105-718: L’Orchestre Symphonique National du Liban ( The Lebanese National Symphony Orchestra ) was founded in late 1999 in Beirut under the guidance of Dr. Walid Gholmieh and the management of the Conservatoire Libanais (Lebanese National Higher Conservatory of Music). It gives 25 to 30 concerts per season at the church of the Saint Joseph University in Beirut and in other cities, playing a varied international repertoire by classical music composers. The Orchestra has participated in
210-498: A commission appointed by the Greek government reported that a third of the villages of Greece should have their names changed, often because of their non-Greek origin. In other instances, names were changed from a contemporary name of Greek origin to the ancient Greek name. Some village names were formed from a Greek root word with a foreign suffix or vice versa. Most of the name changes took place in areas populated by ethnic Greeks in which
315-703: A development company established in 1994 by Prime Minister Rafic Hariri . The city has hosted both the Asian Club Basketball Championship and the Asian Football Cup, and has hosted the Miss Europe pageant nine times: 1960–1964, 1999, 2001–2002, and 2016. Rafic Hariri was assassinated in 2005 near the Saint George Hotel in Beirut. A month later about one million people gathered for an opposition rally in Beirut. The Cedar Revolution
420-554: A huge fire erupted in an oil and tyre warehouse in the port's duty-free zone, on 10 September 2020. Beirut sits on a peninsula extending westward into the Mediterranean Sea . It is flanked by the Lebanon Mountains and has taken on a triangular shape, largely influenced by its situation between and atop two hills: Al- Ashrafieh and Al-Musaytibah. The Beirut Governorate occupies 18 square kilometres (6.9 sq mi), and
525-475: A massive garbage crisis, mainly from July 2015 up to March 2016. The issue began when authorities shut down the main landfill site originally used for Beirut's garbage south-east of the city and failed to provide any alternative solutions for months. As a result, garbage mounted in the streets in Greater Beirut and caused protests to erupt, which sometimes invoked police action. This problem was commonly blamed on
630-700: A new national government involving all the political adversaries. As a result of the Doha Agreement , the opposition's barricades were dismantled and so were the opposition's protest camps in Martyrs' Square . On 19 October 2012, a car bomb killed eight people in the Beirut's neighborhood of Achrafiyeh , including Brigadier General Wissam al-Hassan , chief of the Intelligence Bureau of the Internal Security Forces . In addition, 78 others were wounded in
735-444: A past Albanian Muslim population living amongst them. There are no monolingual Arvanitika-speakers, as all are today bilingual in Greek. However, while Arvanites are bilingual in Greek and Arvanitika, Arvanitika is considered an endangered language as it is in a state of attrition due to the large-scale language shift towards Greek among the descendants of Arvanitika-speakers in recent decades, becoming monolingual Greek speakers in
840-401: A private company called Venus Towers Real Estate Development Company to destroy the ruins (archaeological site BEY194) in the $ 500 million construction project of three skyscrapers and a garden behind Hotel Monroe in downtown Beirut. Two later reports by an international committee of archaeologists appointed by Layoun, including Hanz Curver, and an expert report by Ralph Pederson, a member of
945-654: A regional intellectual capital, becoming a major tourist destination and a banking haven, especially for the Persian Gulf oil boom. Beirut International Airport was opened on 23 April 1954. This era of relative prosperity ended in 1975 when the Lebanese Civil War broke out throughout the country, During most of the war, Beirut was divided between the Muslim west part and the Christian east. The downtown area, previously
1050-472: A stratum of foreign or divergent toponyms had accumulated over the centuries. However, in some parts of northern Greece, the population was not Greek-speaking, and many of the former toponyms had reflected the diverse ethnic and linguistic origins of their inhabitants. The process of the change of toponyms in modern Greece has been described as a process of Hellenisation. A modern use is in connection with policies pursuing "cultural harmonization and education of
1155-581: Is a lack of evidence from Hellenistic Syria; concerning this, most scholars view it as a case of "absence of evidence is not evidence of absence". The Bactrians , an Iranian ethnic group who lived in Bactria (northern Afghanistan ), were Hellenised during the reign of the Greco-Bactrian Kingdom and soon after various tribes in northwestern regions of the Indian subcontinent underwent Hellenisation during
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#17330862397741260-461: Is mild and rainy; frost has never been recorded. Summer is prolonged, hot and humid. The prevailing wind during the afternoon and evening is from the west (onshore, blowing in from the Mediterranean); at night it reverses to offshore, blowing from the land out to sea. The average annual rainfall is 825 millimetres (32.5 in), with the large majority of it falling from October to April. Much of
1365-488: Is often not possible to state with certainty whether particular archaeological findings belonged to Greeks, Hellenized indigenous peoples, indigenous people who simply owned Greek-style objects or some combination of these groups. Thus, literary sources are also used to help researchers interpret archaeological findings. Greek cultural influence spread into Anatolia in a slow rate from the 6th to 4th century. The Lydians had been particularly receptive to Greek culture, as were
