Aleppo

"Halab" redirects here. For other uses, see Halab (disambiguation).
For other uses, see Aleppo (disambiguation).
Aleppo
ﺣﻠﺐ
Ḥalab


Seal
Nickname(s): Al-Shahbaa[1]
Aleppo

Location in Syria

Coordinates: 36°13′N 37°10′E / 36.217°N 37.167°E / 36.217; 37.167
Country  Syria
Governorate Aleppo Governorate
District Mount Simeon (Jabal Semaan)
First settled 5000 BC
First city council 1868
Occupation Syrian Armed Forces
al-Nusra Front
Islamic Front
Free Syrian Army
People's Protection Units (Only in Sheikh Maqsood)
Government
 • Governor Marwan Olabi
 • Mayor Ayman Hallaq
Area
 • City 190 km2 (70 sq mi)
Elevation 379 m (1,243 ft)
Population (2004 census)
 • City 2,132,100
 • Density 11,222/km2 (29,060/sq mi)
 • Metro 2,181,061
Time zone EET (UTC+2)
 • Summer (DST) EEST (UTC+3)
Area code(s) Country code: 963
City code: 21
Demonym Aleppine(s)
Website www.alp-city.org (defunct)

Sources: Aleppo city area[2] Sources: City population[3]

Official name Ancient City of Aleppo
Type Cultural
Criteria iii, iv
Designated 1986 (10th session)
Reference no. 21
State Party Syria
Region Arab States

Aleppo (/əˈlɛpoʊ/; Arabic: ﺣﻠﺐ‎ / ALA-LC: Ḥalab, IPA: [ˈħalab]) is the largest city in Syria and it serves as the capital of the Aleppo Governorate, the most populous Syrian governorate.[4] With an official population of 2,132,100 (2004 census), it is also one of the largest cities in the Levant.[5][6] For centuries, Aleppo was the Syrian region's largest city and the Ottoman Empire's third-largest, after Constantinople and Cairo.[7][8][9]

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.[10] 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;[11] 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.[12] Such a long history is probably due to its being a strategic trading point midway between the Mediterranean Sea and Mesopotamia (i.e. modern Iraq).

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, 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 medieval architecture and traditional heritage. It won the title of the "Islamic Capital of Culture 2006", and has also witnessed a wave of successful restorations of its historic landmarks, until the start of the Syrian Civil War in 2011 and the Battle of Aleppo (2012–present) which resulted in grave destruction.[13]

Etymology

Modern-day English-speakers commonly refer to the city as Aleppo. It was known in antiquity as Khalpe, Khalibon, and to the Greeks and Romans as Beroea (Βέροια).[14] During the Crusades, and again during the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon of 1923-1946, the name Alep was used. Aleppo represents the Italianised version of this.

The original ancient name, Halab, has survived as the current Arabic name of the city. It is of obscure origin. Some have proposed that halab means "iron" or "copper" in Amorite languages, since the area served as a major source of these metals in antiquity. However, according to the 20th-century historian sheikh Kamel al-Ghazzi and to the contemporary linguist priest Barsoum Ayyoub, the name Halab (and consequently Aleppo) derives from the Aramaic word Halaba which means "white", referring to the colour of soil and marble abundant in the area.[15] The modern-day Arabic nickname of the city, ash-Shahbaa (Arabic: الشهباء), which means "the white-coloured", also allegedly derives from the famous white marble of Aleppo. However, this story is only a myth, without any historical base.[16]

One legend states that the name Halab means "gave out milk", coming from the ancient tradition that Abraham gave milk to travelers as they passed through the region. This is not to construe the idea that Abraham was born in that land. It is more accepted that he was born in Haran which is further north of Halab.[17] The colour of his cows was white (Arabic: شهباء shahbaa), therefore the city was also called Halab ash-Shahbaa ("he milked the white-coloured").

From the 11th century it was common Rabbinic usage to apply the term "Aram-Zobah" to the area of Aleppo, and Syrian Jews continue to do so as of 2015.

History

Pre-history and pre-classical era

Main articles: Armi (Syria), Yamhad and Yamhad dynasty
Ancient Aleppo
Hadad Temple Inside Aleppo Citadel

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.

