Damascus | History, Map, Population, & Facts

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data-icon="toc"></em> <a class="font-serif font-weight-bold text-black link-blue" href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Damascus">Damascus</a> </div> <button aria-label="Close" class="js-sections-close-button btn-link btn-sm btn d-lg-none position-absolute top-0 p-10 right-0" > <em class="material-icons font-26" data-icon="close"></em> </button> </div> <div class="section-content pl-10 pr-20 pl-sm-50 pr-sm-60 pl-lg-5 pr-lg-10 pt-10 pt-lg-0 bg-gray-50 clear-catfish-ad"> <div class="toc mb-20"> <div class="font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mx-15 mb-15 mt-20"> Table of Contents </div> <ul class="list-unstyled my-0" data-level="h1"><li data-target="#ref1"><div class="pl-25"><a class="link-gray-900 w-100" href="/place/Damascus">Introduction</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref276642"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus#ref276642">Character of the city</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref276643"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus#ref276643">Landscape</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref276644"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus#ref276644">City site</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref276645"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus#ref276645">Climate</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref276646"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus#ref276646">City layout</a></li></ul></div></li><li data-target="#ref276647"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/People">People</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref276648"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/People#ref276648">Economy</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref276649"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/People#ref276649">Manufacturing, finance, and other services</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref276650"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/People#ref276650">Transportation</a></li></ul></div></li><li data-target="#ref276651"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/Administration-and-society">Administration and society</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref276652"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/Administration-and-society#ref276652">Government</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref276653"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/Administration-and-society#ref276653">Municipal services and health</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref276654"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/Administration-and-society#ref276654">Education</a></li></ul></div></li><li data-target="#ref276655"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><div class="ml-25"></div><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/Administration-and-society#ref276655">Cultural life</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"></div></li><li data-target="#ref25657"><div class="d-flex align-items-center"><button class="h1-link-drawer-button btn btn-xs btn-circle d-flex rounded" type="button" aria-label="Toggle Heading"><em class="material-icons font-18" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></em></button><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/History">History</a></div><div class="ml-40 toc-drawer sub-toc-drawer"><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref25658"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/History#ref25658">Early centuries</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref25659"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/History#ref25659">Islamic city</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref25660"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/History#ref25660">Ottoman period</a></li></ul><ul class="list-unstyled" data-level="h2"><li data-target="#ref25661"><a class="w-100 link-gray-900" href="/place/Damascus/History#ref25661">Modern city</a></li></ul></div></li></ul> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Damascus/additional-info">References & Edit History</a> <a class="toc-extra-link link-gray-900" href="/facts/Damascus">Related Topics</a> </div> <div class="tlr-media-slider pb-10 mb-30"> <a class="section-header link-gray-900 font-serif font-14 font-weight-bold mb-10 mx-10" href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Damascus/images-videos">Images</a> <div class="slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100 "> <div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex overflow-hidden text-nowrap ml-15"> <a 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src="https://cdn.britannica.com/37/77437-004-D06795A3/Great-Mosque-courtyard-portico-Syria-Damascus.jpg" alt="The Great Mosque, view of