1470-550: Is quite a bit of archeological evidence that dates to the Hellenistic period . Literary evidence, however, including inscriptions and coins are limited. During the 3rd and 2nd centuries BC, native regional tongues were abandoned in favour of koine Greek and settlements began to take on characteristics of Greek polis . The Iron Age Panemoteichos I may be an early precursor to later regional Hellenistic settlements including Selge , Termessos and Sagalassos (believed to be
1575-522: Is the capital and largest city of Lebanon . As of 2014 , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the fourth-largest city in the Levant region and the sixteenth-largest in the Arab world . The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coast. Beirut has been inhabited for more than 5,000 years, making it one of
1680-540: Is the adoption of Greek culture , religion , language , and identity by non-Greeks. In the ancient period , colonisation often led to the Hellenisation of indigenous peoples; in the Hellenistic period , many of the territories which were conquered by Alexander the Great were Hellenized. The first known use of a verb that means "to Hellenize" was in Greek (ἑλληνίζειν) and by Thucydides (5th century BC), who wrote that
1785-448: The 5th Macedonian and the 3rd Gallic Legions . Berytus's law school was widely known; two of Rome's most famous jurists, Papinian and Ulpian , were natives of Phoenicia and taught there under the Severan emperors. Ecclesiastical historian Sozomen studied at the law school in Beirut between 400-402. When Justinian assembled his Pandects in the 6th century, a large part of
1890-496: The Age of Discovery ; that is, that they were trading posts initially established to conduct trade with Anatolian locals. By the beginning of the Archaic period , settlement of Anatolia had begun to grow at a quick rate, and proper colonies in the traditional sense were established in the form of predominantly Greek city-states ( πόλεις , póleis ). Extensive trade between mainland Greece and
1995-561: The Amphilochian Argives were Hellenised as to their language by the Ambraciots , which shows that the word perhaps already referred to more than language. The similar word Hellenism , which is often used as a synonym, is used in 2 Maccabees (c. 124 BC) and the Book of Acts (c. AD 80–90) to refer to clearly much more than language, though it is disputed what that may have entailed. By
2100-562: The Archaic Period . On the other hand, Greeks who settled in the southwestern region of Pisidia and Pamphylia seem to have been assimilated by the local culture. Panticapaeum (modern day Kerch ) was one of the early Greek colonies in Crimea . It was founded by Miletus around 600 BC on a site with good terrain for a defensive acropolis . By the time the Cimmerian colonies had organised into
2205-617: The Battle of Tigranocerta , Armenia forever lost their holdings in Syria and Beirut was conquered by Roman general Pompey . Laodicea was conquered by Pompey in 64 BC and the name Berytus was restored to it. The city was assimilated into the Roman Empire , soldiers were sent there, and large building projects were undertaken. From the 1st century BC, the Bekaa Valley served as a source of grain for
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#17330862397742310-625: The Beirut Hippodrome and the Beirut Pine Forest and the French ambassador's Pine Residence . It is one of Beirut's favorite hip nightlife destination. Two of the twelve official Palestinian refugee camps in Lebanon are located in the southern suburbs of Beirut: Bourj el-Barajneh and Shatila . There is also one within its municipal boundaries: Mar Elias . Hellenised Hellenization
2415-655: The Bosporan Kingdom much of the local native population had been Hellenized. Most scholars date the establishment of the kingdom to 480 BC, when the Archaeanactid dynasty assumed control of Panticapaeum, but classical archaeologist Gocha R. Tsetskhladze has dated the kingdom's founding to 436 BC, when the Spartocid dynasty replaced the ruling Archaeanactids. The Hellenistic Seleucid and Ptolemaic kingdoms that formed after Alexander's death were particularly relevant to
2520-755: The German Crusade of 1197 . John of Ibelin , known as the Old Lord of Beirut, was granted the lordship of the city in 1204. He rebuilt the city after its destruction by the Ayyubids and also built the House of Ibelin palace in Beirut. In 1291 Beirut was captured and the Crusaders expelled by the Mamluk army of Sultan al-Ashraf Khalil . Under the Ottoman sultan Selim I (1512–1520),
2625-537: The Roman provinces of the Levant and even for Rome itself. Under Claudius , Berytus expanded to reach the Bekaa Valley and include Heliopolis (Baalbek) . The city was settled by Roman colonists who promoted agriculture in the region. As a result of this settlement, the city quickly became Romanized , and the city became the only mainly Latin-speaking area in the Syria-Phoenicia province . In 14 BC, during
2730-545: The Sabbath . Hellenization of members of the Jewish elite included names and clothes, but other customs were adapted by the rabbis, and elements that violated the halakha and midrash were prohibited. One example is the elimination of some aspects of Hellenistic banquets, such as the practice of offering libations to the gods, while incorporating certain elements that gave the meals a more Jewish character. Discussion of Scripture ,
2835-562: The highlands of Lycia and Cilicia . The exact date of Greek settlement in the region is not known; one possible theory is that settlers arrived in the region as part of Bronze Age maritime trade between the Aegean , Levant and Cyprus , while another attributes it to population movements during the instability of the Bronze Age Collapse . The Greek dialect established in Pamphylia by
