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55-822: SSIS may refer to: Self-Styled Islamic State , a name used for the Islamic State Saigon South International School Scandinavian Society for Iranian Studies Shanghai Singapore International School Suzhou Singapore International School SQL Server Integration Services , a component of the Microsoft SQL Server database software that can be used to perform data migration tasks. State Security Investigations Service , former Egyptian intelligence service Swiss School in Singapore Topics referred to by

110-767: A Muslim majority in the Levant is presumed to have been reached by the 13th century. The majority of Levantine Muslims are Sunnis adhering to the four madhhabs ( Hanafi , Shafi'i , Hanbali and Maliki ). Islamic minorities include the Alawites and Nizari Ismailis in Syria, and Twelver Shiites in Lebanon . Levantine Christian groups include Greek Orthodox ( Antiochian Greek ), Syriac Orthodox , Eastern Catholic ( Syriac Catholic , Melkite and Maronite ), Roman Catholic ( Latin ), Nestorian , and Protestant . Armenians mostly belong to

165-635: A glottal stop, depending on the context ( D a esh vs. al- I slam ). Additionally, the pronunciation of the letter 'ayn ع is also variable, and has no equivalent letter or vocalization in English. The parallel use of both ISIS and ISIL as acronym originated from uncertainty in how to translate the Arabic word "ash-Shām" (or "al-Sham") in the group's April 2013 name, which can be translated variously as "the Levant ", " Greater Syria ", " Syria " or even " Damascus ". This led to

220-581: A negative connotation in Arabic culture, undermining the group's claim to have revived the Caliphate, leading to the group objecting to it as a pejorative name. Another reason for objection is the rarity of acronyms in Arabic, particularly those which have no meaning. "The United Nations" for example is always translated directly in Arabic, with no "UN" acronym equivalent. " Fatah " and " Hamas " are acronyms but they are also Arabic words in their own right (meaning "conquest" and "zeal" respectively). "Daesh" however

275-501: A result of the rift between the two groups. Usage has not been consistent however, with ISIS, ISIL, Islamic State and Daesh all being used variously, both domestically and overseas, with the precise term chosen based on the audience, recognising the need for consistency and that the American public was more familiar with ISIL, while also catering to partners who are more attached to Daesh. President Barack Obama used ISIL. In February 2017,

330-518: A variety of Arabic descended from the pre-Islamic Arabic dialects of Syria and Hejazi Arabic , but retaining significant influence from Western Middle Aramaic . Levantine Arabic is usually classified as North Levantine Arabic in Lebanon, Syria, and parts of Turkey, and South Levantine Arabic in Palestine and Jordan. Each of these encompasses a spectrum of regional or urban/rural variations. In addition to

385-463: Is a transcription of the pronunciation of the group's acronym in Arabic. Unfortunately, it is not an English-language acronym in its own right, due to discrepancies between English/Arabic alphabets and phonologies. Specifically, the Arabic letter shin ش has no letter equivalent in English, though it can be easily represented by the digraph "sh". Alif ا is usually equated to the letter A, but in fact can represent several different vowel sounds as well as

440-588: Is a key aim of the group to secure sole use of names which imply statehood and an Islamic faith, for purposes of propaganda . According to the American commander of the US mission in Iraq and Syria, Lt Gen James L. Terry , the Arab coalition partners believed strongly that the US should avoid referring to the enemy as ISIL and instead use Daesh, to avoid giving legitimacy to the group's aims. Although these names were being widely used in

495-734: Is borrowed from the French levant 'rising', referring to the rising of the sun in the east, or the point where the sun rises. The phrase is ultimately from the Latin word levare , meaning 'lift, raise'. Similar etymologies are found in Greek Ἀνατολή Anatolē ( cf. Anatolia 'the direction of sunrise'), in Germanic Morgenland ( lit.   ' morning land ' ), in Italian (as in Riviera di Levante ,

550-586: Is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Names of the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant Originating in Iraq, the group underwent various previous name changes , and since 2006 had been known as Islamic State of Iraq (ISI), a name which had failed to gain any traction, as the group had failed to gain or hold any significant territory as ISI, and thus widespread confusion over what to call them

605-507: Is not only an acronym but also phonetically meaningless in Arabic, reducing the legitimacy of the name and by extension the group to which it belongs. However, according to the British ambassador to Iraq speaking in January 2015, Daesh has since become an Arabic word in its own right, with a plural – dawāʿish ( دواعش ) – meaning "bigots who impose their views on others". By the end of the year,

