Aleppo is one ofthe oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world; it may have been inhabited since the sixth millennium BC.[14][15][16][17][18] Excavations at Tell as-Sawda and Tell al-Ansari, just south of theold city of Aleppo, show that the area was occupied byAmorites by the latter part of the third millennium BC.[19] That is also the time at which Aleppo is first mentioned incuneiform tablets unearthed inEbla andMesopotamia, which speak of it as part of the Amorite state ofYamhad, and note its commercial and military importance.[20] Such a long history is attributed to its strategic location as a trading center between theMediterranean Sea and Mesopotamia. For centuries, Aleppo was the largest city in theSyrian region, and theOttoman Empire's third-largest afterConstantinople (nowIstanbul) andCairo.[21][22][23] The city's significance in history has been its location at one end of theSilk Road, which passed throughCentral Asia andMesopotamia. When theSuez Canal was inaugurated in 1869, much trade was diverted to sea and Aleppo began its slow decline.
At thefall of the Ottoman Empire afterWorld War I, Aleppo lost its northernhinterland to modernTurkey, as well as the importantBaghdad Railway connecting it toMosul. In 1939, it lost its main access to the sea, byAntakya andİskenderun, also to Turkey. The growth in importance of Damascus in the past few decades further exacerbated the situation. This decline may have helped to preserve the old city of Aleppo, its medieval architecture and traditional heritage. It won the title of the Islamic Capital of Culture 2006 and has had a wave of successful restorations of its historic landmarks. Thebattle of Aleppo occurred in the city during theSyrian civil war, and many parts of the city suffered massive destruction.[24][25] Affected parts of the city are currently undergoing reconstruction.[26][27] An estimated 31,000 people were killed in Aleppo during the conflict.[28]
The etymology of the nameAleppo (Arabic:Ḥalab, حلب) is ancient and rooted in the long history of the region.
The nameḤalab is believed to originate from aSemitic root, possibly theProto-Semitic rootḥlb, meaning “to milk” or “milk.” This connection might have arisen due to the area's association with pastoralism and the production of milk. Another possibility is that the name refers to the color “white,” as the rootḥlb could metaphorically describe the pale or white hue of certain local soils or materials.[29] Similarly, the modern-day nicknameal-Shahbāʾ (Arabic:الشهباء), meaning "the white-colored mixed with black", is said to be derived from its famedwhite marble.[30]
During thesecond millennium BCE, it became a key city of theAmorite state, who referred to it as Ḥalab. TheHittites, a contemporaryAnatolian Empire within the region, referred to the city asḤalpa orḤalpu in their inscriptions. This indicates the name was already well-established by this time.[31]
During theHellenistic andRoman periods, Aleppo was known asBeroea (Βέροια inGreek), a name likely assigned by theSeleucid rulers after theMacedonian city of the same name. Despite this, the local population continued to use the original Semitic name.[33][34]
With the advent ofIslam and theArabization of the region, the nameḤalab (Arabic:حلب) remained in use, reflecting its deep historical continuity. The Arabic form also preserved its earlier meanings, with folklore often associating the name with the prophetAbraham, who is said to have “milked” his livestock in the area to provide for travelers.[35]
The adoption of“Aleppo” into English likely coincided with theCrusades (11th–13th centuries) and subsequent increased trade and travel between Europe and the Middle East. By the late 14th to early 15th centuries, the termAleppo was well-established in English literature and travel accounts.[36]
The earliest documented use of “Aleppo” in English occurs in translations of medieval texts and chronicles, such as the travel writings ofMarco Polo, where the city is mentioned as a key trading hub. Additionally, it was featured in maps and documents produced during theEuropean Renaissance as a center of commerce on theSilk Road.[37]
Aleppo has scarcely been touched by archaeologists, since the modern city occupies its ancient site. The earliest occupation of the site was around 8,000 BC, as shown by excavations in Tallet Alsauda.[38]
Aleppo appears in historical records as an important city much earlier thanDamascus. The first record of Aleppo comes from the third millennium BC, in theEbla tablets when Aleppo was referred to asHa-lam (𒄩𒇴).[39] This has been identified as an early form of Ḥalab due to an interchange of /m/ and /b/ that has been attested in Sumerian texts, including with the cuneiform sign Lam.[40] Some historians, such asWayne Horowitz, identify Aleppo with the capital of an independent kingdom closely related toEbla, known asArmi,[41] although this identification is contested. The main temple of the storm godHadad was located on the citadel hill in the center of the city,[42] when the city was known as the city ofHadad.[43]
Naram-Sin of Akkad mentioned his destruction ofEbla andArmanum,[44] in the 23rd century BC.[45][46] However, the identification of Armani in the inscription of Naram-Sim as Armi in the Eblaite tablets is heavily debated,[47] as there was no Akkadian annexation of Ebla or northern Syria.[47]
In theOld Babylonian andOld Assyrian Empire period, Aleppo's name appears in its original form as Ḥalab (Ḥalba) for the first time.[46] Aleppo was the capital of the importantAmorite dynasty ofYamḥad. The kingdom of Yamḥad (c. 1800–1525 BC), alternatively known as the 'land of Ḥalab,' was one of the most powerful in the Near East during the reign ofYarim-Lim I, who formed an alliance withHammurabi ofBabylonia againstShamshi-Adad I ofAssyria.[48]
Yamḥad was devastated by theHittites underMursili I in the 16th century BC. However, it soon resumed its leading role in the Levant when the Hittite power in the region waned due to internal strife.[46]
Taking advantage of the power vacuum in the region,Baratarna, king of theHurrian kingdom ofMitanni instigated a rebellion that ended the life of Yamhad's last kingIlim-Ilimma I in c. 1525 BC,[49] Subsequently, Parshatatar conquered Aleppo and the city found itself on the frontline in the struggle between the Mitanni, the Hittites andEgypt.[46]Niqmepa ofAlalakh who descends from the old Yamhadite kings controlled the city as a vassal to Mitanni and was attacked byTudhaliya I of the Hittites as a retaliation for his alliance to Mitanni.[50] Later the Hittite kingSuppiluliumas I permanently defeated Mitanni, and conquered Aleppo in the 14th century BC. Suppiluliumas installed his sonTelepinus as king and a dynasty of Suppiluliumas descendants ruled Aleppo until theLate Bronze Age collapse.[51] However, Talmi-Šarruma, grandson of Suppiluliumas I, who was the king of Aleppo, had fought on the Hittite side, along with kingMuwatalli II during theBattle of Kadesh against the Egyptian army led byRamesses II.[c]
Al-Qaiqan Mosque was originally a Hittite pagan temple during ancient times; in addition, a stone block withAnatolian hieroglyphs can be found on the southern wall.