Aleppo appears in historical records as an important city much earlier than Damascus. The first record of Aleppo comes from the third millennium BC, in the Ebla tablets when Aleppo was referred to as Ha-lam,[18] some historians such as Wayne Horowitz identify Aleppo with the capital of an independent kingdom closely related to Ebla, known as Armi,[19] although this identification is contested. the city had a religious Importance, The main temple of the storm god Hadad was located on the citadel hill in the center of the city,[20] and the city was known as the city of Hadad.[21]

Naram-Sin of Akkad mention his destruction of Ebla and Armani/Armanum,[22] in the 23rd century BC.[23][24] but the identification of Armani in the inscription of Naram-Sim as Armi in the Eblaite tablets is heavily debated,[25] as there was no Akkadian annexation of Ebla or northern Syria.[26]

In the Old Babylonian period, Aleppo's name appears as Ḥalab (Ḥalba) for the first time.[24] Aleppo was the capital of the important Amorite dynasty of Yamḥad. The kingdom of Yamḥad (c. 1800–1525 BC), alternatively known as the 'land of Ḥalab,' was the most powerful in the Near East during the reign of Yarim-Lim I.[27] Yamḥad was devastated by the Hittites under Mursilis I in the 16th century BC. However, it soon resumed its leading role in Syria when the Hittite power in the region waned due to internal strife.[24]

Taking advantage of the power vacuum in the region, Parshatatar, king of the Hurrian kingdom of Mitanni instigated a rebellion that ended the life of Yamhad last king Ilim-Ilimma I in c. 1525 BC,[28] Subsequently Parshatatar conquered Aleppo and the city found itself on the frontline in the struggle between the Mitanni, the Hittites and Egypt.[24] Niqmepa of Alalakh who descends from the old Yamhadite kings controlled the city as a vassal to Mitanni and was attacked by Tudhaliya I of the Hittites as a retaliation for his alliance to Mitanni.[29] Later the Hittite king Suppiluliumas I permanently defeated Mitanni and conquered Aleppo in the 14th century BC, Suppiluliumas installed his son Telepinus as king and a dynasty of Suppiluliumas descendents ruled Aleppo until the Late Bronze Age collapse.[30]

Aleppo had cultic importance to the Hittites for being the center of worship of the Storm-God.[24] this religious importance continued after the collapse of the Hittite kingdom in the 12th century BC, when Aleppo became part of the Syro-Hittite kingdom of Palistin,[31] whose king renovated the temple of Hadad which was discovered in 2003.[32]

At the beginning of the 1st millennium BC, Aleppo became part of Bit Agusi (which had its capital at Arpad) .[33] Bit Agusi along with Aleppo was conquered by the Assyrians In the 8th century BC and became part of the Neo-Assyrian Empire until the late 7th century BC,[34] before passing through the hands of the Neo-Babylonians and the Achamenid Persians.[35]

Classical antiquity

The ruins of the Maronite basilica in Barad

Alexander the Great took over the city in 333 BC. Seleucus Nicator established a Hellenic settlement in the site between 301 and 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.[36]

Beroea remained under Seleucid rule until 88 BC when Syria was occupied by Tigranes the Great and Beroea became part of the Kingdom of Armenia. After the Roman victory over Tigranes, Syria was 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.[36]

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. This agrarian landscape holds now the remains of large estate houses and churches such as the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites.[36]

Beroea is mentioned in 2 Macc. 13:3.

Ecclesiastical history

The Mosque of Abraham in the Citadel of Aleppo, originally built by the Byzantines as a church

The names of several bishops of the episcopal see of Beroea, which was in the Roman province of Syria Prima, are recorded in extant documents. The first whose name survives is that of Saint Eustathius of Antioch, who, after being bishop of Beroea, was transferred to the important metropolitan see of Antioch shortly before the 325 First Council of Nicaea. His successor in Beroea Cyrus was for his fidelity to the Nicene faith sent into exile by the Roman Emperor Constantius II. After the Council of Seleucia of 359, called by Constantius, Meletius of Antioch was transferred from Sebastea to Beroea but in the following year was promoted to Antioch. His successor in Beroea, Anatolius, was at a council in Antioch in 363. Under the persecuting Emperor Valens, the bishop of Beroea was Theodotus, a friend of Basil the Great. He was succeeded by Acacius of Beroea, who governed the see for over 50 years and was at the First Council of Constantinople in 381 and the Council of Ephesus in 431. In 438, he was succeeded by Theoctistus, who participated in the Council of Chalcedon in 451 and was a signatory of the joint letter that the bishops of the province of Syria Prima sent in 458 to Emperor Leo I the Thracian about the murder of Proterius of Alexandria. In 518 Emperor Justin I exiled the bishop of Beroea Antoninus for rejecting the Council of Chalcedon. The last known bishop of the see is Megas, who was at a synod called by Patriarch Menas of Constantinople in 536.[37][38] After the Arab conquest, Beroea ceased to be a residential bishopric, and is today listed by the Catholic Church as a titular see.[39]

Very few physical remains have been found from the Roman and Byzantine periods in the Citadel of Aleppo. The two mosques inside the Citadel are known to be converted from churches originally built by the Byzantines.[40] They were later converted into mosques by the Mirdasids during the 11th century.