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660-509: Is preferable to allowing the group to be able to use its preferred name, pointing out there were various inconsistencies in the BBC's and other outlets choice not to translate the names of other groups, and pointing out that Boko Haram is also an unofficial pejorative name. Concerning the issue of using recognisable names, Stephen Pritchard of The Guardian relayed the failure of their paper to get it right when they initially used "The Brotherhood",

715-535: Is sub-optimal, since many English speakers are unable to pronounce it the same way Arabic speakers do, due to the voiced pharyngeal fricative , represented by the apostrophe in Dai'ish. The term Self-Styled Islamic State (SSIS) has also been used many times to refer to the group. Many newspapers, such as The Age use a variant expression "so-called Islamic State". Most English language outlets initially first used ISIS, while usage of ISIL later increased. Use of ISIS

770-558: The 13th and 14th centuries, the term levante was used for Italian maritime commerce in the Eastern Mediterranean, including Greece, Anatolia , Syria-Palestine , and Egypt , that is, the lands east of Venice . Eventually the term was restricted to the Muslim countries of Syria-Palestine and Egypt. The term entered English in the late 15th century from French. It derives from the Italian levante , meaning "rising", implying

825-637: The Armenian Apostolic Church . There are also Levantines or Franco-Levantines who adhere to Roman Catholicism . There are also Assyrians belonging to the Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Catholic Church . Other religious groups in the Levant include Jews , Samaritans , Yazidis and Druze . Most populations in the Levant speak Levantine Arabic ( شامي , Šāmī ),

880-476: The Greek islands ). In 19th-century archaeology, it referred to overlapping cultures in this region during and after prehistoric times, intending to reference the place instead of any one culture. The French mandate of Syria and Lebanon (1920–1946) was called the Levant states. Today, "Levant" is the term typically used by archaeologists and historians with reference to the history of the region. Scholars have adopted

935-733: The Latin Christians of the Levant continue to be called Levantine Christians . The Levant has been described as the "crossroads of Western Asia , the Eastern Mediterranean, and Northeast Africa ", and in geological ( tectonic ) terms as the "northwest of the Arabian Plate ". The populations of the Levant share not only geographic position, but cuisine , some customs, and history . They are often referred to as Levantines . The term Levant appears in English in 1497 , and originally meant 'the East ' or 'Mediterranean lands east of Italy'. It

990-735: The Ottoman Sultan in 1579. The English Levant Company was founded in 1581 to trade with the Ottoman Empire , and in 1670 the French Compagnie du Levant  [ fr ] was founded for the same purpose. At this time, the Far East was known as the "Upper Levant". In early 19th-century travel writing , the term sometimes incorporated certain Mediterranean provinces of the Ottoman Empire , as well as independent Greece (and especially

1045-663: The Palestinian territories and most of Turkey southwest of the middle Euphrates . Its overwhelming characteristic is that it represents the land bridge between Africa and Eurasia . In its widest historical sense, the Levant included all of the Eastern Mediterranean with its islands; that is, it included all of the countries along the Eastern Mediterranean shores, extending from Greece in Southern Europe to Egypt and Cyrenaica (Eastern Libya) in Northern Africa . In

1100-510: The Sinai Peninsula (Asian Egypt) are sometimes included. As a name for the contemporary region, several dictionaries consider Levant to be archaic today. Both the noun Levant and the adjective Levantine are now commonly used to describe the ancient and modern culture area formerly called Syro-Palestinian or Biblical: archaeologists now speak of the Levant and of Levantine archaeology ; food scholars speak of Levantine cuisine ; and

1155-711: The Southern Levant . While the usage of the term "Levant" in academia has been restricted to the fields of archeology and literature, there is a recent attempt to reclaim the notion of the Levant as a category of analysis in political and social sciences. Two academic journals were launched in the early 2010s using the word: the Journal of Levantine Studies , published by the Van Leer Jerusalem Institute and The Levantine Review , published by Boston College . The word Levant has been used in some translations of

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1210-520: The Toronto edition sourced from the Toronto Star uses "Daesh". Some media commentators have suggested that the debate over what to call the group was of little importance when compared to the need to actually stop them. William McCants argues attempts to avoid Islamic State denies the basic reality that they have managed to establish a state. Writing for The Washington Post , Amanda Bennett cast