the courtyard and northern portico, Damascus, Syria." height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/40/140440-050-C7870425/courtyard-Bayt-al-Mal-Great-Mosque-of-Damascus.jpg" data-href="/media/1/150420/143293" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/40/140440-004-DE51C29B/courtyard-Bayt-al-Mal-Great-Mosque-of-Damascus.jpg" alt="Dome of the Treasury" height="50" /> </a> <a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/63/46963-004-B1CF4A0A/Detail-mosaics-mosque-Syria-Damscus.jpg" data-href="/media/1/150420/107279" class="media-overlay-link d-inline-block mr-5"> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/63/46963-004-B1CF4A0A/Detail-mosaics-mosque-Syria-Damscus.jpg" alt="Detail of a mosaic from the Great Mosque, Damascus, Syria." height="50" /> </a> <a 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Let us know if you have suggestions to improve this article (requires login). </div> <div class="type-menu"> <label for="feedback-type" class="label mb-10">Feedback Type</label> <select id="feedback-type" class="form-select mb-30" name="feedbackTypeId" required> <option value="" selected="selected">Select a type (Required)</option> <option value="1">Factual Correction</option> <option value="2">Spelling/Grammar Correction</option> <option value="3">Link Correction</option> <option value="4">Additional Information</option> <option value="5">Other</option> </select> </div> <label for="feedback" class="label mb-10">Your Feedback</label> <textarea id="feedback" class="form-control mb-30" name="feedback" maxlength="3000" rows="7" required></textarea> <button class="btn btn-blue" type="submit">Submit Feedback</button> </form> <div class="success-messaging d-none mt-30"> <div class="title">Thank you for your feedback</div> <p>Our editors will review what you’ve submitted and determine whether to revise the article.</p> </div> </div> </div> <div class="md-websites-modal size-lg d-none"> <div class="md-modal-body"> <div class="h2 font-serif pb-15 border-bottom font-weight-bold"> External Websites </div> <div class="pb-20"> <ul class="list-unstyled mt-20 lh-lg"> <li><a class="external" href="https://www.jewishvirtuallibrary.org/damascus-jewish-history-tour/" target="_blank" rel="noopener ">Jewish Virtual Library - Damascus, Syria</a></li> <li><a class="external" href="https://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/articles/4861" target="_blank" rel="noopener ">Jewishencyclopedia.com - Damascus</a></li> <li><a class="external" href="https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/20/" target="_blank" rel="noopener ">UNESCO World Heritage Convention - Ancient City of Damascus</a></li> </ul> </div> <div class="md-websites-ebk-title">Britannica Websites</div> <div class="md-websites-ebk-subtitle">Articles from Britannica Encyclopedias for elementary and high school students.</div> <ul class="list-unstyled bps-topic-web-sites lh-lg"> <li><a class="external" href="https://kids.britannica.com/kids/article/Damascus/345895" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Damascus - Children's Encyclopedia (Ages 8-11)</a></li> <li><a class="external" href="https://kids.britannica.com/students/article/Damascus/273906" target="_blank" rel="noopener">Damascus - Student Encyclopedia (Ages 11 and up)</a></li> </ul> </div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="toc-header-marker"></div> <button class="ai-ask-button btn border-2 js-header-ai-ask-button d-none btn-sm btn-outline-red-400 border-red-400 mr-0 mr-lg-10 ml-5 ml-sm-10 ml-lg-0 p-10"> Ask the Chatbot a Question </button> <div class="caption alternate-titles">Also known as: Dimashq, Pearl of the East, al-Fayḥāʾ, al-Shām</div> <div class="md-byline module-spacing "> <div class="font-serif font-12"> <span class="written-by text-gray-700"> Written by </span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor" href="/contributor/Nasser-O-Rabbat/6149" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">Nasser O. Rabbat</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 clamp-description text-black">Nasser Rabbat is the Aga Khan Professor and the Director of the Aga Khan Program for Islamic Architecture at MIT. An architect and a historian, his scholarly interests include the history and historiography...</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link gtm-byline font-12 byline-contributor text-decoration-underline"> Nasser O. Rabbat</span></div> <div class="font-serif font-12 text-gray-700"> <span class="qa-fact-checked-by">Fact-checked by</span> <div class="editor-popover popover p-0"> <a class="d-block p-20 font-12" href="/editor/The-Editors-of-Encyclopaedia-Britannica/4419" > <div class="editor-title font-16 font-weight-bold">The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</div> <div class="editor-description font-12 font-serif mt-5 text-black">Encyclopaedia Britannica's editors oversee subject areas in which they have extensive knowledge, whether from years of experience gained by working on that content or via study for an advanced degree. They write new content and verify and edit content received from contributors.