Jabal al-Druze

Geographic region in southern Syria From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Jabal al-Druzemap

Jabal al-Druze (Arabic: جبل الدروز, romanized: jabal al-durūz, lit.'Mountain of the Druze'), is an elevated volcanic region in the As-Suwayda Governorate of southern Syria.[1] Most of the inhabitants of this region are Druze, and there are also significant Christian communities.[2][3] Safaitic inscriptions were first found in this area. The State of Jabal Druze was an autonomous area in the French Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon from 1921 to 1936.[4][5] In the past, the name Jabal al-Druze was used for a different area, located in Mount Lebanon.[citation needed]

Quick Facts Highest point, Peak ...
Jabal al-Druze
جبل الدروز (Jabal al-Durūz)
Tell Qeni, the highest peak of Jabal al-Druze
Highest point
PeakTell Qeni, As-Suwayda Governorate, Syria
Elevation1,803 m (5,916 ft)
Coordinates32°40′N 36°44′E
Naming
EtymologyNamed after the Druze people who inhabit the region
Native nameجبل الدروز
English translationMountain of the Druze
Geography
Country Syria
RegionAs-Suwayda Governorate
Settlement(s)As-Suwayda, Shahba, Salkhad
Parent rangeHauran
BiomeEastern Mediterranean conifer–sclerophyllous–broadleaf forests
Geology
Formed byVolcanism
Rock agePleistocene to Holocene
Mountain typeVolcanic field
Rock typeBasalt
Volcanic regionHarrat al-Sham
Last eruptionHolocene
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In Syria, most Druze reside in the As-Suwayda Governorate, which encompasses almost all of Jabal al-Druze. This governorate is unique in Syria as it has a Druze majority. Additionally, it has integrated Christian communities that have long coexisted harmoniously with the Druze in these mountains.[6]

In the 1980s Druze made up 87.6% of the population, Christians (mostly Greek Orthodox) 11% and Sunni Muslims 2%.[7] In 2010, the As-Suwayda governorate has a population of about 375,000 inhabitants, Druze made up 90%, Christians 7% and Sunni Muslims 3%.[2] Due to low birth and high emigration rates, Christians proportion in As-Suwayda had declined.[2]

Geology

Map of Jabal al-Druze

The Jabal al-Druze volcanic field, the southernmost in Syria, lies in the Haurun-Druze Plateau in SW Syria near the border with Jordan. The most prominent feature of this volcanic field is 1800m-high Jabal al-Druze (also known variously as Jabal ad Duruz, Djebel Al-Arab, Jabal Druze, Djebel ed Drouz). The alkaline volcanic field consists of a group of 118 basaltic volcanoes active from the lower-Pleistocene to the Holocene (2.6 million years ago to present). The large SW Plateau depression is filled by basaltic lava flows from volcanoes aligned in a NW-SE direction. This volcanic field lies within the northern part of the massive alkaline Harrat al-Sham (also known as Harrat al-Shaam) volcanic field that extends from southern Syria to Saudi Arabia.[8]

Peaks

  • Tell Qeni (1,803 m)
  • Tell Joualine (1,732 m)
  • Tell Sleiman (1,703 m)
  • Tell Qleib (1,698 m)
  • Tell Abou-Hamra (1,482 m)
  • Tell El-Ahmar (1,452 m)
  • Tell Abed-Mar (1,436 m)
  • Tell Khodr-Imtan (1,341 m)
  • Tell Azran (1,220 m)
  • Tell Shihan (1,138 m)

In Arabic, the word "tell" means "mound" or "hill", but in Jabal al-Druze it rather refers to a volcanic cone.

See also

References

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