1265-493: The Arab world, Western media outlets were initially slow to adopt them, instead in favour of ISIS/ISIL. This has subsequently changed after the group's name change to IS, with media and politicians now using it widely, with the BBC speculating this was either "despite or perhaps as a direct consequence of the irritation it causes the group". Karin Ryding , emerita professor of Arab linguistics at Georgetown University , suggested Daesh

1320-416: The Levant (ISIL) as the group's primary name, believing "Levant" to be the more accurate translation. It also listed the Islamic State of Iraq and al-Sham (ISIS), the Islamic State of Iraq and Syria (ISIS), ad-Dawla al-Islamiyya fi al-'Iraq wa-sh-Sham, Daesh, Dawla al Islamiya, and Al-Furqan Establishment for Media Production, as aliases. This was to disassociate the group from the al-Nusrah Front (ANF), as

1375-720: The Pentagon adopted the abbreviation ISIS when referencing the group. A spokesman for the Canadian Minister of Foreign Affairs told Power & Politics in December 2014, "Whether it is called Daesh, ISIL or ISIS, Canada and the coalition agree this heinous terrorist group presents a threat to the region, and the entire world. That is why Canada has announced a number of measures designed to combat ISIL's brutality and help victims of this barbaric terrorist group." The Associated Press originally opted to use ISIL, believing Levant to be

1430-411: The acronym داعش ( Dāʿish ) of ISIL's 2013 name al- D awla a l-ʾIslāmiyya fī al- `I rāq wa al- Sh ām . It is pronounced with the emphasis on a long "e", which lends itself to being said in a snarling or aggressive tone in Arabic speech. The acronym was supposedly first used by supporters of Syrian president Bashar al-Assad . Daesh is used by mainstream Muslims, who believe it better separates

1485-501: The acronyms ISIS or ISIL, or using qualifiers on the new name. Despite the objections, use of the group's preferred name of Islamic State without qualification also spread. The United Nations generally refers to the group as ISIL. Former U.N. Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon has also used "Un-Islamic Non-State". Governments of the Arab states adopted Daesh and continue to use it instead of IS. The Israeli government approach has been

1540-694: The area that is bounded by the Taurus Mountains of Turkey in the north, the Mediterranean Sea in the west, the north Arabian Desert and Mesopotamia in the east, and Sinai in the south (which can be fully included or not). Typically, it does not include Anatolia (also known as Asia Minor), the Caucasus Mountains, or any part of the Arabian Peninsula proper. Cilicia (in Asia Minor) and

1595-516: The boundaries of the Levant as follows. A distinction is made between the main subregions of the Levant, the northern and the southern: The island of Cyprus is also included as a third subregion in the archaeological region of the Levant: The vast majority of Levantines are Muslims . After the Muslim conquest of the Levant in the 7th century, Islam was first introduced into the region. However,

1650-559: The debate as less about the meaning of words, but what they convey, contrasting politician's wish to have the group seen in a negative light, with the tradition in journalistic and academic circles to use organisations own preferred names, with explanation if there is a confusion or conflict with other meanings. Writing in The Independent , assistant secretary general of the Muslim Council of Britain, Miqdaad Versi , argued that daesh

1705-677: The decision, arguing Daesh was pejorative and that its approach was necessary to maintain impartiality. NPR uses "Islamic State" with the optional use of qualifiers in the first instance, then ISIS thereafter. USA Today "identifies the group as the Islamic State, the Islamic State militant group, or the Islamic State extremist group." The New York Times uses "Islamic State", choosing to explain it in context. The Guardian , and its sister paper The Observer , uses "Islamic State" at first mention and "ISIS" thereafter. (It does not uppercase acronyms). It chose "ISIS" over "ISIL" as being more usual in British media. In September 2014 it

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1760-583: The group from their faith. While "Daesh" has no other meaning in Arabic, it is very similar to the Arabic word دعس ( Dāʿis ), meaning "one who crushes (or tramples down) something underfoot". It also resembles the Arabic word داحس ( Dāhis ), the beginning of داحس والغبراء ( Dāhis wa'l-Ghabrā' , or "felon and dust"), which refers to the Islamic concept of the Jahiliyyah and can be loosely translated as "one who sows discord". Both words obviously have

