Zgharta
Zgharta, or
Zghorta (زغرتا
Arabic) is a large town in
North Lebanon, with an estimated population of around 70,000. It is the seat of
Zgharta District (Qadaa' Zgharta). Zgharta is closely related to the mountain town of
Ehden, essentially sharing the same population. Each summer, most Zghartawis move to their summer dwelling in
Ehden; this is reversed in winter when
Ehden is practically deserted. Zghartawis speak the
Lebanese dialect with a distinctive accent, the original Syriac accent applied on Arabic language. Syriac was taught in local schools till the mid 1900s.
Zgharta's political influence in Lebanon has been disproportionately larger than its size. It produced two
Presidents of Lebanon:
Suleiman Frangieh and
Rene Moawad, and many prominent politicians:
Hamid Frangieh,
Suleiman Frangieh, Jr, Simon
El Douaihy,
Nayla Moawad, Estephan
El Douaihy,
Tony Frangieh, Samir Frangieh and many others. Ehden also produced at least two patriarchs of the Maronite church (Estefan
El Douaihy and Hanna (John) Makhlouf
El Douaihy), and an Ottoman era nationalist leader (
Youssef Karam) who led a rebellion against Turkish rule. Political power in Zgharta district is dominated by a few rival families from the town: the
Karam,
El Douaihy,
Frangieh,
Mekari and
Mouawad. The surrounding villages and towns, though populous and prosperous, have little political power. The population is predominantly
Christian, with
Maronites being a majority.
During the
Lebanese Civil War, Zgharta (being the Christian stronghold of the north) was the frontline in the war for northern Lebanon as the Zgharta-based
Marada Brigade militia successfully repulsed and responded with the attacks on
Muslim and
PLO militias from neighboring
Tripoli.
Many historians agree that the name Zgharta has been derived from the Aramaic term "zaghar" meaning fortress and in Syriac, the term "Zegharteh" means barricades.
Traditionally, agriculture was a large portion of the local economy, with olives grown for olive-oil around Zgharta and apple orchards around Ehden. Recently, the service and manufacturing sectors have seen significant growth.
Many people from the
Zgharta District have emigrated all over the world and many have been success stories in business, science and politics etc.
*
History* http://zgharta.com
* http://zgharta.gov.lb
* http://www.zgharta-ehden.org/
* http://www.horshehden.org/
* http://douaihy.org/
* http://www.makaryfamily.com/
* http://www.elmarada.com/
* http://www.caza-zgharta.com/