Aleppo hadcultic importance to the Hittites as the center of worship of theStorm-God.[46] This religious importance continued after the collapse of the Hittite empire at the hands of theAssyrians andPhrygians in the 12th century BC, when Aleppo became part of theMiddle Assyrian Empire,[53] whose king renovated the temple of Hadad which was discovered in 2003.[54]
In 2003, a statue of a king named Taita bearing inscriptions inLuwian was discovered during excavations conducted by German archeologist Kay Kohlmeyer in theCitadel of Aleppo.[55] The new readings of Anatolian hieroglyphic signs proposed by the Hittitologists Elisabeth Rieken and Ilya Yakubovich were conducive to the conclusion that the country ruled by Taita was calledPalistin.[56] This country extended in the 11th-10th centuries BC from theAmouq Valley in the west to Aleppo in the east down toMaharda andShaizar in the south.[57] Due to the similarity between Palistin and Philistines,Hittitologist John David Hawkins (who translated the Aleppo inscriptions) hypothesizes a connection between theSyro-Hittite states Palistin and the Philistines, as do archaeologists Benjamin Sass and Kay Kohlmeyer.[58]Gershon Galil suggests that King David halted the Arameans' expansion into the Land of Israel on account of his alliance with the southern Philistine kings, as well as with Toi, king of Ḥamath, who is identified with Tai(ta) II, king of Palistin (the northern Sea Peoples).[59]
During the early years of the 1st millennium BC, Aleppo was incorporated into theAramean realm ofBit Agusi, which held its capital atArpad.[60] Bit Agusi along with Aleppo and the entirety of the Levant was conquered by theAssyrians in the 8th century BC and became part of theNeo-Assyrian Empire during the reign ofTiglath-Pileser III until the late 7th century BC,[61] before passing through the hands of theNeo-Babylonians and theAchaemenid Persians.[62] The region remained known asAramea andEber Nari throughout these periods.
Alexander the Great took over the city in 333 BC.Seleucus Nicator established aHellenic settlement in the site between 301 and 286 BC. He called itBeroea (Βέροια), afterBeroea inMacedon; it is sometimes spelled as Beroia. Beroea is mentioned in1 Macc. 9:4.
Northern Syria was the center of gravity of the Hellenistic world and Greek culture in theSeleucid Empire. As did other Greek cities of the Seleucid kingdom, Beroea probably enjoyed a measure of local autonomy, with a local civic assembly orboulē composed of free Hellenes.[63]
Beroea remained under Seleucid rule until 88 BC when Syria was conquered by theArmenian kingTigranes the Great and Beroea became part of theKingdom of Armenia.[64] After theRoman victory over Tigranes, Syria was handed over toPompey in 64 BC, at which time they became aRoman province. Rome's presence afforded relative stability in northern Syria for over three centuries. Although the province was administered by alegate from Rome, Rome did not impose its administrative organization on the Greek-speaking ruling class orAramaic speaking populace.[63]
The Roman era saw an increase in the population of northern Syria that accelerated under theByzantines well into the 5th century. InLate Antiquity, Beroea was the second largest Syrian city afterAntioch, the capital ofRoman Syria and the third largest city in the Roman world. Archaeological evidence indicates a high population density for settlements between Antioch and Beroea right up to the 6th century. This agrarian landscape still holds the remains of large estate houses and churches such as theChurch of Saint Simeon Stylites.[63]
Very few physical remains have been found from the Roman and Byzantine periods in the Citadel of Aleppo. The two mosques inside the Citadel are known to have been converted by theMirdasids during the 11th century from churches originally built by the Byzantines.[68]
TheSasanian Persians led by KingKhosrow I pillaged and burned Aleppo in 540,[69][70] then theyinvaded and controlled Syria briefly in the early 7th century. Soon after Aleppo wastaken by theRashidunMuslims underAbu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah in 637. It later became part ofJund Qinnasrin under theUmayyad Caliphate. In 944, it became the seat of an independent Emirate under theHamdanid princeSayf al-Dawla, and enjoyed a period of great prosperity, being home to the great poetal-Mutanabbi and the philosopher andpolymathal-Farabi.[71] In 962, the city wassacked by the Byzantine generalNikephoros Phokas.[72] Subsequently, the city and its emiratebecame a temporary vassal of the Byzantine Empire. For the next few decades, the city was disputed by theFatimid Caliphate andByzantine Empire, with the nominally independent Hamdanids in between, eventually falling to the Fatimids in 1017.[73] In 1024,Salih ibn Mirdas launched an attack on Fatimid Aleppo, and after a few months was invited into the city by its population.[74] TheMirdasid dynasty then ruled the city until 1080, interrupted only in 1038–1042, when it was in the hands of the Fatimid commander-in-chief in Syria,Anushtakin al-Dizbari, and in 1057–1060, when it was ruled by a Fatimid governor,Ibn Mulhim. Mirdasid rule was marked by internal squabbles between different Mirdasid chieftains that sapped the emirate's power and made it susceptible to external intervention by the Byzantines, Fatimids,Uqaylids, andTurkoman warrior bands.[75]