Medieval period

The old walls of Aleppo and the Gate of Qinnasrin restored in 1256 by An-Nasir Yusuf

The Sassanid Persians invaded and controlled Syria briefly in the early 7th century. Soon after Aleppo fell to Muslims under Abu Ubaidah ibn al Jarrah 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 seventh deadliest earthquake in recorded history.

In 1128 Aleppo became capital of the expanding Zengid dynasty, which ultimately conquered Damascus in 1154. In 1183 Aleppo came under the control of Saladin and then the Ayyubid Dynasty.

On 24 January 1260,[41] 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.[42] 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.[43] 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.

Souq az-Zirb, where coins were being struck during the Mamluk period

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 3 September 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.[44]

Al-Otrush Mosque of the Mamluk period

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.[45]

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.

In 1400, the Mongol-Turkic leader Tamerlane captured the city again from the Mamluks.[46] He massacred many of the inhabitants, ordering the building of a tower of 20,000 skulls outside the city.[47] 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 neighbourhood in 1420, built at the northern suburbs of Aleppo outside the city walls, to become known as al-Jdeydeh quarter (for "new district" in Arabic).

Ottoman era

Khusruwiyah Mosque of the Ottoman period

Aleppo became part of the Ottoman Empire in 1516, when the city had around 50,000 inhabitants. It was the centre of the Aleppo Eyalet; the rest of what later became Syria was part of either the eyalets of Damascus, Tripoli, Sidon or Raqqa. Following the Ottoman provincial reform of 1864 Aleppo became the centre of the newly constituted Vilayet of Aleppo in 1866.

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 agent, in Damascus, despite having had permission to do so. Aleppo served as the company's headquarters until the late 18th century.[48]

Khan al-Shouneh of 1546

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.[49]

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.[48]

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.[48]

Narrow alley at the Armenian quarter in Jdeydeh, early 17th century

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 Venetian 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 Western 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. Around 20–25 percent of the population died of plague in 1827.[50] In 1850 a Muslim mob attacked Christian neighbourhoods, tens of Christians were killed and several churches looted. Janissary rebels installed their own government when the Ottoman governor fled. The Ottomans took over the city weeks later killing some 5,000.[51] 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 Atatürk 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, including the leader of the Hananu Revolt, Ibrahim Hananu, who directly coordinated with Atatürk 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;[52] 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 was exacerbated further in 1939 when Alexandretta was annexed to Turkey,[53][54][55] thus depriving Aleppo of its main port of Iskenderun and leaving it in total isolation within Syria.

French mandate

See also: State of Aleppo
General Gouraud crossing through al-Khandaq street on 13 September 1920

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: the fertile countryside 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.[56][57]

Grand Serail d'Alep, originally planned as the government building of the State of Aleppo

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, Damascus, 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.[56][57]

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.[58]

Post-independence

Shukri al-Quwatli street, was known as Rue de France during the French mandate

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 Iraq, a demand that was firmly rejected by Damascus. Instead, Damascus favoured 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 1946, 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."

Bab al-Faraj Clock Tower with the Aleppo City Council tower in the left background

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.

Tilel street

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 government.

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 government 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 Ba'ath government tried to absorb the dissent of the Syrian middle class (whose center of political activism was Aleppo) by putting to the front Amin al-Hafiz, a Baathist military officer from Aleppo.

President Hafez al-Assad, who came to power in 1970, relied on support from the business class in Damascus.[59] 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.[60]

In 2006, Aleppo was named by the Islamic Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) as the capital of Islamic culture.[61]

Syrian Civil War

The scene at Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square after being targeted by the armed opposition in October 2012

On 12 August 2011, some months after protests had begun elsewhere in Syria, anti-government protests were held in several districts of Aleppo, including the city's Sakhour district. At least two protesters had been shot dead by security forces during a demonstration in Sakhour with tens of thousands attendees.[62]

Two months later a pro-government demonstration was held in Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square. According to the New York Times, the 11 October 2011 rally in support of president Bashar al-Assad was held by large crowds,[63] while state and local media claimed more than 1.5 million attended and that it was one of the largest rallies ever held in Syria.[64]

In early 2012 security forces began to be targeted with bombings. On 10 February 2012, suicide car bombs exploded outside two security compounds – the Military Intelligence Directorate's local headquarters, and a Security Preservation forces barracks[65] – reportedly killing 28 (four civilians, thirteen military personnel and eleven security personnel[65]) and wounding 235.[66] On 18 March 2012, another car bomb blast in a residential neighbourhood reportedly killed two security personnel and one female civilian, and wounded 30 residents.[67][68]