</div> </a> <div data-popper-arrow></div> </div> <span class="btn btn-link editor-link p-0 qa-byline-link font-12 "> The Editors of Encyclopaedia Britannica</span></div> <div class="last-updated font-12 font-serif"> <span class="text-gray-700"> Last Updated: <time datetime="2024-12-01T00:00:00CST" >Dec 1, 2024</time> •</span> <a class="byline-edit-history" href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Damascus/additional-info#history" rel="nofollow">Article History</a> </div></div> </div> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm mobile-toc-button gtm-mobile-toc-inline-button d-none d-sm-block js-sections-inline-button module-spacing btn d-lg-none"> <em class="material-icons mr-5 ml-n10 my-n5 md-icon" data-icon="toc"></em> Table of Contents </button> <div class="d-flex d-sm-none flex-row"> <button class="d-flex d-lg-none btn btn-outline-blue border rounded-sm shadow-sm 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text-gray-600"> <span>•</span> Nov. 20, 2024, 10:12 AM ET (AP) </span> </div> <div class="recent-news-item mt-5"> <a class="font-14 gtm-ap-news-link" href="/news/150420/1f6dd957d1d6c8f610349e99cfed1a98" rel="nofollow">Israeli strikes kill at least 12 Lebanese rescuers and 15 people in Syria</a> <span class="font-14 text-gray-600"> <span>•</span> Nov. 14, 2024, 7:22 PM ET (AP) </span> </div> <button class="js-toggle-recent-news d-flex btn btn-unstyled font-14 pr-10 rounded-sm mt-10" aria-label="Toggle additional news items"> Show less <em class="material-icons" data-icon="expand_less"></em> </button> </div> </div><span class="marker before-article"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref1"><span class="marker PREMOD1 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies multiple medialist slider js-slider position-relative d-inline-flex align-items-center mw-100" data-type="other"><div class="slider-container js-slider-container overflow-hidden d-flex"><div class="rw-track d-flex align-items-center"><div class="position-relative rw-slide col-100 px-20 "><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="138973" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/08/19708-004-0AD18C48/locator-World-Heritage-Damascus-Syria.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/150420/138973"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/08/19708-004-0AD18C48/locator-World-Heritage-Damascus-Syria.jpg"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/08/19708-004-0AD18C48/locator-World-Heritage-Damascus-Syria.jpg?w=300" alt="Damascus" data-width="501" data-height="391" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/08/19708-004-0AD18C48/locator-World-Heritage-Damascus-Syria.jpg" data-href="/media/1/150420/138973">Damascus</a><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div></div><button disabled="true" class="prev-button js-prev-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-lg btn-blue-dark m-20"><span class="material-icons" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_left"></span></button><button disabled="true" class="next-button js-next-button position-absolute btn btn-circle shadow btn-lg btn-blue-dark m-20"><span class="material-icons" data-icon="keyboard_arrow_right"></span></button></div><p class="topic-paragraph"><strong><span id="ref392561"></span>Damascus</strong>, city, capital of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Syria" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Syria</a>. Located in the southwestern corner of the country, it has been called the “pearl of the East,” praised for its beauty and lushness; the 10th-century traveler and geographer <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/al-Maqdisi" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">al-Maqdisī</a> lauded the city as ranking among the four earthly paradises. Upon visiting the city in 1867, <span id="ref991439"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Mark-Twain" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Mark Twain</a> wrote</p><span class="marker MOD1 mod-inline"></span><blockquote><p>To Damascus, years are only moments, decades are only flitting trifles of time. She measures time not by days and months and years, but by the empires she has seen rise and prosper and crumble to ruin. She is a type of immortality.