In late 1077, Seljuk emirTutush I launched a campaign to capture Aleppo during the reign ofSabiq ibn Mahmud of theMirdasid dynasty, which lasted until 1080, when his reinforcements were ambushed and routed by a coalition of Arab tribesmen led byKilabi chief Abu Za'ida atWadi Butnan.[76] After the death ofSharaf al-Dawla of theUqaylid dynasty in June 1085, the headman in AleppoSharif Hassan ibn Hibat Allah Al-Hutayti promised to surrender the city to SultanMalik-Shah I. When the latter delayed his arrival, Hassan contacted the Sultan's brother Tutush. However, after Tutush defeatedSuleiman ibn Qutulmish, who had intended to take Aleppo for himself, in thebattle of Ain Salm, Hassan went back on his commitment. In response, Tutush attacked the city and managed to get hold of parts of the walls and towers in July 1086, but he left in September, either due to the advance of Malik-Shah or because the Fatimids were besieging Damascus.[77][78] In 1087,Aq Sunqur al-Hajib became the Seljuk governor of Aleppo under Sultan Malik Shah I.[79] During his bid for the Seljuk throne, Tutush had Aq Sunqur executed and after Tutush died in battle, the town was ruled by his sonRidwan.[80][81]
In 1128, Aleppo became capital of the expandingZengid dynasty, which ultimately conquered Damascus in 1154. In 1138, Byzantine emperorJohn II Komnenos led a campaign, which main objective was to capture the city of Aleppo. On 20 April 1138, the Christian army including Crusaders fromAntioch andEdessa launched anattack on the city but found it too strongly defended, hence John II moved the army southward to take nearby fortresses.[83] On 11 October 1138,a deadly earthquake ravaged the city and the surrounding area. Although estimates from this time are very unreliable, it is believed that 230,000 people died, making it theseventh deadliest earthquake in recorded history.
In 1183, Aleppo came under the control ofSaladin and then theAyyubid dynasty. When the Ayyubids were toppled in Egypt by theMamluks, the Ayyubid emir of AleppoAn-Nasir Yusuf became sultan of the remaining part of the Ayyubid Empire. He ruled Syria from his seat in Aleppo until, on 24 January 1260,[84] thecity was taken by theMongols underHulagu in alliance with their vassals theFrankish knights of the ruler of AntiochBohemond VI and his father-in-law theArmenian rulerHethum I.[85] The city was poorly defended by Turanshah, and as a result the walls fell after six days of siege, and thecitadel fell four weeks later. The Muslim population was massacred and many Jews were also killed.[86] The Christian population was spared. Turanshah was shown unusual respect by the Mongols, and was allowed to live because of his age and bravery. The city was then given to the former Emir ofHoms,al-Ashraf, and a Mongol garrison was established in the city. Some of the spoils were also given to Hethum I for his assistance in the attack. The Mongol Army then continued on toDamascus, which surrendered, and the Mongols entered the city on 1 March 1260.[87]
Souq az-Zirb, where coins were struck during the Mamluk period
In September 1260, the Egyptian Mamluks negotiated for a treaty with the Franks of Acre which allowed them to pass through Crusader territory unmolested, and engaged the Mongols at theBattle of Ain Jalut on 3 September 1260. The Mamluks won a decisive victory, killing the Mongols' Nestorian Christian generalKitbuqa, and five days later they had retaken Damascus. Aleppo was recovered by the Muslims within a month, and a Mamluk governor placed to govern the city. Hulagu sent troops to try to recover Aleppo in December. They were able to massacre a large number of Muslims in retaliation for the death of Kitbuqa, but after a fortnight could make no other progress and had to retreat.[88]
The Mamluk governor of the city became insubordinate to the central Mamluk authority in Cairo, and in Autumn 1261 the Mamluk leaderBaibars sent an army to reclaim the city. In October 1271, the Mongols led by generalSamagar took the city again, attacking with 10,000 horsemen fromAnatolia, and defeating theTurcoman troops who were defending Aleppo. The Mamluk garrisons fled toHama, until Baibars came north again with his main army, and the Mongols retreated.[89]
On 20 October 1280, the Mongols took the city again, pillaging the markets and burning the mosques.[90] The Muslim inhabitants fled for Damascus, where the Mamluk leaderQalawun assembled his forces. When his army advanced following theSecond Battle of Homs in October 1281, the Mongols again retreated, back across theEuphrates. In October 1299,Ghazan captured the city, joined by his vassal Armenian KingHethum II, whose forces included someTemplars andHospitallers.[91]
In 1400, the Mongol-Turkic leaderTamerlanecaptured the city again from the Mamluks.[92] He massacred many of the inhabitants, ordering the building of a tower of 20,000 skulls outside the city.[93] After the withdrawal of the Mongols, all the Muslim population returned to Aleppo. On the other hand, Christians who left the city during the Mongol invasion, were unable to resettle back in their own quarter in the old town, a fact that led them to establish a new neighbourhood in 1420, built at the northern suburbs of Aleppo outside the city walls, to become known asal-Jdeydeh quarter ("new district" Arabic:جديدة).