In late July 2012, the conflict reached Aleppo in earnest when fighters from the surrounding countryside mounted their first offensive there,[69] apparently trying to capitalise on momentum gained during the Damascus assault.[70] Since then some of the civil war's "most devastating bombing and fiercest fighting has taken place" in Aleppo, often in residential areas.[69] In the summer, autumn and winter of 2012 house-to-house fighting between rebels and government forces has continued, and as of spring 2013 the Syrian army has entrenched itself in the western part of Aleppo (government forces were operating from a military base in the southern part of the city) and the rebels in the eastern part with a no man's land between them.[69] One estimate of casualties by an international humanitarian organizations is 13,500 killed – 1500 under 5 years of age – and 23,000 injured.[69] Local police stations in the city were a focus of conflict.[71][72]

The armed opposition has reportedly rounded up and executed prominent supporters of Bashar al-Assad and pro-Ba'ath activists.[73] A series of car bomb attacks[74][75][76] and extensive looting[77] have been attributed to opposition forces as well. Contested and rebel held parts of the city have been subject to "continuous jet, mortar, and artillery bombardment" by pro-government forces.[69] Analysis of satellite imagery has shown the destruction as "severely lopsided", with opposition-controlled neighbourhoods overwhelmingly hit. "Before and after" photographs from Aleppo neighbourhoods of Ard al-Hamra, Tariq al-Bab, and Jabal Badro have shown the destruction where missiles have slammed into residential areas.[78]

As a result of the severe battle, many sections in Al-Madina Souq (part of the Old City of Aleppo World Heritage Site), including parts of the Great Mosque of Aleppo and other medieval buildings in the ancient city, were destroyed and ruined or burnt in late summer 2012 as the armed groups of the Free Syrian Army and the Syrian Arab Army fought for control of the city.[79][80]

According to the Syrian Foreign Ministry, some 1,000 factories in Aleppo have been plundered, and their stolen goods transferred to Turkey with the full knowledge and facilitation of the Turkish government.[81]

As of November 2013, The Guardian journalist Francesca Borri reports Islamist fighters dominating rebel areas in Aleppo, and claimed they were focusing on enforcing sharia law and fighting one another rather than the government. Masquerading as a Syrian traveling through the city, Borri reports widespread destruction, and evidence of malnutrition and disease.[82]

In February 2014, the opposition groups of the Islamic Front claimed responsibility for destroying a series of major historic buildings in the old city including the justice palace, the Carlton Citadel hotel which was being used as an army base,[83] the old building of the city council, the Grand Serail of Aleppo, Khusruwiyah Mosque, Khan al-Shouneh and many other souqs and khans.[84][85][86]

Geography and climate

The nearby Kurd Mountains at the northwest of Aleppo
Queiq River

Aleppo lies about 120 km (75 mi) inland from the Mediterranean Sea, on a plateau 380 m (1,250 ft) above sea level, 45 km (28 mi) 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 kilometres south of the location of the current old city, on the right bank of Queiq River 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 Queiq. 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 (6.2 mi). 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.[87] The old city was enclosed within an ancient wall that was last rebuilt by the Mamluks. The wall has since disappeared. It had nine gates and was surrounded by a broad deep ditch.[87]

Occupying an area of more than 190 km2 (73 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 (160 sq mi) by the end of 2015.[2][88]

Aleppo has a cool steppe climate (Köppen: BSk). 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 to 20 °C (64 to 68 °F). The average precipitation is 395 mm (15.55 in). 80% of precipitation occurs between October and March. Snow is rare. Average humidity is 58%.[89]

Climate data for Aleppo (1946-2004)
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Record high °C (°F) 17
(63)		 21
(70)		 31
(88)		 34
(93)		 41
(106)		 47
(117)		 46
(115)		 43
(109)		 41
(106)		 37
(99)		 30
(86)		 18
(64)		 47
(117)
Average high °C (°F) 10.3
(50.5)		 12.6
(54.7)		 16.9
(62.4)		 22.6
(72.7)		 28.7
(83.7)		 33.6
(92.5)		 36.2
(97.2)		 36.1
(97)		 33.2
(91.8)		 27.0
(80.6)		 16.8
(62.2)		 11.9
(53.4)		 23.8
(74.9)
Average low °C (°F) 1.7
(35.1)		 2.4
(36.3)		 5.0
(41)		 8.9
(48)		 13.5
(56.3)		 18.1
(64.6)		 20.9
(69.6)		 20.9
(69.6)		 17.3
(63.1)		 12.4
(54.3)		 6.4
(43.5)		 3.3
(37.9)		 10.9
(51.6)
Record low °C (°F) −13
(9)		 −10
(14)		 −7
(19)		 −2
(28)		 0
(32)		 9
(48)		 16
(61)		 15
(59)		 7
(45)		 5
(41)		 −3
(27)		 −8
(18)		 −13
(9)
Average precipitation mm (inches) 60.3
(2.374)		 52.0
(2.047)		 46.1
(1.815)		 33.6
(1.323)		 17.9
(0.705)		 2.3
(0.091)		 0.1
(0.004)		 0.3
(0.012)		 2.2
(0.087)		 19.2
(0.756)		 35.2
(1.386)		 59.6
(2.346)		 328.8
(12.946)
Average precipitation days (≥ 0.1 mm) 13 14 10 7 4 1 0 0 1 4 7 11 72
Mean monthly sunshine hours 120.9 140.0 198.4 243.0 319.3 366.0 387.5 365.8 303.0 244.9 186.0 127.1 3,001.9
Source #1: World Meteorological Organization,[90] Hong Kong Observatory (sun 1961–1990)[91]
Source #2: BBC Weather (record highs and lows)[92]

