Ghazir
Ghazir
غزير | |
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Municipality | |
UTC+2 (EET) | |
• Summer (DST) | +3 |
Ghazir (
Ghazir is divided into three major parts: Ghazir el-Fawka, Central Ghazir, and Kfarhbab. The inhabitants of Ghazir are predominantly Maronite Catholics.[2] The town has four schools, two public and two private, with a total of 3,253 students as of 2008.[1] Maameltein is part of the village.
Etymology
Ghazir's name is derived from Arabic root words for "heavy rains", and the town is known for its numerous groundwater reserves.[3]
History
Mamluk period
In the 13th century, when Ghazir was a small village, the
Following its integration into the Mamluk Sultanate, Ghazir came under the jurisdiction of Wilayat Bayrut (Beirut District), part of the Safaqa al-Shamaliya (Northern Region) centered in
Ottoman era
'Assaf period
The Ottoman Empire conquered the region after defeating the Mamluks in 1516.[5] The Ottomans granted the 'Assaf clan control over Keserwan in addition to tax farms in the surrounding region.[11] Moreover, the 'Assaf became the dominant political power in the Tripoli region.[12] In 1517, Emir Assaf moved his family's headquarters from the Turkmen-dominated coastal villages and the Nahr al-Kalb ridge to Ghazir.[13] The move to Ghazir likely contributed to the gradual deterioration of relations between the Assafs and the Turkmens, while at the same time bringing the Assafs socially and politically closer to the Maronites who lived in the interior of Keserwan.[13] Ottoman tax records indicate Ghazir had 20 a population of 16 Christian and 3 Muslim households in 1523, 21 Christian and 14 Muslim households and 3 Christian bachelors in 1530, and 20 Christian and 4 Muslim households and 2 Christian bachelors in 1543.[14]
Throughout the rule of Emir Mansur Assaf (r. 1528–1579), he eliminated his Sunni and Shia Muslim rivals in northern Mount Lebanon and the Tripoli region, including a massacre of several Bedouin tribesmen from the Ibn al-Hansh at a reception in his Ghazir headquarters.
The 'Assaf emirs launched numerous building works in Ghazir, including the construction of a
Sayfa and Ma'an period
In 1613,
Shihab period
In 1709, the Hubaysh clan provided safe haven for Emir
In 1767, Emir
Qaymaqamate and Mutasarrifate period
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/6/68/Ghazir%2C_1893.jpg/220px-Ghazir%2C_1893.jpg)
In 1843, the
Modern era
Ghazir remained a major political and economic center in Mount Lebanon until the end of the 19th century.[4] In 1905, Muzaffar Pasha, the governor of the Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate, built a second serail in the town.[4] However, during the early years of the 20th century, Ghazir's regional role declined as Mount Lebanon was politically reorganized.[4] With the establishment of the modern Lebanese Republic in 1946, Ghazir did not see a political revival. However, the town and the Keserwan region in general saw an influx of Christians coming from other parts of Lebanon during the 1975–1990 Lebanese Civil War.[4]
The significant boom in the population during the civil war put a burden on the Ghazir Municipality's capabilities and led to major changes to the town's traditional architectural heritage, which had remained largely undisturbed through the 1960s.[4] Modern buildings were constructed and roads were built and widened in the old core of the town.[4] To make way for the new infrastructure, a part of the old souk and several old houses were demolished.[4] As of 2003, the Ghazir Municipality undertook efforts to preserve Ghazir's traditional architecture, particularly with regards to the old souk, the 'Assaf Mosque and the old serail.[4]
Geography
Ghazir is situated in the region of Keserwan, overlooking the bay of Jounieh.[4] The town is located 27 kilometers north of the Lebanese capital, Beirut. Its average elevation is 380 meters above sea level and its total land area consists of 542 hectares (5.42 square kilometers).[1] The town rests on beds of limestone and marl.[4]
Ghazir sees an average of 81 days of rain annually, with an average rainfall of 1.071 millimeters.[4] The town is known for the numerous groundwater reserves that are present in its environs.[3] However, Ghazir lacked a reservoir to store water, leading to significant losses of rainwater and limited access to water in Ghazir and the villages in its vicinity. In response, the Agency for Technical Cooperation and Development, with German and UN funding, built a reservoir in the town with a capacity of 1,000 cubed meters.[3]
Demographics
As of 2003, Ghazir had an estimated population of 27,000, of which about 9,000 were native to Ghazir.[4] The inhabitants are predominantly Maronite Catholics, but there are also Christians from other denominations.[2] Almost all churches in Ghazir (eleven out of twelve) are Maronite churches, and the remaining one located in lower Kfarhbab is Orthodox. Ghazir's major families are "FREM", Bakhos, Chlela, Tayah, Haddad, Slaiby, Ghobeira, Zeinny, Ghazal, Zayek, Awaida, Nasr and many others...