Aleppo became part of theOttoman Empire in 1516 as part of the vast expansion of the Ottoman borders during the reign ofSelim I. The city then had around 50,000 inhabitants, or 11,224 households according to an Ottoman census.[94] In 1517, Selim I obtained a fatwa from Sunnite religious leaders and unleashed violence on theAlawites, killing 9,400 men, which is known as theMassacre of the Telal.[95] It was the centre of theAleppo Eyalet; the rest of what later became Syria was part of either the eyalets of Damascus, Tripoli, Sidon orRaqqa. Following the Ottoman provincial reform of 1864 Aleppo became the centre of the newly constituted Vilayet of Aleppo in 1866.
Aleppo's agriculture was well-developed in theOttoman period. Archaeological excavations revealed water mills in its river basin.[96][97] Contemporary Chinese source also suggests Aleppo in the Ottoman period had well-developed animal husbandry.[97]
During his travels to the Levant in the 17th century, French traveler Jacques Goujon recounted how theMaronite community in Aleppo, facing financial difficulties and considering conversion to Islam due to their inability to pay thejizya tax, was aided by theFranciscans who bought their church, enabling them to meet their tax obligations.[98]
Moreover, thanks to its strategic geographic location on the trade route betweenAnatolia and the east, Aleppo rose to high prominence in the Ottoman era, at one point being second only toConstantinople in the empire. By the middle of the 16th century, Aleppo had displacedDamascus as the principal market for goods coming to the Mediterranean region from the east. This is reflected by the fact that theLevant Company of London, a joint-trading company founded in 1581 to monopolize England's trade with the Ottoman Empire, never attempted to settle a factor, or agent, in Damascus, despite having had permission to do so. Aleppo served as the company's headquarters until the late 18th century.[99]
Khan al-Shouneh dating back to 1546
As a result of the economic development, many European states had opened consulates in Aleppo during the 16th and the 17th centuries, such as the consulate of theRepublic of Venice in 1548, the consulate ofFrance in 1562, the consulate ofEngland in 1583 and the consulate of theNetherlands in 1613.[100] TheArmenian community of Aleppo also rose to prominence in this period as they moved into the city to take up trade and developed the new quarter of Judayda.[101] The most outstanding among AleppineArmenian merchants during the late 16th and early 17th centuries wereKhwaja Petik Chelebi, the richest merchant in the city, and his brotherKhwaja Sanos Chelebi, who monopolized Aleppine silk trade and were important patrons of the Armenians.[102][103]
Aleppo in 1690
However, the prosperity Aleppo experienced in the 16th and 17th century started to fade as silk production in Iran went into decline with the fall of theSafavid dynasty in 1722. By mid-century, caravans were no longer bringing silk from Iran to Aleppo, and local Syrian production was insufficient for Europe's demand. European merchants left Aleppo and the city went into an economic decline that was not reversed until the mid-19th century when locally produced cotton and tobacco became the principal commodities of interest to the Europeans.[99] According toHalil İnalcık, "Aleppo ... underwent its worst catastrophe with the wholesale destruction of its villages byBedouin raiding in the later years of the century, creating a long-runningfamine which by 1798 killed half of its inhabitants."[104]
The economy of Aleppo was badly hit by the opening of theSuez Canal in 1869. This, in addition to political instability that followed the implementation of significant reforms in 1841 by the central government, contributed to Aleppo's decline and the rise of Damascus as a serious economic and political competitor with Aleppo.[99] The city nevertheless continued to play an important economic role and shifted its commercial focus from long-distance caravan trade to more regional trade in wool and agricultural products. This period also saw the immigration of numerous "Levantine" (European-origin) families who dominated international trade. Aleppo's mixed commercial tribunal (ticaret mahkamesi), one of the first in the Ottoman Empire, was set up around 1855.[105]
The 17th-century oriental mansion ofBeit GhazalehQalayet al-Mawarina alley at the Christian quarter inJdeydeh, dating back to the early 17th century
Reference is made to the city in 1606 in William Shakespeare'sMacbeth. The witches torment the captain of the ship theTiger, which was headed to Aleppo from England and endured a 567-day voyage before returning unsuccessfully to port. Reference is also made to the city in Shakespeare'sOthello when Othello speaks his final words (ACT V, ii, 349f.): "Set you down this/And say besides that in Aleppo once,/Where a malignant and a turbanned Turk/Beat a Venetian and traduced the state,/I took by th' throat the circumcised dog/And smote him—thus!" (Arden Shakespeare Edition, 2004). The English naval chaplainHenry Teonge describes in his diary a visit he paid to the city in 1675, when there was a colony of Western European merchants living there.
City walls and citadel of Aleppo (1850)
The city remained under Ottoman rule until the empire's collapse, but was occasionally riven with internal feuds as well as attacks ofcholera from 1823. Around 20–25 percent of the population died ofplague in 1827.[106] In 1850, a Muslim mobattacked Christian neighbourhoods, tens of Christians were killed and several churches looted. Though this event has been portrayed as driven by pure sectarian principles, Bruce Masters argues that such analysis of this period of violence is too shallow and neglects the tensions that existed among the population due to the commercial favor afforded to certainChristian minorities by theTanzimat Reforms during this time which played a large role in creating antagonism between previously cooperative groups of Muslim and Christians in the eastern quarters of the city.[107] By 1901, the city's population was around 110,000.