2940-522: The oldest cities in the world. Beirut is Lebanon's seat of government and plays a central role in the Lebanese economy , with many banks and corporations based in the city. Beirut is an important seaport for the country and region, and rated a Beta + World City by the Globalization and World Cities Research Network . Beirut was severely damaged by the Lebanese Civil War , the 2006 Lebanon War , and
3045-665: The 1821 Tripolitsa Massacre of Muslim Albanians, while some Muslim Albanian speakers in the region of Bardounia remained after the war, converting to Orthodoxy. In recent times, Arvanites have expressed mixed opinions towards recent Albanian settlers within Greece. Other Arvanites during the late 1980s and early 1990s expressed solidarity with Albanian immigrants, due to linguistic similarities and being politically leftist. Relations too between Arvanites and other Orthodox Albanian-speaking communities such as those of Greek Epirus are mixed, as they are distrusted regarding religious matters due to
3150-552: The 2020 massive explosion in the Port of Beirut . Its architectural and demographic structure underwent major change in recent decades. The English name Beirut is an early transcription of the Arabic name Bayrūt ( بيروت ). The same name's transcription into French is Beyrouth , which was sometimes used during Lebanon's French mandate . The Arabic name derives from Phoenician bēʾrūt ( 𐤁𐤀𐤓𐤕 bʾrt ). This
3255-458: The 2nd century BC. Finds from the abandoned Hellenistic era settlement include imported and locally produced imitation Greek-style terracotta figurines and ceramics. Inscriptions show that some of the inhabitants had Greek names, while others had Anatolian or possibly Celtic names. Many Phrygian cult objects were Hellenised during the Hellenistic period, but worship of traditional deities like
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3360-737: The 4th century BC Aspendos claimed ties to Argos , similar to Nikokreon of Cyprus who also claimed Argive lineage. (Argos was home to the Kings of Macedon .) Like the Argeads , the Antigonids claimed descent from Heracles , the Seleucids from Apollo , and the Ptolemies from Dionysus . The Seuthopolis inscription was very influential in the modern study of Thrace . The inscription mentions Dionysus, Apollo and some Samothracian gods . Scholars have interpreted
3465-605: The 4th century BC, the process of Hellenization had started in southwestern Anatolia's Lycia , Caria and Pisidia regions. (1st century fortifications at Pelum in Galatia , on Baş Dağ in Lycaonia and at Isaura are the only known Hellenistic-style structures in central and eastern Anatolia ). When it was advantageous to do so, places like Side and Aspendos invented Greek-themed origin myths; an inscription published in SEG shows that in
3570-648: The 4th century dynasties of Caria and Lycia as well as the inhabitants of the Cilician plain and of the regions of Paphlagonia . The local population found their desires for advancement a stimulus to learn Greek. The indigenous urban settlements and villages in Anatolia coalesced, on their own initiative, to form cities in the Greek manner. The local kings of Asia Minor adopted Greek as their official language and sought to imitate other Greek cultural forms. The first properly Greek settlements in Anatolia originated shortly after
3675-490: The Arvanites. The common Orthodox Christian faith they shared with the rest of the local population was one of the main reasons that led to their assimilation. Other reasons for assimilation are large-scale internal migration to the cities and subsequent intermingling of the population. Although sociological studies of Arvanite communities still used to note an identifiable sense of a special "ethnic" identity among Arvanites,
3780-599: The Classical period was related to Arcado-Cypriot . Mopsus is a legendary founder of several coastal cities in southwestern Anatolia, including Aspendos , Phaselis , Perge and Sillyon . A bilingual Phoenician and neo-Hittite Luwian inscription found at Karatepe , dated to 800 BC, says that the ruling dynasty there traced their origins to Mopsus. Mopsus, whose name is also attested to in Hittite documents, may originally have been an Anatolian figure that became part of
3885-555: The Divine Nature; while the further assertion 'these three are One', which the modern mind finds paradoxical, was no more than commonplace to those familiar with Stoic notions. The Greek East was one of the two main cultural areas of the Roman Empire and began to be ruled by an autonomous imperial court in AD 286 under Diocletian . However, Rome remained the nominal capital of both parts of
3990-450: The Empire. The council was elected by an assembly of city notables and played an instrumental role governing the city through the following decades. In 1888, Beirut was made capital of a vilayet (governorate) in Syria, including the sanjaks (prefectures) Latakia, Tripoli, Beirut, Acre and Bekaa. By this time, Beirut had grown into a cosmopolitan city and had close links with Europe and
4095-465: The Hellenisation of Judaism in the pre-Christian Period (1980, German original 1976) and The 'Hellenisation' of Judaea in the First Century after Christ (1989, German original 1989), the tide began to turn decisively. Hengel argued that virtually all of Judaism was highly Hellenised well before the beginning of the Christian era, and even the Greek language was well known throughout the cities and even
