Aleppo
For other meanings, see Aleppo (disambiguation). Halab redirects here; for other meanings, see Halab (disambiguation). |
Old Town viewed from Aleppo Citadel |
Aleppo (or
Halab meaning "he
milked", ) is a city and province in northern
Syria. The city has a population of around 1.7 million (
1999), making it the second largest city in the country after
Damascus. It is one of the oldest cities in the region, known to antiquity as Khalpe, to the
Greeks as Beroea, and to the
Turks as Halep, and it occupies a strategic trading point midway between the sea and the
Euphrates; initially, it was built on a small group of hills in a wide fertile valley on both sides of the river
Quweiq. The province or governate extends around the city for over 16,000 km² and has around 3.7 million inhabitants. The Name Halab means "gave out milk," coming from the ancient tradition that
Abraham gave out milk to travelers as they traveled 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)
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Location of the governorate of Aleppo within Syria |
The main role of the city was as a trading place, 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 utilise the route through
Egypt to the
Red Sea. Since then the city has declined and its chief exports now are the agricultural products of the surrounding region, mainly
wheat and
cotton,
pistachios,
olives and
sheep.
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A front view of the Aleppo Citadel |
Because the modern city occupies its ancient site, Aleppo has scarcely been touched by archaeologists. The site has been occupied from around
1800 BC, as recorded in the
Hittite records. It grew as the capital of the kingdom of
Yamkhad until the ruling
Amorite Dynasty was overthrown around
1600 BC. The city remained under Hittite control until maybe
800 BC before passing through the hands of the
Assyrians and the
Persian Empire and being captured by the Greeks in
333 BC, when
Seleucus Nicator renamed the settlement Beroea. The city remained in Greek or
Seleucid hands until
64 BC when
Syria was conquered by the
Romans.
The city became part of the
Byzantine Empire before falling to
Arabs in
637; in the
10th century a resurgent Byzantine Empire briefly regained control from
974 to
987. The city was twice besieged by
Crusaders, in
1098 and in
1124, but was not conquered. It came under the control of
Saladin and then the
Ayyubid Dynasty from
1183 and remained in Arab hands until taken by the
Mongols in
1260. Returning to native control in
1317, decades after the
Battle of Ain Jalut, it became part of the
Ottoman Empire in
1517, when the city had around 50,000 inhabitants.
On
August 9,
1138,
a deadly earthquake ravaged the city and the surrounding area. Although estimates from this time are very unreliable, it was estimated that 230,000 people had died, making it the
fourth deadliest earthquake in recorded history.
The city remained Ottoman until the empire's collapse, but was occasionally riven with internal feuds as well as attacks of the
plague and later
cholera from
1823. By
1901 its population was around 125,000. The city revived when it came under French colonial rule but slumped again following the decision to give
Antioch to
Turkey in
1938-
1939.
Aleppo was named by the Islamic Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) as the capital of Islamic culture in 2006.
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Inside the souk, a particular spot where time has stopped |
There is a relatively clear division between old and new Aleppo. The older portions were contained within a wall, 3 miles in circuit with seven gates. The medieval
castle in the city is built atop a huge, partially artificial mound rising 50 m above the city. The current structure dates from the
13th century and had been extensively damaged by earthquakes, notably in
1822.
As an ancient trading centre, Aleppo also has impressive
suqs (shopping streets) and
khan (commercial courtyards). The city was significantly redesigned after
World War II; in
1952 the French architect
Andre Gutton had a number of wide new roads cut through the city to allow modern traffic easier passage. In the
1970s, large parts of the older city were demolished to allow for the construction of modern flat blocks.
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Narrow street in the Christian quarter |
While more than 70% of Aleppo's inhabitants are
Sunni Muslims (mainly Arabs, but also Kurds and a few ethnic Turks and Circassians), Aleppo is home to one of the richest and most diversified Christian communities of the Orient. Christians belonging to a dozen different congregations (with prevalence of the
Armenian and Orthodox denominations) represent between 15% and 20% of its population, making it the city with the second biggest Christian community in the Middle East after
Beirut,
Lebanon.
The city had a large
Jewish population in ancient times, traditionally since the period of
King David. The great
synagogue housed the famous
Aleppo codex, dating back to the ninth century. The codex is now housed in
Jerusalem. The vast majority of Aleppo's 10,000
Jewish residents moved abroad after the creation of Israel due to various social and political pressures. Only a dozen Jewish families still live in Aleppo today and the synagogue remains virtually empty.
The city has many
mosques including the
Madrasa Halawiya. A temple that once stood on the site was rebuilt as Aleppo's great
Byzantine cathedral founded by
Saint Helena, mother of
Constantine the Great which contains a tomb associated with
Zachary, father of
John the Baptist. During the
Crusades, when the invaders pillaged the surrounding countryside, the city's chief judge converted St. Helena's cathedral into a mosque, and in the middle of the
12th century the famous leader
Nur al-Din founded the
madrasa or religious school that has encompassed the former cathedral. The
Jami al-Kabir "Great Mosque" was originally built by the
Umayyads, although the present structure begun for Nur al-Din dates from
1158 and a rebuilding after the
Mongol invasion of
1260.
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Aleppo in 1912, centered on its citadel mound |
*
Paul of Aleppo,
17th century Archdeacon of Aleppo, traveler and chronicler.
*Chessplayer and writer
Phillip Stamma was born in 1705 .
*
Mohamed Naoulo, (Born 1946), Doctor of Engineering: 1972, University of Paris. Electrical Engineering 1969, University of Aleppo. Highest Grade ever at any Syrian University.
*
Muhammed Fares (born 1951), first Syrian
cosmonaut.
*
Moustapha Akkad, film producer and director, born in 1935.
*
Levon Ter-Petrossian, former president of the Republic of Armenia.
*
Lynn Simarski, 'The lure of Aleppo" history and architecture.*
A collection of pictures made in 2003 about Aleppo.
*
A picture gallery about a 2005 trip in Aleppo.
*
'Ittihad club of Aleppo" forum for local sport and aleppo community .*
'Jalaa Club of Aleppo" Local basketball team and rivals of Ittihad .*
Armenian history and presence in Haleb*
Aleppo Soap