Demographics

History

Historical population
YearPop.±%
1883 99,179—    
1901 108,143+9.0%
1922 156,748+44.9%
1925 210,000+34.0%
1934 249,921+19.0%
1944 325,000+30.0%
1950 362,500+11.5%
1960 425,467+17.4%
1965 500,000+17.5%
1983 639,000+27.8%
1990 1,216,000+90.3%
1995 1,500,000+23.4%
2000 1,937,858+29.2%
2004 2,132,100+10.0%
2005 2,301,570+7.9%
Source[3]
A Jewish woman and a couple of Bedouins in Aleppo, 1873

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.[93] 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%).[94]

Aleppo's large Christian population swelled with the influx of Armenian and Assyrian-Syriac Christian refugees during the early 20th-century and after the Armenian Genocide and Assyrian 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%).[95][96]

The second period of Armenian flow towards Aleppo marked with the withdrawal of the French troops from Cilicia in 1923.[97] After the arrival of more than 40,000 Armenian refugees between 1923 and 1925, the population of the city reached up to 210,000 by the end of 1925, where Armenians formed more than 25% of it.[98]

According to the historical data presented by Al-Ghazzi, the vast majority of the Aleppine Christians were Catholics until the latter days of the Ottoman rule. The growth of the Oriental Orthodox Christians is related with the arrival of the Armenian and Assyrian genocide-survivors from Cilicia and Southern Turkey, while on the other hand, large numbers of Eastern Orthodox Christians from the Sanjak of Alexandretta arrived in Aleppo, after the annexation of the Sanjak in 1939 in favour of Turkey.

Syrian children in Aleppo

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 the Armenian Repatriation Process (1946–1967).

Current status

Armenian Apostolic church of the Holy Mother of God
Ar-Rahman Mosque

Aleppo is the most populous city in Syria, with a population of 2,132,100 as indicated in the latest official census in 2004 by the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Its subdistrict (nahiya) consists of 23 localities with a collective population of 2,181,061 in 2004.[99] According to the official estimate announced by the Aleppo City Council, the population of the city was 2,301,570 by the end of 2005. As a result of the Syrian Civil War, however, the city eastern half's population under the control of the opposition had plummeted to an estimated 40,000 by 2015.[100]

More than 80% of Aleppo's inhabitants are Sunni Muslims. They are mainly Arabs followed by Turkmens and Kurds. Other Muslim groups include small numbers of ethnic Circassians, Chechens, Albanians, Bosniaks, Greeks and Bulgarians.

As one of the largest Christian communities in the Middle East, Aleppo is home to many Oriental Orthodox Christian congregations, mainly Armenians and Assyrians/Syriacs. Historically, the city is the main centre of French Catholic Missionaries in Syria.[101] Nowadays, more than 250,000 Christians live in the city representing about 12% of the total population, though the flight of refugees from the city as a result of the Syrian Civil War has led to the Christian population still in Aleppo falling to only 100,000, of whom half are ethnic Armenians.[102] A significant number of Assyrians in Aleppo speak Aramaic and hail from the city of Urfa in Turkey. The large community of Oriental Orthodox Christians belongs to the Armenian Apostolic and Syriac Orthodox churches. Also, there are members of the Eastern Orthodox Church of Antioch. There is also a strong presence of Eastern Catholic Christians in the city including Melkite Catholics, Maronite Catholics, Chaldean Catholics, Syriac Catholics and also there are some who follow the Latin rite. Evangelical Christians of different denominations are a minority in the city. Several areas have a Christian and Armenian majority, such as the old Christian quarter of Jdeydeh. Currently, there are 45 operating churches in the city, possessed by the above-mentioned Christian congregations.

The Arabic-speaking population of Aleppo uses the North Syrian dialect of the Levantine Arabic.