4200-448: The Hellenistic portions of Anatolia was underway by the 8th to 7th centuries BCE, with fish, grain, timber, metal, and often slaves being exported from the land. It is believed that this kind of contact with the spread of Hellenistic culture, religion, and ideas in Anatolia was a peaceful process. Worship of the Greek pantheon of gods was practiced in Lydia. Lydian king Croesus often invited
4305-585: The IDF targeted Hezbollah's main media outlets. There were then artillery raids against targets in southern Lebanon, and the Israeli cabinet held Beirut responsible for the attacks. Then on 13 July 2006 Israel began implementing a naval and air blockade over Lebanon; during this blockade Israel bombed the runways at Beirut International Airport and the major Beirut-Damascus highway in Eastern Lebanon. In May 2008, after
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4410-555: The Judaism of the diaspora was thought to have succumbed thoroughly to its influences. Bultmann thus argued that Christianity arose almost completely within those Hellenistic confines and should be read against that background, as opposed to a more traditional Jewish background. With the publication of Martin Hengel 's two-volume study Hellenism and Judaism (1974, German original 1972) and subsequent studies Jews, Greeks and Barbarians: Aspects of
4515-492: The Levant immediately claimed responsibility for the attacks. On 4 August 2020, a massive explosion in the Port of Beirut resulted in the death of at least 203 people (with an additional three missing) and the wounding of more than 6,500. Foreigners from at least 22 countries were among the casualties. Furthermore, at least 108 Bangladeshis were injured in the blasts, making them the most affected foreign community. The cause of
4620-588: The Ottoman parliament and President of the Municipality of Beirut. Given his modern way of life, the emergence of Salim Ali Salam as a public figure constituted a transformation in terms of the social development of the city. In his 2003 book entitled Beirut and its Seven Families , Yussef Bin Ahmad Bin Ali Al Husseini says: The seven families of Beirut are the families who bonded among each other and made
4725-508: The Ottomans conquered Syria including present-day Lebanon . Beirut was controlled by local Druze emirs throughout the Ottoman period. One of them, Fakhr-al-Din II , fortified it early in the 17th century, but the Ottomans reclaimed it in 1763. With the help of Damascus , Beirut successfully broke Acre's monopoly on Syrian maritime trade and for a few years supplanted it as the main trading center in
4830-590: The Phrygian mother goddess persisted. Greek cults attested to include Hermes , Kybele , the Muses and Tyche . Greek art and culture reached Phoenicia by way of commerce before any Greek cities were founded in Syria. but Hellenisation of Syrians was not widespread until it became a Roman province . Under Roman rule in the 1st century BC there is evidence of Hellenistic style funerary architecture, decorative elements, mythological references, and inscriptions. However, there
4935-467: The Rue el Arz area, are two sites discovered by Lorraine Copeland, Peter Wescombe , and Marina Hayek in 1964 and examined by Diana Kirkbride and Roger Saidah. One site was behind the parking lot of the Byblos Cinema and showed collapsed walls, pits, floors, charcoal, pottery and flints. The other, overlooking a cliff west of the Rivoli Cinema, was composed of three layers resting on limestone bedrock. Fragments of blades and broad flakes were recovered from
5040-414: The United States. It also became a centre of missionary activity that spawned educational institutions such as the American University of Beirut . Provided with water from a British company and gas from a French one, silk exports to Europe came to dominate the local economy. After French engineers established a modern harbour in 1894 and a rail link across Lebanon to Damascus and Aleppo in 1907, much of
5145-480: The area. Beirut IV ( Furn esh-Shebbak , river banks) was also on the left bank of the river and on either side of the road leading eastwards from the Furn esh Shebbak police station towards the river that marked the city limits. The area was covered in red sand that represented Quaternary river terraces . The site was found by Jesuit Father Dillenseger and published by fellow Jesuits Godefroy Zumoffen, Raoul Describes and Auguste Bergy. Collections from
5250-518: The authors did not identify or never identified a sense of 'belonging to Albania or to the Albanian nation'. Many Arvanites find the designation "Albanians" offensive as they identify nationally and ethnically as Greeks and not Albanians. Because of this, relations between Arvanites and other Albanian-speaking populations have diverged over time. During the onset of the Greek war of Independence, Arvanites fought alongside Greek revolutionaries against Muslim Albanians. For example, Arvanites participated in
5355-436: The autumn and spring rain falls in heavy downpours on a limited number of days, but in winter it is spread more evenly over many days. Summer receives very little rainfall, if any. Snow is rare, except in the mountainous eastern suburbs, where snowfall occurs due to the region's high altitudes. Hail (which can often be heavy) occurs a few times per year, mostly during winter. Lebanon, especially Beirut and its suburbs, suffered
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#17330862397745460-418: The blast is believed to be from government-confiscated and stored ammonium nitrate . As many as 300,000 people have been left homeless by the explosion. Protesters in Lebanon called on the government on 8 August 2020 for the end of the alleged negligence that resulted in the 4 August explosion. On 10 August 2020, as a result of the protests, Prime Minister Hassan Diab announced his resignation. Weeks later,