In October 1918, Aleppo wascaptured byPrince Feisal's Sherifial Forces and the5th Cavalry Division of theAllied forces from the Ottoman Empire during theWorld War I. At the end of war, theTreaty of Sèvres made most of the Vilayet of Aleppo, including the cities ofUrfa,Marash, andAintab, part of the newly established nation ofSyria. However,Kemal Atatürk annexed most of the Vilayet of Aleppo as well asAllied-controlled Cilicia to Turkey in hisWar of Independence. The Muslim Arab and Kurdish residents in the province supported the Turks in this war against the French, including the leader of theHananu Revolt,Ibrahim Hananu, who directly coordinated with Atatürk and received weaponry from him. The outcome, however, was disastrous for Aleppo, because as per theTreaty of Lausanne, most of the vilayet was made part of Turkey with the exception of Aleppo andAlexandretta;[108] thus Aleppo was cut from its northern satellites which connected it to the Anatolian cities beyond on which Aleppo depended heavily in commerce. Moreover, theSykes-Picot division of the Near East separated Aleppo from most ofMesopotamia, including its twin city of Mosul, which also harmed the economy of Aleppo. The outcome of these newly created borders was epochal, as they redirected Syria's would-be capital from Aleppo to Damascus.
GeneralGouraud crossing through al-Khandaq street on 13 September 1920
TheState of Aleppo was declared by French GeneralHenri Gouraud in September 1920 as part of a French plan to make Syria easier to administer by dividing it into several smaller states. France became more concerned about the idea of a united Syria after theBattle of Maysaloun.
By separating Aleppo from Damascus, Gouraud wanted to capitalize on a traditional state of competition between the two cities and turn it into political division. The people in Aleppo were unhappy with the fact that Damascus was chosen as capital for the new nation of Syria. Gouraud sensed this sentiment and tried to address it by making Aleppo the capital of a large and wealthier state with which it would have been hard for Damascus to compete. The State of Aleppo as drawn by France contained most of the fertile area of Syria: the fertile countryside of Aleppo in addition to the entire fertile basin of riverEuphrates. The state also had access to sea via the autonomousSanjak of Alexandretta. On the other hand, Damascus, which is basically an oasis on the fringes of theSyrian Desert, had neither enough fertile land nor access to sea. Basically, Gouraud wanted to satisfy Aleppo by giving it control over most of the agricultural and mineral wealth of Syria so that it would never want to unite with Damascus again.[109][110] Damascus's relative economic weakness was further exacerbated by the economic success of Beirut during the 1920s, a territory part of the larger French Mandate at the time.[111]
The limited economic resources of the Syrian states made the option of completely independent states undesirable for France, because it threatened an opposite result: the states collapsing and being forced back into unity. This was why France proposed the idea of a Syrian federation that was realized in 1923. Initially, Gouraud envisioned the federation as encompassing all the states, even Lebanon. In the end however, only three states participated: Aleppo,Damascus, and theAlawite State. The capital of the federation was Aleppo at first, but it was relocated to Damascus. The president of the federation wasSubhi Barakat, anAntioch-born politician from Aleppo.
The Queiq River flood of 6 February 1922
The federation ended in December 1924, when France merged Aleppo and Damascus into a single Syrian State and separated the Alawite State again. This action came after the federation decided to merge the three federated states into one and to take steps encouraging Syria's financial independence, steps which France viewed as too much.[109][110]
The central post office, 1920Tram line, put into operation in 1929
When theSyrian Revolt erupted in southern Syria in 1925, the French held in Aleppo State new elections that were supposed to lead to the breaking of the union with Damascus and restore the independence of Aleppo State. The French were driven to believe by pro-French Aleppine politicians that the people in Aleppo were supportive of such a scheme. After the new council was elected, however, it surprisingly voted to keep the union with Damascus.Syrian nationalists had waged a massive anti-secession public campaign that vigorously mobilized the people against the secession plan, thus leaving the pro-French politicians no choice but to support the union. The result was a big embarrassment for France, which wanted the secession of Aleppo to be a punitive measure against Damascus, which had participated in the Syrian Revolt, however, the result was respected. This was the last time that independence was proposed for Aleppo.[112]
Bad economic situation of the city after the separation of the northern countryside was exacerbated further in 1939 whenAlexandretta was annexed to Turkey asHatay State,[113][114][115] thus depriving Aleppo of its main port ofIskenderun and leaving it in total isolation within Syria.[116]
Boulevard de France, renamed afterShukri al-Quwatli upon the independence of Syria
The increasing disagreements between Aleppo and Damascus led eventually to the split of theNational Block into two factions: theNational Party, established in Damascus in 1946, and thePeople's Party, established in Aleppo in 1948 byRushdi al-Kikhya,Nazim Qudsi andMustafa Bey Barmada.[117] An underlying cause of the disagreement, in addition to the union with Iraq, was Aleppo's intention to relocate the capital from Damascus. The issue of the capital became an open debate matter in 1950 when the Popular Party presented a constitution draft that called Damascus a "temporary capital."[118]
The firstcoup d'état in modern Syrian history was carried out in March 1949 by an army officer from Aleppo,Hussni Zaim. However, lured by the absolute power he enjoyed as a dictator, Zaim soon developed a pro-Egyptian, pro-Western orientation and abandoned the cause of union with Iraq. This incited a second coup only four months after his.[119] The second coup, led bySami Hinnawi (also officer from Aleppo), empowered the Popular Party and actively sought to realize the union with Iraq. The news of an imminent union with Iraq incited a third coup the same year: in December 1949,Adib Shishakly led a coup preempting a union with Iraq that was about to be declared.[120]
Nasser's speech in Aleppo (1960)
Soon after Shishakly's domination ended in 1954, aunion with Egypt underGamal Abdul Nasser was implemented in 1958. The union, however, collapsed three and a half years later when a junta of young Damascene officers carried out a separatist coup. Aleppo resisted the separatist coup, but eventually it had no choice but to recognize the new government.[121]
In March 1963 a coalition ofBaathists,Nasserists, and Socialists launched a new coup whose declared objective was to restore the union with Egypt. However, the new government only restored the flag of the union. Soon thereafter disagreement between the Baathists and the Nasserists over the restoration of the union became a crisis, and the Baathists ousted the Nasserists from power. The Nasserists, most of whom were from the Aleppine middle class, responded with an insurgency in Aleppo in July 1963.