</p></blockquote><span class="marker PREMOD3 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The city’s Arabic name derives from Dimashka, a word of possibly pre-Semitic <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/etymology" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">etymology</a>, suggesting that the beginnings of Damascus go back to a time before recorded history. The city is commonly called al-Shām, the <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="vernacular" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/vernacular" data-type="MW">vernacular</a> name of Syria as a whole, which is said to mean “the left” or “the north,” where the region is situated relative to the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Arabia-peninsula-Asia" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Arabian Peninsula</a>. Owing to associations of Damascus with Aram, the biblical capital of the Aramaeans, some Arabic sources link Damascus and the <em>Iram dhāt al-ʿimād</em> (“Colonnaded Aram”) mentioned in the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Quran" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Qurʾān</a>, an identification that has long been disputed. Also contended has been the association of Damascus with Jilliq, a fertile pre-Islamic site whose name derives from a word of unknown origin in use by the Ghassānids active there in the 6th century (<em>see</em> <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Ghassanid-dynasty" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Ghassān</a>). The city is still known by its popular epithet <em>al-Fayḥāʾ</em> (“the Fragrant”), earned perhaps for the freshness of its surrounding orchards and gardens. Many scholars believe that, among the ancient cities of the world, Damascus is perhaps the oldest continuously inhabited.</p><span class="marker MOD3 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD4 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Over the centuries, Damascus has been conqueror and conquered, wealthy and <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="destitute" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/destitute" data-type="MW">destitute</a>, and capital of empire and small states. Its fame has been sustained by its continuous prominence as a commercial and <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="intellectual" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/intellectual" data-type="MW">intellectual</a> centre. Its life has been nourished periodically by immigrants from the hinterland and from the Mediterranean Basin and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Southwest-Asia" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Southwest Asia</a>. Often a focus of <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="contention" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/contention" data-type="MW">contention</a> by powers of East and West, Damascus’s fortunes have frequently been linked to those of distant capitals, most notably <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Ashur-ancient-city-Iraq" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Ashur</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Antioch-ancient-city-west-central-Turkey" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Antioch</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Rome/Administration-and-society#ref23913" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Rome</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Baghdad" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Baghdad</a>, <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Cairo" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Cairo</a>, and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Istanbul" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Istanbul</a>. Now a burgeoning metropolis of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Middle-East" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Middle East</a>, it retains, as it has through centuries of triumph and disaster, an indomitable spirit and a considerable charm.</p><span class="marker MOD4 mod-inline"></span><span class="marker PREMOD5 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Area city, 17 square miles (43 square km). Pop. (2007 est.) municipality, 1,669,000.</p><a class="link-module shadow-sm d-block qa-quiz-module" href="/quiz/countries-and-capitals-quiz" data-link-module-iframe-link=""> <img loading="lazy" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/83/215483-131-BD51CA13/Pakistan-Monument-landmark-Islamabad-Pakistan.jpg" alt="Pakistan Monument is a landmark in Islamabad which represents the four provinces of Pakistan." class="rounded-sm mr-15" width="70" /> <div class="line-clamp clamp-5"> <div class="module-title bg-green">Britannica Quiz</div> <div class="font-weight-semi-bold mt-5">Countries and Capitals Quiz</div> </div> </a><span class="marker MOD5 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="marker h2"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref276642"><h2 class="h1">Character of the city</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD6 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Travelers to Damascus have been struck by the sight of aspens and poplars growing along streams, of fruit (particularly apricot) and nut orchards, and of olive groves and vegetable gardens. A popular story about the Prophet <a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Muhammad" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Muhammad</a>’s journey to Syria recounts that, upon seeing verdant Damascus, he refused to go in, as man should only enter paradise once. Upon reaching Damascus in 1326, <span id="ref392565"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ibn-Battuta" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Ibn Baṭṭūṭah</a>, the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Arab" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Arab</a> travel writer from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Tangier-Morocco" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Tangier</a>, said that no words could do <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="justice" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/justice" data-type="MW">justice</a> to the city’s charm; he resorted to quoting his Maghribi predecessor, <span id="ref392566"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ibn-Jubayr" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Ibn Jubayr</a>, who sojourned in Damascus in 1184 and wrote that Damascus had “adorned herself with flowers of sweet scented herbs” and “is encircled by gardens as the moon…by its halo.” In 1350 a European traveler, <span id="ref392567"></span>Ludolph van Suchem, wrote of the city as “begirt with gardens and orchards and watered in and out by waters, rivers, brooks, and fountains cunningly arranged to minister to men’s luxury.” While the accelerated and often disordered growth of the city since <a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/World-War-II" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">World War II</a> has sharply raised the ratio of buildings to trees and open space, Damascenes still enjoy some of the former splendor of al-Ghūṭah, the fertile belt of irrigated land <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="adjacent" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/adjacent" data-type="MW">adjacent</a> to the city.</p><span class="marker MOD6 mod-inline"></span></section> <span class="marker h3"></span><section data-level="1" id="ref276643"><h2 class="h1">Landscape</h2> <section data-level="2" id="ref276644"><h2 class="h2">City site</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD7 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Water and geography have determined the site and role of Damascus. Early settlers were naturally attracted to a place where a river, the <span id="ref392562"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Barada-River" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Baradā</a>, rising in the <span id="ref392563"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Anti-Lebanon-Mountains" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Anti-Lebanon Mountains</a> (Al-Jabal al-Sharqī), watered a large and fertile <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/oasis-geological-feature" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">oasis</a> before vanishing into the desert. This tract, <span id="ref392564"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/al-Ghutah" class="md-crosslink ">al-Ghūṭah</a>, has supported a substantial population for thousands of years. Damascus itself grew on a terrace 2,250 feet (690 metres) above <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/sea-level" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">sea level</a>, south of Mount Qāsiyūn and overlooking the Baradā River. The original settlement appears to have been situated in the eastern part of the walled Old City. City and <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="oasis" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/oasis" data-type="EB">oasis</a> grew together, and over time Damascus came to dominate the lesser rural settlements surrounding it.</p><div class="module-spacing"> <DIV class="marketing-INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION marketing-content" data-marketing-id="INLINE_SUBSCRIPTION"><style> .student-promo-banner-wrapper { container-type: inline-size; margin-bottom: 15px; } @container (min-width: 475px) { .student-promo-banner { flex-direction: row; } .student-promo-banner-img-wrapper { margin-bottom: 0; margin-right: 10px; justify-content: flex-start; } .student-promo-banner-text-wrapper { text-align: left; margin-bottom: 0px; margin-left: 10px; } .student-promo-banner-button-wrapper { margin-right: 0; } }</style> <div class="student-promo-banner-wrapper"> <div class="student-promo-banner d-flex flex-column align-items-center bg-blue rounded p-20"> <div class="student-promo-banner-img-wrapper mb-20 mr-0 d-flex justify-content-center"> <img class="rounded" style="max-width: 100px; min-width: 80px" src="https://cdn.britannica.com/marketing/BlueThistle.webp" /> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-text-wrapper ml-0 mb-10 text-center text-white"> <div class="h2 mb-10">Get Unlimited Access</div> <div class="h4 font-weight-semi-bold">Try Britannica Premium for free and discover more.