Economy
Ghazir's traditional economy during the Ottoman era centered on silk production, although that industry is now extinct in the town.[4] However, other old traditional industries survive in Ghazir, including tapestry manufacturing, straw furniture-making, ironwork and wine and olive oil production.[4] The town's modern economy is centered on small businesses and the town's role as a summertime resort.[4] As of 2008, there were 32 companies with over five employees operating in Ghazir.[1]
References
- ^ a b c d "Ghazir". Localiban. Localiban. 2008-01-19. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
- ^ a b "Elections municipales et ikhtiariah au Mont-Liban" (PDF). Localiban. Localiban. 2010. p. 19. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2015-07-24. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
- ^ a b c "Improving water access of the population in Ghazir". Relief Web. Agency for Technical Cooperation and Development. 2016-02-04. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t Haddad, Roland (2003-07-08). "Traditional Mediterranean Architecture: Ghazir, Lebanon" (PDF). MEDA-Corpus. Archived from the original (PDF) on 2016-10-21. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
- ^ ISBN 9780888448095.
- ^ a b c Salibi 1967, p. 145.
- ^ Salibi 1967, p. 146.
- ^ Salibi, p. 147.
- ^ a b c Salibi 1967, p. 148.
- ^ Salibi 1967, pp. 147–148.
- ^ Harris 2012, pp. 88–89.
- ISBN 9781860648564.
- ^ a b Salibi 1967, p. 152.
- ^ Bakhit 1972, p. 275.
- ^ a b c Harris 2012, p. 90.
- ^ a b Winter 2010, p. 69.
- ^ ISBN 9780841905207.
- ^ Winter 2010, p. 70.
- ^ JSTOR 4056003.
- ^ Dau 1984, p. 579
- ^ Dau 1984, p. 513.
- ^ a b c Harris 2012, p. 115.
- ^ Harris 2012, p. 123.
- ^ Salameh 2010, p. 158.
- ^ Farah 2004, p. 11.
- ^ ISBN 9780748640690.
- ^ a b c Salameh 2010, pp. 128–129.
- ^ "President Sleiman received an invitation to Ghazir Summer Festivals". Presidency of the Republic of Lebanon. 2011-06-23. Retrieved 2016-02-13.
Bibliography
- Bakhit, Muhammad Adnan Salamah (February 1972). The Ottoman Province of Damascus in the Sixteenth Century (PhD). School of Oriental and African Studies, University of London.
- Dau, Butros (1984). History of the Maronites: Religious, Cultural, and Political. Butros Dau.
- Harris, William (2012). Lebanon: A History, 600–2011. Oxford University Press. ISBN 9780195181111.
- Salameh, Franck (2010). Language, Memory, and Identity in the Middle East: The Case for Lebanon. Lexington Books. ISBN 9780739137406.
- Salibi, Kamal (June 1967). "Northern Lebanon under the dominance of Ġazīr (1517–1591)". Arabica. 14 (2): 144–166. JSTOR 4055631.
- Winter, Stefan (2010). The Shiites of Lebanon under Ottoman Rule, 1516–1788. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 9781139486811.