5565-453: The bombing. It was the largest attack in the capital since 2008. On 27 December 2013, a car bomb exploded in the Central District killing at least five people, including the former Lebanese ambassador to the U.S. Mohamad Chatah , and wounding 71 others. In the 12 November 2015 Beirut bombings , two suicide bombers detonated explosives outside a mosque and inside a bakery, killing 43 people and injuring 200. The Islamic State of Iraq and
5670-434: The central government. Moreover, Beirut has a lack of green areas with just two main public gardens (sanayeh and horch Beirut). In fact, concrete roofs cover 80% of the capital area. Beirut is divided into 12 quarters ( quartiers ): These quarters are divided into 59 sectors ( secteurs ). Badaro is an edgy, bohemian style neighborhood, within the green district of Beirut ( secteur du parc ) which also include
5775-410: The city into a major port and commercial center. This boom in cross-regional trade allowed certain groups, such as the Sursock family , to establish trade and manufacturing empires that further strengthened Beirut's position as a key partner in the interests of imperial dynasties. Meanwhile, Ottoman power in the region continued to decline. Sectarian and religious conflicts, power vacuums, and changes in
5880-443: The city's metropolitan area 67 square kilometres (26 sq mi). The coast is rather diverse, with rocky beaches, sandy shores and cliffs situated beside one another. Beirut has a hot-summer Mediterranean climate ( Köppen : Csa , bordering on As , Trewartha : Csal ) characterized by mild days and nights, as its coastal location allows temperatures to be moderated by the sea . Autumn and spring are warm, but short. Winter
5985-416: The contributions of Semitic-speaking and other Near Eastern cultures. The twentieth century witnessed a lively debate over the extent of Hellenisation in the Levant , particularly among the ancient Jews , which has continued until today. Interpretations on the rise of Early Christianity , which was applied most famously by Rudolf Bultmann , used to see Judaism as largely unaffected by Hellenism, and
6090-495: The corpus of laws was derived from these two jurists, and in AD 533 Justinian recognised the school as one of the three official law schools of the empire. In 551, a major earthquake struck Berytus, causing widespread damage. The earthquake reduced cities along the coast to ruins and killed many, 30,000 in Berytus alone by some measurements. As a result, the students of the law school were transferred to Sidon . Salvage excavations since 1993 have yielded new insights in
6195-500: The country's political situation. This garbage crisis birthed a movement called " You Stink " which was directed at the country's politicians. In March 2016, the government came up with a so-called temporary solution to establish two new landfills East and South of the city to store the garbage, while several municipalities across the country, in an unprecedented move, began recycling and managing waste more efficiently, building waste-management facilities and relying on themselves rather than
6300-411: The cultural traditions of Pamphylia's early Greek settlers. Attested to in Linear B texts, he is given a Greek genealogy as a descendant of Manto and Apollo . For centuries the indigenous population exerted considerable influence on Greek settlers, but after the 4th century BC this population quickly started to become Hellenised. Little is known about Pisidia prior to the 3rd century BC, but there
6405-425: The diminution of the community of Corfiot Italians , which had lived in Corfu since the Middle Ages; by the 1940s, there were only 400 Corfiot Italians left. Arvanites are descendants of Albanian settlers who came to the present southern Greece in the late 13th and early 14th century. With participation in the Greek War of Independence and the Greek Civil War , this has led to increasing assimilation amongst
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#17330862397746510-461: The doctrine of the Trinity, the ecclesiastical conception of Father, Word, and Spirit finds its germ in the different Stoic names of the Divine Unity. Thus Seneca , writing of the supreme Power which shapes the universe, states, 'This Power we sometimes call the All-ruling God, sometimes the incorporeal Wisdom, sometimes the holy Spirit, sometimes Destiny.' The Church had only to reject the last of these terms to arrive at its own acceptable definition of
6615-449: The eastern quarter of the city, but Christian militias defeated multiple attempts by Syria's elite forces to capture the strategic area in a three-month campaign later known as the Hundred Days' War . Another destructive chapter was the 1982 Lebanon War , during which most of West Beirut was under siege by Israeli troops. In 1983, French and US barracks were bombed , killing 241 American servicemen, 58 French servicemen, six civilians and
6720-417: The empire, and Latin was the state language. When the Western Empire fell and the Roman Senate sent the regalia of the Western Emperor to the Eastern Emperor Zeno in AD 476, Constantinople ( Byzantium in Ancient Greek ) was recognised as the seat of the sole Emperor. A process of political Hellenisation began and led, among other reforms, to the declaration of Greek as the official language. In 1909,
6825-415: The end of the Bronze age, around the 11th century BCE. Mycenaean settlements at Halicarnassus , Miletus , and Colophon existed before this, but Mycenaean colonization in the region was sporadic at best and not on the same scale as the later Greek colonization of Anatolia. These initial posts in the 2nd millenium BCE, however, were less colonies in the traditional sense and more akin to the factories of