</div> </div> <div class="student-promo-banner-button-wrapper d-flex justify-content-center align-items-center ml-auto mr-auto"> <a class="btn btn-m btn-orange" href="https://premium.britannica.com/premium-membership/?utm_source=premium&utm_medium=inline-cta&utm_campaign=black-friday-2024">Subscribe</a> </div> </div> </div> </DIV></div><span class="marker MOD7 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD8 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The natural endowments of an assured <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/water-supply" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">water supply</a> and fertile land made Damascus self-sufficient. Successive colonizers from the 2nd millennium <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span> onward developed an intricate irrigation system that fed the city through a system of branches derived from the river, contributing to a steady expansion of al-Ghūṭah, especially to the east and west. Damascus’s position on the edge of the desert and at the eastern end of the easiest route through the Anti-Lebanon range made it a trade centre where caravan routes originated and terminated. Since the advent of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Islam" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Islam</a>, the city has also been the starting point of the northern <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="pilgrimage" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/pilgrimage" data-type="EB">pilgrimage</a> road, the Darb al-Hajj al-Shāmī, to the Islamic holy cities of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Mecca" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Mecca</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Medina-Saudi-Arabia" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Medina</a>.</p><span class="marker MOD8 mod-inline"></span></section> <section data-level="2" id="ref276645"><h2 class="h2">Climate</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD9 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">Some 50 miles (80 km) from the sea yet separated from it by two mountain ranges, Damascus receives only about 7 inches (178 mm) of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/precipitation" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">precipitation</a> annually, most of it from November through February. The Anti-Lebanon range gets far greater amounts of both rain and winter snow, which annually replenish the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/water-table" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">water table</a> that is a source of the Baradā River and other, more minor springs watering Damascus. Owing to the city’s elevation, winter is rather cold, with average temperatures of around 40 to 45 °F (5 to 7 °C). A short blossoming spring in March and April is followed by six to seven months of hot dry summer. Temperatures average around 80 °F (27 °C) in midseason, although they occasionally reach 100 °F (38 °C) or above. Summer evenings tend to be tempered by cooler breezes, with temperatures dropping to 65 °F (18 °C). Dust-laden winds blowing in from the desert are somewhat <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="mitigated" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mitigated" data-type="MW">mitigated</a> by small mountain ranges to the east and south of the city.</p><span class="marker MOD9 mod-inline"></span></section> <section data-level="2" id="ref276646"><h2 class="h2">City layout</h2> <span class="marker PREMOD10 mod-inline"></span><div class="assemblies"><div class="w-100"><figure class="md-assembly m-0 mb-md-0 card card-borderless print-false" data-assembly-id="200955" data-asm-type="image"><div class="md-assembly-wrapper card-media " data-type="image"><a href="https://cdn.britannica.com/91/177991-050-D8667CD8/Umayyad-Mosque-Damascus.jpg" class="gtm-assembly-link position-relative d-flex align-items-center justify-content-center media-overlay-link card-media" data-href="/media/1/150420/200955"><picture><source media="(min-width: 680px)" srcset="https://cdn.britannica.com/91/177991-050-D8667CD8/Umayyad-Mosque-Damascus.jpg?w=300"><img src="https://cdn.britannica.com/91/177991-050-D8667CD8/Umayyad-Mosque-Damascus.jpg?w=300" alt="Damascus: Umayyad Mosque" data-width="1600" data-height="1067" loading="eager"></picture><button class="magnifying-glass btn btn-circle position-absolute shadow btn-white top-10 right-10" aria-label="Zoom in"><em class="material-icons link-blue" data-icon="zoom_in"></em></button></a></div><figcaption class="card-body"><div class="md-assembly-caption text-muted font-14 font-serif line-clamp"><span><a class="gtm-assembly-link md-assembly-title font-weight-bold d-inline font-sans-serif mr-5 media-overlay-link" href="https://cdn.britannica.com/91/177991-050-D8667CD8/Umayyad-Mosque-Damascus.jpg" data-href="/media/1/150420/200955">Damascus: Umayyad Mosque</a><span>Umayyad Mosque, Damascus.