1815-463: The group is referred to by its Arabic-language acronym " Daesh " (alt. Da'esh | Arabic : داعش | pronunc. dah-ESH ). The acronym is derived from the group's extended name: "D" / daal(د) = ad- D awla , "the state [of]", "A" / alif(ا) = al- I slamiyya , "Islam", "E" / 'ayn(ع) = fi'l- 'i raq , "in Iraq", "Sh" / shin(ش) = wa'ash- Sh am , "and the Sham (region roughly equivalent to the Levant )". "Daesh"

1870-588: The group's 2014 name "near enough" literally translates to "Islamic State", however there is still a remaining difficulty since this fails to capture the true Arabic connotations, which are closer to a religious concept of a united Islamic community ( ummah ) under Sharia law , as opposed to western concept of a bureaucratic state apparatus. Reflecting the desire to build a caliphate, the group also refers to itself as "al-Dawlah", meaning simply "the State". and by "Dawlatul Islam" meaning "state of Islam". Syrians living under

1925-439: The group's control referred to them as "al-tanẓīm", Arabic for "the organization". Reflecting the group's origins as a renegade splinter group, supporters of Al-Qā`idah referred to the group simply as "al-Baġdādī's group". The name Daesh, considered pejorative by the Islamic State, is the common term for the group used in the Muslim world . It is based on the Arabic letters Dāl , 'alif , `ayn , and shīn , which together form

1980-718: The island of Cyprus in Levantine studies, including the Council for British Research in the Levant , the UCLA Near Eastern Languages and Cultures department, Journal of Levantine Studies and the UCL Institute of Archaeology, the last of which has dated the connection between Cyprus and mainland Levant to the early Iron Age . Archaeologists seeking a neutral orientation that is neither biblical nor national have used terms such as Levantine archaeology and archaeology of

2035-411: The most accurate translation. After the name change to IS, it has switched to referring to the "Islamic State group". The AP's guide is used by many media organisations. BBC News chose to refer to it as "Islamic State group", "so-called islamic State", or "self-styled Islamic State" in the first instance, shortening it to IS on subsequent mentions. In face of criticism from politicians, it stood by

2090-648: The north. Two minority languages are recognized: Armenian , and Cypriot Maronite Arabic , a hybrid of mostly medieval Arabic vernaculars with strong influence from contact with Turkish and Greek, spoken by approximately 1,000 people. Western Neo-Aramaic is additionally spoken in three villages in Syria: Maaloula , Jubb'adin and Bakhah . Among diaspora communities based in the Levant, Greek , Armenian and Circassian are also spoken. According to recent ancient DNA studies, Levantines derive most of their ancestry from ancient Semitic-speaking peoples of

2145-500: The plural term was in widespread use in the Middle East. According to Associated Press reporting the words of residents of Mosul in Iraq who were speaking on condition of anonymity, the group itself wishes to be referred by its full name only, Islamic State, considering the acronym Daesh to be disrespectful, going so far as to threaten to cut the tongue out of anyone who used it in public. According to The Week , experts argue that it

2200-673: The portion of the Liguria coast east of Genoa ), in Hungarian Kelet ('east'), in Spanish and Catalan Levante and Llevant , ('the place of rising'), and in Hebrew מִזְרָח mizraḥ ('east'). Most notably, "Orient" and its Latin source oriens meaning 'east', is literally "rising", deriving from Latin orior 'rise'. The notion of the Levant has undergone a dynamic process of historical evolution in usage, meaning, and understanding. While

2255-424: The reason why the term Levant has come to be used more specifically to refer to modern Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel, Jordan, and the island of Cyprus . Some scholars mistakenly believed that it derives from the name of Lebanon. Today the term is often used in conjunction with prehistoric or ancient historical references. Another term for "Syria-Palestine" is Ash- Shaam ( Arabic : ٱلشَّام , /ʔaʃ.ʃaːm/ ),

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2310-552: The rising of the Sun in the east, and is broadly equivalent to the term al-Mashriq ( Arabic : ٱلْمَشْرِق , [ʔal.maʃ.riq] ), meaning "the eastern place, where the Sun rises". In 1581, England set up the Levant Company to trade with the Ottoman Empire . The name Levant States was used to refer to the French mandate over Syria and Lebanon after World War I . This is probably

2365-530: The rough English translation to refer to the little known Al-Qaeda group in the wake of the September 11 attacks , before quickly dropping it as the Arabic name gained traction, despite it being their chosen brand. Levant The Levant ( / l ə ˈ v æ n t / lə- VANT ) is a term used to define the historical and geographical subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean sea to