Jews in Aleppo

The Central synagogue in 2011

The city was home to a significant Jewish population from ancient times. The Great Synagogue, built in the 5th century, housed the Aleppo Codex.[103] The Jews of Aleppo were known for their religious commitment, Rabbinic leadership, and their liturgy, consisting of Pizmonim and Baqashot. After the Spanish Inquisition, the city of Aleppo received many Sephardic Jewish immigrants, who eventually joined with the native Aleppo Jewish community. Peaceful relations existed between the Jews and surrounding population. In the early 20th-century, the town's Jews lived mainly in Al-Jamiliyah, Bab Al-Faraj and the neighbourhoods 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, culminating in the Jewish exodus from Arab lands. In December 1947, after the UN decided the partition of Palestine, an Arab mob[104] attacked the Jewish quarter. Homes, schools and shops were badly damaged.[105] Soon after, many of the town's remaining 6,000 Jews emigrated.[106] In 1968, there were an estimated 700 Jews still remaining in Aleppo.[107]

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-Faraj areas, and the neighbourhoods around the Central Synagogue of Aleppo. In 1992, the Syrian government lifted the travel ban on its 4,500 Jewish citizens.[108] Most traveled to the USA, where a sizable number of Syrian Jews currently live in Brooklyn, New York.

Culture

Museums

Aleppo Citadel Museum

Art

Musicians from Aleppo, 18th century

Aleppo is considered one of the main centres of Arabic traditional and classic music with the famous Aleppine Muwashshahs, Qudud Halabiya and Maqams (religious, secular and folk 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 Jamil, 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".[109] Aleppine musicians often claim that no major Arab artist achieved fame without first earning the approval of the Aleppine sammi'a.[110]

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".

Cuisine

Kebab khashkhash from Aleppo

Syrian cuisine in general, and especially Aleppine cuisine, has a very wide selection 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 Road. The International Academy of Gastronomy in France awarded Aleppo its culinary prize in 2007.[111] But in fact, Aleppo was a food capital long before Paris, because of its diverse communities of Arabs, Kurds, Armenians, Circassians,sizable Arab Christian population and Turcomans. 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 kebab, 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, garlic and Aleppo's red peppers. The za'atar of Aleppo (thyme) is a kind of oregano which is very popular in the regional cuisines.

The kibbeh is one of the favourite foods of the locals, and the Aleppines have created more than 17 types of kibbeh dishes, which is considered a form of art for them. These include kibbeh prepared with sumac (kәbbe sәmmāʔiyye), yogurt (kәbbe labaniyye), quince (kәbbe safarjaliyye), lemon juice (kәbbe ḥāmḍa), pomegranate sauce and cherry sauce. Other varieties include the "disk" kibbeh (kәbbe ʔrāṣ), the "plate" kibbeh (kәbbe bәṣfīḥa or kәbbe bṣēniyye) and the raw kibbeh (kәbbe nayye). Kebab Halabi -influenced by Armenian and Turkish tastes- has around 26 variants[112] including: kebab prepared with cherry (kebab karaz), eggplant (kebab banjan), chili pepper with parsley and pine nut (kebab khashkhash), truffle (kebab kamayeh), tomato paste (kebab hindi), cheese and mushroom (kebab ma'juʔa), etc.[113] The favourite drink is Arak, which is usually consumed along with meze, Aleppine kebabs and kibbehs. Al-Shark beer -a product of Aleppo- is also among the favourite drinks. Local wines and brandies are consumed as well.

Aleppo is the origin of different types of sweets and pastries. The Aleppine sweets, such as mabrumeh, siwar es-sett, balloriyyeh, etc., are characterized by containing high rates of ghee butter and sugar. Other sweets include mamuniyeh, shuaibiyyat, mushabbak, zilebiyeh, ghazel al-banat etc. Most pastries contain the renowned Aleppine pistachios and other types of nuts.

Historical sites

Aleppo Citadel
Throne hall of the citadel

Aleppo is characterized with mixed architectural styles, having been ruled, among others, by Romans, Byzantines, Seljuqs, Mamluks and Ottomans.[114]

Various types of 13th and 14th centuries constructions, such as caravanserais, caeserias, Quranic schools, hammams and religious buildings are found in the old city. The quarters of the Jdeydeh district are home to 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 ash-Shahbaa quarter is a mixture of several styles, such as Neo-classic, Norman, Oriental and even Chinese architecture.[115]

Since the old city is characterized with its large mansions, narrow alleys and covered souqs, 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 of the city, with an approximate area of 160 hectares (400 acres) were contained within a wall, 5 km (3.1 mi) 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 mainly white-stoned old town was built within the historical walls of the city, pierced by the nine historical gates, while the newer quarters of the old city were first built by the Christians during the early 15th century in the northern suburbs of the ancient city, after the Mongol withdrawal from Aleppo. The new quarters were called Jdeydeh. Jdeydeh is one of the finest examples of a cell-like quarter in Aleppo. After Tamerlane 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 suburbs of the city, thus founding the quarters of Jdeydeh. The inhabitants of Jdeydeh were mainly brokers who facilitated trade between foreign traders and local merchants. As a result of the economic development, many other quarters were established outside the walls of the ancient city during the 15th and 16th centuries.