</span><button class="js-more-btn d-none btn btn-unstyled font-12 bg-white js-content" aria-label="Toggle more/less fact data"><span class="link-blue">(more)</span></button></span></div></figcaption></figure></div></div><p class="topic-paragraph">Damascus was an active commercial centre in the 2nd millennium <span class="text-smallcaps">bce</span> and developed through different stages of <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/urbanization" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">urbanization</a> thereafter, reaching its zenith at the beginning of the 7th century <span class="text-smallcaps">ce</span> when it became the capital of the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/Umayyad-dynasty-Islamic-history" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Umayyad</a> empire. The heart of Damascus’s Old City, which contains most of the city’s historical monuments, is Hellenistic in origin, with significant Roman additions and modifications. It is a rough oblong about 5,000 feet (1,500 metres) long and 3,300 feet (1,000 metres) wide and is defined by historic walls, of which sizeable stretches still stand, especially in the north and west. Eight gates, seven of which are of Classical derivation, pierce the walls. The long axis of the oblong runs between two gates, Bāb al-Jābiyya (the Roman Jupiter Gate) in the west and Bāb Sharqī (the Roman Sun Gate) in the east. It occupies the former location of the <em>decumanus maximus</em> (main east-west thoroughfare) of the Classical city, which lies some 15 feet (5 metres) below the modern street level; no <em>cardo maximus</em> (main north-south thoroughfare) has been positively identified. Many secondary streets and some of the most prominent features of the Old City owe their positions to the Roman city planners of the 2nd and 3rd centuries <span class="text-smallcaps">ce</span>.</p><span class="marker MOD10 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD11 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The city’s <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="orthogonal" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/orthogonal" data-type="MW">orthogonal</a> plan deteriorated during the late <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Byzantine-Empire" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Byzantine</a> period in the 6th and 7th centuries. The Umayyads (661–750) chose Damascus as their capital but did not much change its layout or considerably expand beyond its walls. Although the city was neglected and its population drastically decreased between the 8th and 11th centuries, by the 13th century Damascus had revived and was outgrowing its walls. Two axes of development <em>extra-muros</em>, beyond the city walls, predominated. One linked the city to the northwest with the suburb of Ṣālḥiyyah, which was established in the 12th century by immigrants from <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Jerusalem" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Jerusalem</a> on the slopes of <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="Mount" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/Mount" data-type="EB">Mount</a> Qāsiyūn; the second extended as a long, narrow strip southward along the road leading to the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Hawran" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">Ḥawrān</a> and <a href="https://www.britannica.com/place/Palestine" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Palestine</a>. The Old City was designated a <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/UNESCO" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">UNESCO</a> <span id="ref651333"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/World-Heritage-site" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">World Heritage site</a> in 1979.</p><div class="one-good-fact-module"> </div><span class="marker MOD11 mod-inline"></span> <span class="marker PREMOD12 mod-inline"></span><p class="topic-paragraph">The modern city began with the Ottoman <span id="ref991716"></span><a href="https://www.britannica.com/event/Tanzimat" class="md-crosslink " data-show-preview="true">Tanzimat</a> (Reorganization) in the late 19th century. Buildings in pseudo-European styles were constructed along new, straight streets to the west and north of the walled city or in Al-Mujāhirīn, the new quarter for immigrants on Mount Qāsiyūn. Later developments followed a plan originally devised by the French during the <a href="https://www.britannica.com/topic/mandate-League-of-Nations" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">mandate</a> period (1920–46), with a number of revisions attempted thereafter. Its basic elements include wide boulevards radiating from squares spread around the Old City, especially in the west and northwest and, later, in the east. New housing