Again, the Ba'ath government tried to absorb the dissent of the Syrian middle class (whose center of political activism was Aleppo) by putting to the frontAmin al-Hafiz, a Baathist military officer from Aleppo.[122]
Tilel street, 1970s
PresidentHafez al-Assad, who came to power in 1970, relied on support from the business class in Damascus.[123] This gave Damascus further advantage over Aleppo, and hence Damascus came to dominate the Syrian economy. The strict centralization of the Syrian state, the intentional direction of resources towards Damascus, and the hegemony Damascus enjoys over the Syrian economy made it increasingly hard for Aleppo to compete. Despite this, Aleppo remained a nationally important economic and cultural center.[124]
General view of the city from the Citadel (1989)
On 16 June 1979, thirty-two military cadets weremassacred by antigovernmental Islamist rebel groupMuslim Brotherhood.[125][126] In the subsequent violence around fifty people were killed.[127] On 10 July a further twenty-two Syrian soldiers were killed.[128] Both terrorist attacks were part of theIslamist uprising in Syria.[129] In 1980, events escalated into thea large-scale military operation in Aleppo, where Syrian government responded with military and security forces, sending in tens of thousands of troops backed by tanks, armored vehicles and helicopters.[130] Several hundred rebels were killed in and around city and eight thousand were arrested. By February 1981, the Islamist uprising in the city of Aleppo was suppressed.[131]
Since the late 1990s, Aleppo has become one of the fastest growing cities in the Levant and the Middle East.[132] The opening of the industrial city ofShaykh Najjar and the influx of new investments and flow of the new industries after 2004 also contributed to the development of the city.[133] In 2006, Aleppo was named by theIslamic Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization (ISESCO) as the capital of Islamic culture.[134]
Before the Syrian civil war, Aleppo was the third largest city in the Middle East after Cairo and Beirut in terms of the number of Christians.[135]
On 12 August 2011, some months after protests had begun elsewhere in Syria, anti-government protests were held in several districts of Aleppo, including the city's Sakhour district. During this demonstration, which included tens of thousands of protesters, security forces shot and killed at least twelve people.[136] Two months later, a pro-government demonstration was held inSaadallah Al-Jabiri Square, in the heart of the city. According to theNew York Times, the 11 October 2011 rally in support ofBashar al-Assad was attended by large crowds,[137] while state and local media claimed more than 1.5 million attended and stated that it was one of the largest rallies ever held in Syria.[138]
In early 2012, rebels began bombing Aleppo after the spread of anti-government protests. On10 February 2012, suicidecar bombs exploded outside two security compounds — theMilitary Intelligence Directorate's local headquarters, and a SyrianInternal Security Forces barracks[139] — reportedly killing 28 (four civilians, thirteen military personnel and eleven security personnel)[139] and wounding 235.[140] On 18 March 2012, another car bomb blast in a residential neighbourhood reportedly killed two security personnel and one female civilian, and wounded 30 residents.[141][142]
In late July 2012, the conflict reached Aleppo in earnest when rebels in the city's surrounding countryside mounted their first offensive there,[143] apparently trying to capitalise on momentum gained during the Damascus assault.[144] Then, some of the civil war's "most devastating bombing and fiercest fighting" took place in Aleppo, often in residential areas.[143] In the summer, autumn and winter of 2012 house-to-house fighting between armed opposition and government forces continued, and by the spring 2013 the Syrian Army had entrenched itself in the western part of Aleppo (government loyalist forces were operating from a military base in the southern part of the city) and the Free Syrian Army in the eastern part with ano man's land between them.[143] One estimate of casualties by an international humanitarian organization is that by this time 13,500 had been killed in the fighting — 1,500 under 5 years of age — and that another 23,000 had been injured.[143] Local police stations in the city, used as bases of government forces and hated and feared by residents, were a focus of much of the conflict.[145][146]
As a result of the severe battle, many sections inAl-Madina Souq (part of theOld City of AleppoWorld Heritage Site), including parts of theGreat Mosque of Aleppo and other medieval buildings in the ancient city, were destroyed and ruined or burnt in late summer 2012 as the armed groups of theSyrian Arab Army and theFree Syrian Armyfought for control of the city.[147][148][25] By March 2013, a majority of Aleppo's factory owners transferred their goods to Turkey with the full knowledge and facilitation of the Turkish government.[149]
A stalemate that had been in place for four years ended in July 2016, when Syrian Army troops closed the last supply line of the rebels into Aleppo with the support of Russian airstrikes. In response, rebel forces launched unsuccessful counter-offensives in September and October that failed to break the siege; in November, government forces embarked on a decisive campaign. The rebels agreed to evacuate from their remaining areas in December 2016.[151] Syrian government victory with Russian aerial bombardment was widely seen as a potential turning point in Syria's civil war.[152][153] On 22 December, the evacuation was completed with the Syrian Army declaring it had taken complete control of the city.[154] Red Cross later confirmed that the evacuation of all civilians and rebels was complete.[155]
When the battle ended, 500,000 refugees and internally displaced persons returned to Aleppo,[26] and Syrian state media said that hundreds of factories returned to production as electricity supply greatly increased.[156] Many parts of the city that were affected are undergoing reconstruction.[26] On 15 April 2017, a convoy of buses carrying evacuees wasattacked by a suicide bomber in Aleppo, killing more than 126 people, including at least 80 children.[157] Syrian state media reported that the Aleppo shopping festival took place on 17 November 2017 to promote industry in the city.[158] AYPG commander stated in February 2018 that Kurdish fighters had shifted toAfrin to help repel theTurkish assault. As a result, he said the pro-Syrian government forces had regained control of the districts previously controlled by them.[159] In February 2020, government forces achieved a major breakthrough when they captured the last remaining rebel-held areas in Aleppo's western periphery, thus decisively ending the clashes that began with theBattle of Aleppo over eight years prior.[160][161]
Aleppo lies about 120 km (75 mi) inland from theMediterranean Sea, on aplateau 380 m (1,250 ft) above sea level, 45 km (28 mi) east of the Syrian-Turkish bordercheckpoint of Bab al-Hawa. The city is surrounded by farmlands from the north and the west, widely cultivated with olive andpistachio trees. To the east, Aleppo approaches the dry areas of theSyrian Desert.