Thus, the Old City of Aleppo -composed of the ancient city within the walls and the old cell-like quarters outside the walls- has an approximate area of 350 hectares (1.4 sq mi) housing more than 120,000 residents.[116]

Souqs and Khans

Main article: Al-Madina Souq
Ancient Aleppo, Al-Madina Souq

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 China and Mesopotamia to the east, Europe to the west, and the Fertile Crescent and Egypt to the south. The largest covered souq-market in the world is in Aleppo, with an approximate length of 13 kilometres (8.1 miles).[117][118]

Souq al-Madina, 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. Souq al-Madina is also 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 (caravanserais) and scattered in the souq. Other types of small market-places were called caeserias (ﻗﻴﺴﺎﺭﻳﺎﺕ). Caeserias are 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.

Gates of Aleppo and other historic buildings

Gate of Antioch rebuilt during the 11th century

The old part of the city is surrounded with 5-kilometre-long (3.1 mi), 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-Hadid, Bab al-Ahmar, Bab al-Nairab, Bab al-Maqam, Bab Qinnasrin, Bab Antakeya, Bāb Jnēn, Bab al-Faraj and Bab al-Nasr.

The most significant historic buildings of the ancient city include:

The most significant historic buildings of the Jdeydeh Christian quarter include:[120]

Places of worship

Al-Shibani Church-School

Hammams

Hammam al-Nahhasin

Aleppo was home to 177 hammams during the medieval period, until the Mongol invasion when many vital structures in the city were destroyed. Today, roughly 18 hammams are operating in the old city.

Nearby attractions and the Dead Cities

Main article: Dead Cities
Kharab Shams Basilica

Aleppo's western suburbs are home to a group of historical sites and villages which are commonly known as the Dead Cities. Around 700 abandoned settlements in the northwestern parts of Syria prior to the 5th century, contain remains of Christian Byzantine architecture. Many hundreds of those settlements are located in Mount Simeon (Jabal Semaan) and Jabal Halaqa regions at the western suburbs of Aleppo, within the range of Limestone Massif.[124] Dead Cites were inscribed as a UNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011, under the name of "Ancient Villages of Northern Syria".[125]

The most notable Dead cities and archaeological sites in Mount Simeon and Mount Kurd near Aleppo include: the Kalota Castle and churches northwest of Aleppo, the Kharab Shams Byzantine basilica of the 4th century,[126] the half-ruined Roman basilica in Fafertin village of 372 AD, the old Byzantine settlement of Surqanya village northwest of Aleppo, the 4th-century Basilic church of Sinhar historic settlement, the Mushabbak Basilica dating back to the second half of the 5th century, the 9th-century BC Assyrian settlement of Kafr Nabo, Brad village and the Saint Julianus Maronite monastery (399–402 AD) where the shrine of Saint Maron is located, the 5th-century Kimar settlement of the Roman and Byzantine eras, the Church of Saint Simeon Stylites of the 5th century, the Syro-Hittite Ain Dara temple of the Iron Age dating back to the 10th and 8th centuries BC, the ancient city of Cyrrhus with the old Roman amphitheatre and two historic bridges, etc.

Transportation

Aleppo Railway Station

Buses and minibuses

The city of Aleppo is served by a public transport network of buses and minibuses. New modern buses are used to connect the city with Damascus and the other Syrian cities to the east and the south of Aleppo.

Railway

Aleppo was one of the major stations of Syria that has been connected with the Baghdad Railway in 1912, within the Ottoman Empire. 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 is relatively slow, 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 Korean built DMUs providing a regular bi-hourly express service to both Latakia and Damascus, which miss intermediate stations.

Aleppo International Airport

However, after the break-out of the civil war in 2011, the Syrian railway network has suffered major damage and is currently out of use.

Airport

Aleppo International Airport (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 in the years to 1999 when the new current terminal was opened.[127]

However, the airport was closed since the beginning of 2013 as a result of the military operations in the area.

Economy

Trade and industry

Traditional textile and rug markets
Markets at Tilel street

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 India, 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.[7]

Being the largest urban area in the Syrian Republic, the economy of Aleppo is driven by textiles, chemicals, pharmaceutics, agro-processing industries, electricals, alcoholic beverages, 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.[128]

Possessing the most developed commercial and industrial plants in Syria, Aleppo is a major centre for manufacturing precious metals and stones.[129] The annual amount of the processed gold produced in Aleppo is around 8.5 tonnes, making up to 40% of the entire manufactured gold in Syria.[130]

The industrial city of Aleppo in Sheikh Najjar district is one of the largest in Syria and the region. Occupying an area of 4,412 hectares (10,900 acres) in the north-eastern suburbs of Aleppo, the total investments in the city counted more than US$3.4 billion during 2010.[131] 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.[132]

Construction

The restored square of the citadel

Aleppo is one of the fastest-growing cities in Syria and the Middle East.[133] 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 as of 2010.