6930-426: The famous historical agreement with the governor of the Syrian Coast in 1351 to protect and defend the city of Beirut and its shores, and chase the invaders and stop their progress towards it. After World War I and the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, Beirut, along with the rest of Lebanon, was placed under the French Mandate . Lebanon achieved independence in 1943, and Beirut became the capital city. The city remained
7035-416: The first layer of black soil, above which some Bronze Age pottery was recovered in a layer of grey soil. Pieces of Roman pottery and mosaics were found in the upper layer. Middle Bronze Age tombs were found in this area, and the ancient tell of Beirut is thought to be in the Bourj area. The Phoenician port of Beirut was located between Rue Foch and Rue Allenby on the north coast. The port or harbour
7140-434: The government decided to disband Hezbollah's communications network (a decision it later rescinded), violent clashes broke out briefly between government allies and opposition forces, before control of the city was handed over to the Lebanese Army . After this a national dialogue conference was held in Doha at the invitation of the Prince of Qatar. The conference agreed to appoint a new president of Lebanon and to establish
7245-411: The head of Tyche , goddess of fortune; on the reverse, the city's symbol appears: a dolphin entwines an anchor . This symbol was later taken up by the early printer Aldus Manutius in 15th century Venice . After a state of civil war and decline the Seleucid Empire faced, King Tigranes the Great of the Kingdom of Armenia conquered Beirut and placed it under effective Armenian control. However, after
7350-541: The history of Judaism . Located between the two kingdoms, Judea experienced long periods of warfare and instability. Judea fell under Seleucid control in 198 BC. By the time Antiochus IV Epiphanes became king of Judea in 175 BC, Jerusalem was already somewhat Hellenized. In 170 BC, both claimants to the High Priesthood, Jason and Menelaus , bore Greek names. Jason had established institutions of Greek education and in later years Jewish culture started to be suppressed including forbidding circumcision and observance of
7455-418: The home of much of the city's commercial and cultural activity, became a no man's land known as the Green Line . Many inhabitants fled to other countries. About 60,000 people died in the first two years of the war (1975–1976), and much of the city was devastated. A particularly destructive period was the 1978 Syrian siege of Achrafiyeh , the main Christian district of Beirut. Syrian troops relentlessly shelled
7560-595: The inscription as evidence of Hellenisation in inland Thrace during the early Hellenistic, but this has been challenged by recent scholarship. However, Hellenization had its limitations. For example, areas of southern Syria that were affected by Greek culture mostly entailed Seleucid urban centres, where Greek was commonly spoken. The countryside, on the other hand, was largely unaffected, with most of its inhabitants speaking Syriac and clinging to their native traditions. By itself, archaeological evidence only gives researchers an incomplete picture of Hellenization; it
7665-555: The institute of Nautical Archaeology and now teaching in Marburg , Germany, dismissed the claims that the trenches were a port, on various criteria. The exact function of site BEY194 may never be known, and the issue raised heated emotions and led to increased coverage on the subject of Lebanese heritage in the press. In 140 BC, the Phoenician city was destroyed by Diodotus Tryphon during his conflict with Antiochus VII Sidetes for
7770-551: The later Principality of Mount Lebanon, which was the basis for the establishment of Greater Lebanon, today's Lebanon. As a trading center of the eastern Mediterranean , Beirut was as important as Acre (in modern-day Israel ) during the Middle Ages . From 1110 to 1291, the town and Lordship of Beirut was part of the Kingdom of Jerusalem . The city was taken by Saladin in 1187 and recaptured in 1197 by Henry I of Brabant as part of
7875-627: The layout and history of Roman Berytus. Public architecture included several bath complexes , Colonnaded Streets , a circus and theatre; residential areas were excavated in the Garden of Forgiveness , Martyrs' Square and the Beirut Souks. Beirut was conquered by the Muslims in 635. Prince Arslan bin al-Mundhir founded the Principality of Sin el Fil in Beirut in 759. From this principality developed
7980-510: The linguistic minorities resident within the modern Greek state" - the Hellenisation of minority groups in modern Greece. The term Hellenisation (or Hellenization) is also used in the context of Greek opposition to the use of the Slavic dialects of Greece . In 1870, the Greek government abolished all Italian schools in the Ionian islands , which had been annexed to Greece six years earlier. That led to
8085-525: The meantime. This was again a product of European intervention, and also a general realization amongst the city's residents that commerce, trade, and prosperity depended on domestic stability. After petitions by the local bourgeois, the governor of Syria Vilayet Mehmed Rashid Pasha authorized the establishment of the Beirut Municipal Council, the first municipality established in the Arab provinces of
8190-468: The political dynamics of the region culminated in the 1860 Lebanon conflict . Beirut became a destination for Maronite Christian refugees fleeing from the worst areas of the fighting on Mount Lebanon and in Damascus. This in turn altered the religious composition of Beirut itself, sowing the seeds of future sectarian and religious troubles there and in greater Lebanon. However, Beirut was able to prosper in
