics, whether monks or nuns, and whether living in community or alone .Monasteries may vary greatly in size – a small dwelling accommodating only...

 in the town known as "Deir Ariqa".

Ariqah is known for its volcanic cave

Cave

A cave or cavern is a natural underground space large enough for a human to enter. The term applies to natural cavities some part of which is in total darkness. The word cave also includes smaller spaces like rock shelters, sea caves, and grottos.Speleology is the science of exploration and study...

which is located in a 10 meters deep hollow in the centre of the village. This cave is known as Ariqa Cave which extends from 2 to 3 kilometers in the old lava streams, it is the biggest known cave in southern Syria.