has developed in the form of concrete blocks of flats along these boulevards. Government buildings are concentrated in an area west of the walled city around Marjah Square, along Nasr Street, and in several districts west of Ṣālḥiyyah Street. <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off eb" data-term="Stimulated" href="https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/Stimulated" data-type="EB">Stimulated</a> by the appeal of modern housing and amenities, well-to-do families began in the 1930s to move to the area northwest of the Old City, whose magnificent courtyard houses were left to poorer tenants recently arrived from the countryside, or to light industry. As the population grew, more and more of the garden and farm area was converted into residential districts, many of them illegal settlements, while <em>mukhalafāt</em> (informal districts, such as upper Al-Muhājirīn and the Kurdish quarter) expanded up the slopes of Mount Qāsiyūn. Ancient farming villages close by, such as Al-Mazzah, Barzah, Kafr Sūsah, Al-Qābūn, and Al-Qadam, were incorporated into the city, both administratively and physically. Government efforts to retain green areas and to zone housing and industry have been plagued not only by overwhelming <a href="https://www.britannica.com/science/population-growth" class="md-crosslink autoxref " data-show-preview="true">population growth</a> but also by administrative laxity and corruption. The development of <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="affluent" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/affluent" data-type="MW">affluent</a> residential suburbs in the 1990s added <a class="md-dictionary-link md-dictionary-tt-off mw" data-term="precious" href="https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/precious" data-type="MW">precious</a> new parks and gardens in the north, northwest, and southeast of the city, yet more than half of the city’s green space has been lost since 1945.</p><span class="marker MOD12 mod-inline"></span></section></section> <span class="marker end-of-content"></span><span class="marker after-article"></span></div> <div id="chatbot-root"></div> </div> </div> </div> <div class="ai-dialog-placeholder"></div> </div> </div> <aside class="col-md-da-320"></aside> </div> </div> </div> </div> </article></div> </div></div> </div> </main> <div id="md-footer"></div> <noscript><iframe src="//www.googletagmanager.com/ns.html?id=GTM-5W6NC8" height="0" width="0" style="display:none;visibility:hidden"></iframe></noscript> <script type="text/javascript" id="_informizely_script_tag"> var IzWidget = IzWidget || {}; (function (d) { var scriptElement = d.createElement('script'); scriptElement.type = 'text/javascript'; scriptElement.async = true; scriptElement.src = "https://insitez.blob.core.windows.net/site/f780f33e-a610-4ac2-af81-3eb184037547.js"; var node = d.getElementById('_informizely_script_tag'); node.parentNode.insertBefore(scriptElement, node); } )(document); </script>  <script> window.ap3c = window.ap3c || {}; var ap3c = window.ap3c; ap3c.cmd = ap3c.cmd || []; ap3c.cmd.push(function() { ap3c.init('ZO4siT4cLwnykPnzZWJtd3Byb2Q', 'https://engage.email.britannica.com/'); ap3c.track({v: 0}); }); ap3c.activity = function(act) { ap3c.act = (ap3c.act || []); ap3c.act.push(act); }; var s, t; s = document.createElement('script'); s.type = 'text/javascript'; s.src = "https://engage.email.britannica.com/app.js"; t = document.getElementsByTagName('script')[0]; t.parentNode.insertBefore(s, t); </script> <script class="marketing-page-info" type="application/json"> {"pageType":"Topic","templateName":"DESKTOP","pageNumber":1,"pagesTotal":4,"pageId":150420,"pageLength":1651,"initialLoad":true,"lastPageOfScroll":false} </script> <script class="marketing-content-info" type="application/json"> [] </script> <script src="https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/js/libs/jquery-3.5.0.min.js?v=3.130.14"></script> <script type="text/javascript" data-type="Init Mendel Code Splitting"> (function() { $.ajax({ dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: 'https://cdn.britannica.com/mendel-resources/3-130/dist/topic-page.js?v=3.130.14' }); })(); </script> <script class="analytics-metadata" type="application/json"> {"leg":"C","adLeg":"C","userType":"ANONYMOUS","pageType":"Topic","pageSubtype":null,"articleTemplateType":"PAGINATED","gisted":false,"pageNumber":1,"hasSummarizeButton":false,"hasAskButton":false} </script> <script type="text/javascript"> EBStat={accountId:-1,hostnameOverride:'webstats.eb.com',domain:'www.britannica.com', json:''}; </script> <script type="text/javascript"> ( function() { $.ajax( { dataType: 'script', cache: true, url: '//www.britannica.com/webstats/mendelstats.js?v=1' } ) .done( function() { try {writeStat(null,EBStat);} catch(err){} } ); })(); </script> <div id="bc-fixed-dialogue"></div> </body> </html>

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Damascus | History, Map, Population, & Facts | Britannica