8295-415: The process often being synonymous with urbanisation. Hellenisation reached Pisidia and Lycia sometime in the 4th century BC, but the interior remained largely unaffected for several more centuries until it came under Roman rule in the 1st century BC. Ionian , Aeolian and Doric settlers along Anatolia's Western coast seemed to have remained culturally Greek and some of their city-states date back to
8400-624: The programs of the Al Bustan Winter Festival in Beit Mery and the Baalbeck International Festival . They were also featured on an unreleased track by the band Gorillaz named "Whirlwind", from their third studio album Plastic Beach , but which was cut from it before its release. Beirut Beirut ( / b eɪ ˈ r uː t / , bay- ROOT ; Arabic : بيروت , romanized : Bayrūt )
8505-553: The region. During the succeeding epoch of rebellion against Ottoman hegemony in Acre under Jezzar Pasha and Abdullah Pasha , Beirut declined to a small town with a population of about 10,000 and was an object of contention between the Ottomans, the local Druze, and the Mamluks . After Ibrahim Pasha of Egypt captured Acre in 1832, Beirut began its revival. After the Albanian fighter Tafil Buzi
8610-414: The reign of Herod the Great , Berytus became a colony , one of four in the Syria-Phoenicia region and the only one with full Italian rights ( ius Italicum ) exempting its citizens from imperial taxation. Beirut was considered the most Roman city in the eastern provinces of the Roman Empire. Furthermore, the veterans of two Roman legions were established in the city of Berytus by emperor Augustus :
8715-594: The reign of the Indo-Greek Kingdom . The periodisation of the Hellenistic Age , between the conquests of Alexander the Great up to Octavian ' s victory at the Battle of Actium , has been attributed to the 19th-century historian J. G. Droysen . According to this model the spread of Greek culture during this period made the rise of Christianity possible. Later, in the 20th century, scholars questioned this 19th-century paradigm for failing to account for
8820-456: The singing of sacred songs and attendance of students of the Torah were encouraged. One detailed account of Jewish-style Hellenistic banquets comes from Ben Sira . There is literary evidence from Philo about the extravagance of Alexandrian Jewish banquets, and The Letter of Aristeas discusses Jews dining with non-Jews as an opportunity to share Jewish wisdom. Pamphylia is a plain located between
8925-519: The site were made by Bergy, Describes and another Jesuit, Paul Bovier-Lapierre . Many Middle Paleolithic flint tools were found on the surface and in side gullies that drain into the river. They included around 50 varied bifaces accredited to the Acheulean period , some with a lustrous sheen , now held at the Museum of Lebanese Prehistory . Henri Fleisch also found an Emireh point amongst material from
9030-472: The site, which has now disappeared beneath buildings. Beirut V ( Nahr Beirut , Beirut River ) was discovered by Dillenseger and said to be in an orchard of mulberry trees on the left bank of the river, near the river mouth , and to be close to the railway station and bridge to Tripoli . Levallois flints and bones and similar surface material were found amongst brecciated deposits . The area has now been built on. Beirut VI (Patriarchate)
9135-432: The smaller towns of Jewish Palestine. Scholars have continued to nuance Hengel's views, but almost all believe that strong Hellenistic influences were throughout the Levant, even among the conservative Jewish communities, which were the most nationalistic. In his introduction to the 1964 book Meditations , Anglican priest Maxwell Staniforth discussed the profound influence of Stoic philosophy on Christianity: Again in
9240-633: The three most prominent cities of Hellenistic Pisidia). The site is evidence of "urban organisation" that predates the Greek polis by 500 years. Based on Panemoteichos I and other Iron Age sites, including the Phrygian Midas şehri and the Cappadocian fortification of Kerkenes , experts believe that "behind the Greek influence that shaped the Hellenistic Pisidian communities there lay a tangible and important Anatolian tradition." According to
9345-606: The throne of the Hellenistic Seleucid monarchy. Laodicea in Phoenicia was built upon the same site on a more conventional Hellenistic plan. Present-day Beirut overlies this ancient one, and little archaeology was carried out until after the civil war in 1991. The salvage excavations after 1993 have yielded new insights into the layout and history of this period of Beirut's history. Public architecture included several areas and buildings. Mid-1st-century coins from Berytus bear
9450-457: The time of the crusades , the city was known in French as Barut or Baruth . The earliest settlement of Beirut was on an island in the Beirut River, but the channel that separated it from the banks silted up and the island ceased to be. Excavations in the downtown area have unearthed layers of Phoenician, Hellenistic, Roman, Byzantine, Arab, Crusader, Persian and Ottoman remains. Beirut
9555-450: The trade was carried by French ships to Marseille . French influence in the area soon exceeded that of any other European power. The 1911 Encyclopædia Britannica reported a population consisting of 36,000 Muslims, 77,000 Christians, 2,500 Jews, 400 Druze and 4,100 foreigners. At the start of the 20th century, Salim Ali Salam was one of the most prominent figures in Beirut, holding numerous public positions including deputy from Beirut to
9660-484: The two suicide bombers. Between 1989 and 1990 parts on East Beirut were destroyed in fighting between Lebanese army units loyal to General Aoun and Samir Geagea 's Maronite Christians Lebanese Forces with the Syrian Armed Forces -backed Elias Hrawi and Salim Al-Huss Lebanese army forces. Since the end of the war in 1990, the people of Lebanon have been rebuilding Beirut, whose urban agglomeration