The city was founded a few kilometres south of the location of the current old city, on the right bank ofQueiq River which arises from theAintab plateau in the north and runs through Aleppo southward to the fertile country ofQinnasrin. The old city of Aleppo lies on the left bank of the Queiq. It was surrounded by a circle of eight hills surrounding a prominent central hill on which the castle (originally a temple dating to the 2nd millennium BC) was erected. The radius of the circle is about 10 km (6.2 mi). The hills are Tell as-Sawda, Tell ʕāysha, Tell as-Sett, Tell al-Yāsmīn (Al-ʕaqaba), Tell al-Ansāri (Yārūqiyya), ʕan at-Tall, al-Jallūm, Baḥsīta.[166] The old city was enclosed within an ancient wall that was last rebuilt by theMamluks. The wall has since disappeared. It had nine gates and was surrounded by a broad deep ditch.[166]
Occupying an area of more than 190 km2 (73 sq mi), Aleppo is one of the fastest-growing cities in the Middle East. According to the new major plan of the city adopted in 2001, it is envisaged to increase the total area of Aleppo up to 420 km2 (160 sq mi) by the end of 2015.[3][167]
Aleppo has ahot steppe climate (Köppen:BSh). The mountain series that run along the Mediterranean coast, namely theAlawiyin Mountains and theNur Mountains, largely block the effects of the Mediterranean on climate (rain shadow effect). The average high and low temperature throughout the year is 23.8 and 11.1 °C (74.8 and 52.0 °F). The average precipitation is 329.4 mm (12.97 in). More than 80% of precipitation occurs between October and March. It snows once or twice every winter. Average humidity is 55.7%.[168]
Aleppo is characterized with mixed architectural styles, having been ruled by, among others, Romans, Byzantines, Seljuqs, Mamluks and Ottomans.[171]
Villa Rose, built in 1928 during the period of the French mandate
Various types of 13th and 14th centuries constructions, such as caravanserais, caeserias, Quranic schools, hammams and religious buildings are found in theold city. The quarters ofal-Jdayde district are home to numerous 16th and 17th-century houses of the Aleppine bourgeoisie, featuring stone engravings.Baroque architecture of the 19th and early 20th centuries is common in al-Azizyah district, including theVilla Rose. The new Shahbaa district is a mixture of several styles, such asNeo-classic,Norman, Oriental and evenChinese architecture.[172]
Since the old city is characterized with its large mansions, narrow alleys and covered souqs, the modern city's architecture has replenished the town with wide roads and large squares such as theSaadallah Al-Jabiri Square, theLiberty Square, the President's Square andSabaa Bahrat Square
Throne hall of the citadelAleppo Citadel, roof of the baths, with the mosque and minaret in the background
There is a relatively clear division between old and new Aleppo. The older portions of the city, with an approximate area of 160 ha (0.6 sq mi) are contained within a wall, 5 km (3.1 mi) in circuit with nine gates. The huge medievalcastle in the city — known as theCitadel of Aleppo — occupies the center of the ancient part, in the shape of anacropolis.
Being subjected to constant invasions and political instability, the inhabitants of the city were forced to build cell-like quarters and districts that were socially and economically independent. Each district was characterized by the religious and ethnic characteristics of its inhabitants.
The mainly white-stoned old town was built within the historical walls of the city, pierced by the nine historical gates, while the newer quarters of the old city were first built by the Christians during the early 15th century in the northern suburbs of the ancient city, after the Mongol withdrawal from Aleppo. The new quarter known asal-Jdayde is one of the finest examples of a cell-like quarter in Aleppo. AfterTamerlane invaded Aleppo in 1400 and destroyed it, the Christians migrated out of the city walls and established their own cell in 1420, at the northwestern suburbs of the city, thus founding the quarters of al-Jdayde. The inhabitants of the new quarters were mainly brokers who facilitated trade between foreign traders and local merchants. As a result of the economic development, many other quarters were established outside the walls of the ancient city during the 15th and 16th centuries.