Two major construction projects are scheduled in Aleppo: the "Old City Revival" project and the "Reopening of the stream bed of Queiq River".

Like other major Syrian cities, Aleppo is suffering from the dispersal of informal settlements: almost half of its population (around 1.2 million) is estimated to live in 22 informal settlements of different types.[134]

Leisure and entertainment

The Shahba Mall

Aleppo boasts a vibrant nightlife. Several night-clubs, bars and cabarets that are open until dawn can be found throughout the city. Many bars are located in the old quarter of Jdeydeh quarter within ancient oriental mansions that provide special treats from the Aleppine flavour and cuisine along with local music.

Club d'Alep opened in 1945, is a unique social club known for bridge games and other nightlife activities. The Aleppo Public Park opened in 1949, is one of the largest planted parks in Syria, located near the Aziziyeh area, where the Queiq river breaks through the green park. Blue Lagoon, one of the favourite places of the Aleppine people, is the first water park in Syria. The Shahba Mall of Aleppo is one of the largest shopping centres in the Levant.

Education

The faculty of Arts and Humanities at the University of Aleppo

As the main economic centre of Syria, Aleppo has a large number of educational institutions. Along with the University of Aleppo, 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 60,000. The university has 18 faculties and 8 technical colleges in the city of Aleppo.

Currently, there are three private universities operating in the city: Private University of Science and Arts (PUSA), al-Shahba University (SU) 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 private schools as well as 2 international schools: International School of Aleppo and Lycée Français d'Alep.

Sport

Aleppo International Stadium

The city of Aleppo is considered an important centre of team sports with football being the most popular in the city. It is home to 5 major sport clubs, including al-Ittihad SC, al-Hurriya SC, al-Yarmouk SC, Jalaa SC and Ouroube SC.

Basketball is also very popular in the city. All of the 5 Aleppine major sport clubs participate in the men's and women's top division of the Syrian Basketball League.

Other popular sports being practiced by the major clubs in the city include tennis, handball, volleyball, table tennis and swimming.

With a capacity of 75,000 spectators, the Aleppo International Stadium is the largest sports venue in Syria.[135] Other major sport venues in the city include the al-Ittihad Stadium, al-Hamadaniah Stadium, 7 April Stadium, Ri'ayet al-Shabab Stadium, al-Hamadaniah Sports Arena, al-Assad Sports Arena, Bassel al-Assad Swimming Complex, al-Hamadaniah Olympic Swimming and Diving Complex and al-Hamadaniah Tennis Complex.

Municipality and international relations

Aleppo, Capital of Islamic Culture 2006

The city of Aleppo is the capital of Aleppo Governorate and the centre of Mount Simeon District. Aleppo City Council is the governing body of the city. The first municipality council was formed in 1868.[136] However, the governor who is being appointed by the president of the republic, has a supreme authority over the city and the entire governorate.

Subdivisions

Districts in Aleppo could be sorted in 4 categories:

Integrated Urban Development in Aleppo

Souq al-Dira', maintaining its traditional role as a tailoring centre

The "Integrated Urban Development in Aleppo" (UDP) is a joint programme between the German Development Cooperation (GTZ) and the Municipality of Aleppo.[137] The programme promotes capacities for sustainable urban management and development at the national and municipal level.

The Programme has three fields of work:

  1. Aleppo City Development Strategy (CDS): promoting support structures for the municipality, including capacity building, networking, and developing municipal strength in the national development dialogue.
  2. Informal Settlements (IS): includes strategy and management development of informal settlements.
  3. 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.

Preservation of the ancient city

Khan al-Wazir after rehabilitation
Al-Khandaq street, one of the restored streets of the old city

As an ancient trading centre, Aleppo's impressive souqs, khans, hammams, madrasas, mosques and churches are all in need of more care and preservation work. After World War II, 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 and 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.[88]

Several international institutions have joined efforts with local authorities and the Aleppo Archaeological 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.

Twin towns — sister cities

Currently, Aleppo has 3 sister cities:

Notable natives

See also

References

  1. ↑ Almaany Team. "معنى كلمة شَهْباءُ في معجم المعاني الجامع والمعجم الوسيط - معجم عربي عربي - صفحة 1". almaany.com.
  2. 1 2 Syria News statement by Syrian Minister of Local Administration, Syria (Arabic, August 2009)
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External links

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Coordinates: 36°13′N 37°10′E / 36.217°N 37.167°E / 36.217; 37.167

Preceded by
Mecca		 Capital of Islamic culture
2006 		Succeeded by
Fes
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