9765-494: The wisest Greek philosophers, orators and statesmen to attend his court. Croesus himself often consulted the famous oracle at Delphi-bestowing many gifts and offerings to this and other religious sites for example. He provided patronage for the reconstruction of the Temple of Artemis, to which he offered a large number of marble columns as dedication to the goddess. It was in the towns that Hellenisation made its greatest progress, with
9870-405: The writings of Arrian the population of Side , who traced their origins to Aeolian Cyme , had forgotten the Greek language by the time Alexander arrived at the city in 334 BC. There are coins and stone inscriptions that attest to a unique script from the region but the language has only been partially deciphered. The latest dateable coins found at the Phrygian capital of Gordion are from
9975-519: Was a modification of the Canaanite and Phoenician word bīʾrōt later bēʾrūt , meaning " wells ", in reference to the site's accessible water table . The name is first attested in the 14th century BC, when it was mentioned in three Akkadian cuneiform tablets of the Amarna letters , letters sent by King Ammunira of Biruta to Amenhotep III or Amenhotep IV of Egypt . Biruta
10080-636: Was a site discovered while building on the property of the Lebanese Evangelical School for Girls in the Patriarchate area of Beirut. It was notable for the discovery of a finely styled Canaanean blade javelin suggested to date to the early or middle Neolithic periods of Byblos and which is held in the school library. Beirut VII, the Rivoli Cinema and Byblos Cinema sites near the Bourj in
10185-499: Was also mentioned in the Amarna letters from King Rib-Hadda of Byblos . The Greeks hellenised the name as Bērytós ( Ancient Greek : Βηρυτός ), which the Romans latinised as Berytus . When it attained the status of a Roman colony , it was notionally refounded and its official name was emended to Colonia Iulia Augusta Felix Berytus to include its imperial sponsors. At
10290-494: Was excavated and reported on several years ago and now lies buried under the city. Another suggested port or dry dock was claimed to have been discovered around 1 kilometre (0.62 miles) to the west in 2011 by a team of Lebanese archaeologists from the Directorate General of Antiquities of Lebanese University . Controversy arose on 26 June 2012 when authorization was given by Lebanese Minister of Culture Gaby Layoun for
10395-549: Was interned and then pardoned by the Ottoman administration for his constant uprisings, he raised 3,000 Albanian mercenaries to fight in Lebanon; some of them became notorious shortly afterwards for having been responsible for the widespread disorders in Beirut. By the second half of the nineteenth century, Beirut was developing close commercial and political ties with European imperial powers, particularly France. European interests in Lebanese silk and other export products transformed
10500-541: Was listed as "the town of Beirut" ( French : Beyrouth ville ) by Louis Burkhalter and said to be on the beach near the Orient and Bassoul hotels on the Avenue des Français in central Beirut. The site was discovered by Lortet in 1894 and discussed by Godefroy Zumoffen in 1900. The flint industry from the site was described as Mousterian and is held by the Museum of Fine Arts of Lyon . Beirut II ( Umm el-Khatib )
10605-480: Was mainly constituted during war time through an anarchic urban development stretching along the littoral corridor and its nearby heights. By the start of the 2006 Israel-Lebanon conflict the city had somewhat regained its status as a tourist, cultural and intellectual centre in the Middle East and as a center for commerce, fashion, and media. The reconstruction of downtown Beirut has been largely driven by Solidere ,
10710-607: Was settled over 5,000 years ago, and there is evidence that the surrounding area had already been inhabited for tens of thousands of years prior to this. Several prehistoric archaeological sites have been discovered within the urban area of Beirut, revealing flint tools from sequential periods dating from the Middle Palaeolithic and Upper Paleolithic through the Neolithic to the Bronze Age . Beirut I ( Minet el-Hosn )
10815-458: Was suggested by Burkhalter to have been south of Tarik el Jedideh, where P.E. Gigues discovered a Copper Age flint industry at around 100 metres (328 feet) above sea level . The site had been built on and destroyed by 1948. Beirut III ( Furn esh-Shebbak ), listed as Plateau Tabet , was suggested to have been located on the left bank of the Beirut River . Burkhalter suggested that it
10920-488: Was the largest rally in Lebanon's history at that time. The last Syrian troops withdrew from Beirut on 26 April 2005, and the two countries established diplomatic relations on 15 October 2008. During the 2006 Lebanon War, Israeli bombardment caused damage in many parts of Beirut, especially the predominantly Shiite southern suburbs of Beirut. On 12 July 2006, the "Operation Truthful Promise" carried out by Hezbollah ended with 8 Israeli deaths and 6 injuries. In response,
11025-412: Was west of the Damascus road, although this determination has been criticized by Lorraine Copeland . P. E. Gigues discovered a series of Neolithic flint tools on the surface along with the remains of a structure suggested to be a hut circle . Auguste Bergy discussed polished axes that were also found at this site, which has now completely disappeared as a result of construction and urbanization of
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