2420-542: The same as Arab states. The British government originally used ISIL, but adopted Daesh on 2 December 2015. The French government elected to use a French-based spelling ('Daech') of the Arabic name, replacing its previous French name, EIIL (L'Etat islamique en Irak et au Levant), stating that other names "blur the lines between Islam, Muslims and Islamists". The Australian government , under Prime Minister Tony Abbott , adopted Daesh in January 2015. The United States government designated Islamic State of Iraq and

2475-405: The same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title SSIS . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change the link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=SSIS&oldid=1176067750 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description

2530-621: The term ash-Shām as used by the organization known as ISIL, ISIS, and other names , though there is disagreement as to whether this translation is accurate. In The Oxford Handbook of the Archaeology of the Levant: c. 8000–332 BCE (OHAL; 2013), the definition of the Levant for the specific purposes of the book is synonymous to that of the Arabic " bilad al-sham , 'the land of sham [Syria]'", translating in Western parlance to greater Syria . OHAL defines

2585-533: The term "Levantine" originally referred to the European residents of the eastern Mediterranean region, it later came to refer to regional "native" and "minority" groups. The term became current in English in the 16th century, along with the first English merchant adventurers in the region; English ships appeared in the Mediterranean in the 1570s, and the English merchant company signed its agreement (" capitulations ") with

2640-514: The term Levant to identify the region due to its being a "wider, yet relevant, cultural corpus" that does not have the "political overtones" of Syria-Palestine. The term is also used for modern events, peoples, states or parts of states in the same region, namely Cyprus , Egypt , Iraq , Israel , Jordan , Lebanon , Palestine , Syria , and Turkey are sometimes considered Levant countries (compare with Near East , Middle East , Eastern Mediterranean and West Asia ). Several researchers include

2695-400: The varieties normally grouped together as "Levantine", a number of other varieties and dialects of Arabic are spoken in the Levant area, such as Levantine Bedawi Arabic (by Bedouins ) and Mesopotamian Arabic (in eastern Syria). Of the languages of Cyprus , the two official languages are Turkish and Greek. The most used languages by population are Greek in the south followed by Turkish in

2750-405: The west and core West Asia , or by the political term, Middle East to the east . In its narrowest sense, which is in use today in archaeology and other cultural contexts, it is equivalent to Cyprus and a stretch of land bordering the Mediterranean Sea in western Asia: i.e. the historical region of Syria ("Greater Syria"), which includes present-day Israel , Jordan , Lebanon , Syria ,

2805-469: The widely used translations of "Islamic State in Iraq and the Levant", "Islamic State in Iraq and Syria" or "Islamic State in Iraq and al-Sham". "The Levant " generally refers to at least part or all of Syria, Iraq, Jordan , Israel , Palestine , and Lebanon , though its definition varies. According to the BBC, since neither "Levant", nor "Syria", reflect the group's likely meaning of the word al-Sham in Arabic, "various experts have therefore said that

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2860-427: The word al-Sham should not be translated" (when rendering the long form name). According to Syrian-American journalist Hassan Hassan , if the term Levant had been the intended meaning, the Arabic word would have been "Bilad al-Sham", whereas the more likely meaning of Greater Syria still leads to the acronym ISIS. In contrast to the difficulties in translation of the group's former name, according to The Guardian

2915-451: Was considering switching to "IS", but by April 2016 had not done so, but instead used ISIS. Following the name change, it moved to "Islamic State (ISIS)" at first mention, and thereafter IS. Iran 's news outlets such as state-owned Press TV use the name "Daesh Takfiri " (see Iran and ISIL ). Financial Times chose to stick with ISIS even after the group's name change. Several newspapers published by Metro International such as

2970-504: Was largely absent. Confusion began when the group gained further territory and changed its name to ad-Dawlah al-Islāmiyah fī 'l-ʿIrāq wa-sh-Shām in April 2013 as it expanded into Syria. It then changed to ad-Dawlah al-Islāmiyah in June 2014 as part of a desire to re-establish a caliphate . The rendering of the Arabic name in English varies, due to imprecise translation. In the Arab world and beyond,

3025-501: Was particularly more prevalent than ISIL in British media. It has been argued that ISIS has been retained simply because it rolls off the tongue of English speakers, who are familiar with it through its other meaning as the name of an Egyptian goddess . The group's adoption of the name Islamic State led to controversy due to the inference that it represented the Islamic faith or was a sovereign state , leading to outlets choosing to retain

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