Thus, theOld City of Aleppo — composed of the ancient city within the walls and the old cell-like quarters outside the walls — has an approximate area of 350 ha (1.4 sq mi) housing more than 120,000 residents.[173]
According to the Aleppine historian SheikhKamel Al-Ghazzi (1853–1933), the population of Aleppo was around 400,000 before the disastrousearthquake of 1822. Followed by cholera and plague attacks in 1823 and 1827 respectively, the population of the city declined to 110,000 by the end of the 19th century.[175] In 1901, the total population of Aleppo was 108,143 of which Muslims were 76,329 (70.58%), Christians — mostly Catholics — 24,508 (22.66%) and Jews 7,306 (6.76%).[176]
Aleppo's large Christian population swelled with the influx ofArmenian andAssyrian Christian refugees during the early 20th-century and after theArmenian andAssyrian genocides of 1915. After the arrival of the first groups ofArmenian refugees (1915–1922) the population of Aleppo in 1922 counted 156,748 of which Muslims were 97,600 (62.26%), native Christians — mostly Catholics — 22,117 (14.11%), Jews 6,580 (4.20%), Europeans 2,652 (1.70%), Armenian refugees 20,007 (12.76%) and others 7,792 (4.97%).[177][178] However, even though a large majority of the Armenians arrived during the period, the city has had an Armenian community since at least the 1100s, when a considerable number of Armenian families and merchants from theArmenian Kingdom of Cilicia settled in the city. Theoldest Armenian church in the city is from 1491 as well, which indicates that they have been there long before.[clarification needed]
The second period of Armenian flow towards Aleppo marked with the withdrawal of the French troops fromCilicia in 1923.[179] After the arrival of more than 40,000 Armenian refugees between 1923 and 1925, the population of the city reached up to 210,000 by the end of 1925, of which more than a quarter were Armenians.[180]
According to the historical data presented byAl-Ghazzi, the vast majority of the Aleppine Christians were Catholics until the latter days of the Ottoman rule. The growth of theOriental Orthodox Christians is related with the arrival of the Assyrian survivors from Cilicia and Southern Turkey, while on the other hand, large numbers ofEastern Orthodox Christians from theSanjak of Alexandretta arrived in Aleppo, after the annexation of the Sanjak in 1939 in favour of Turkey.
Syrian children in Aleppo
In 1944, Aleppo's population was around 325,000, with 112,110 (34.5%) Christians among which Armenians numbered 60,200. Armenians formed more than half of the Christian community in Aleppo until 1947, when many groups of them left forSoviet Armenia within the frames of theArmenian Repatriation Process (1946–1967).
Aleppo was the most populous city in Syria, with a population of 2,132,100 as indicated in the latest official census in 2004 by theSyria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Its subdistrict (nahiya) consisted of 23 localities with a collective population of 2,181,061 in 2004.[181] According to the official estimate announced by the Aleppo City Council, the population of the city was 2,301,570 by the end of 2005. As a result of theSyrian civil war, however, the city eastern half's population under the control of the opposition had plummeted to an estimated 40,000 by 2015.[182]
Until the beginning of the Battle of Aleppo in 2012, the city contained one of the largest Christian communities in theMiddle East. There were manyOriental Orthodox Christian congregations, mainlyArmenians andAssyrians (locally known as Syriacs). Historically, the city was the main centre of French Catholic missionaries in Syria.[183]
The Christian population of Aleppo was slightly more than 250,000 before the Syrian civil war, representing about 12% of the total population of the city. However, as a consequence of the war, the Christian population of the city decreased to less than 100,000 as of the beginning of 2017, of whom around 30% were ethnic Armenians.[184]
Several districts of the city have a Christian and Armenian majority, such as the old Christian quarter ofal-Jdayde.[186] Around 50 churches are operated in the city by the above-mentioned congregations. However, according to the Deputy Chairman of the commission forUNESCO of the Russian Federation, Alexander Dzasokhov, around 20 churches suffered great destruction during the battles in Aleppo,[187][188][189][190] with the most notable being the National Evangelical Church,[150] as well as the surrounding historic churches of al-Jdayde district.[191][192][193] On 25 December 2016, following the government victory,Christmas was publicly celebrated in Aleppo for the first time in four years.[194]
The city was home to a significantJewish population from ancient times. TheGreat Synagogue, built in the 5th century, housed theAleppo Codex.[195] In the 12th century,Benjamin of Tudela recorded that the Jewish community in Aleppo consisted of 5,000 people, calling it one of the largest communities inBilād al-Shām.[196]
The Jews of Aleppo were known for their religious commitment, Rabbinic leadership, and their liturgy, consisting ofPizmonim andBaqashot. After theSpanish Inquisition, the city of Aleppo received manySephardic Jewish immigrants, who eventually joined with thenative Aleppo Jewish community. Peaceful relations existed between the Jews and surrounding population. In the early 20th century, the town's Jews lived mainly in Al-Jamiliyah, Bab Al-Faraj and the neighbourhoods around the Great Synagogue. Unrest in Palestine in the years preceding the establishment of Israel in 1948 resulted in growing hostility towards Jews living in Arab countries, culminating in theJewish exodus from Arab lands. In December 1947, after the UN decided thepartition of Palestine, an Arab mob[197]attacked the Jewish quarter. Homes, schools and shops were badly damaged.[198] Soon after, many of the town's remaining 6,000 Jews emigrated.[199] In 1968, there were an estimated 700 Jews still remaining in Aleppo.[200]
The houses and other properties of the Jewish families which were not sold after the migration, remain uninhabited under the protection of the Syrian Government. Most of these properties are in Al-Jamiliyah and Bab Al-Faraj areas, and the neighbourhoods around theCentral Synagogue of Aleppo. In 1992, the Syrian government lifted the travel ban on its 4,500 Jewish citizens.[201] Most traveled to the United States, where a sizable number ofSyrian Jews currently live inBrooklyn, New York. The last Jews of Aleppo, the Halabi family, were evacuated from the city in October 2016 by theFree Syrian Army and now live in Israel.[202]
The Jews from Aleppo referred to their city as "Aram Tzova" (ארם צובא) after the ancientAramean city ofAram-Zobah mentioned in theHebrew Bible.
Aleppines in general are fond of Arab classical music, theTarab, and it is not a surprise that many artists from Aleppo are considered pioneers among the Arabs in classic and traditional music. The most prominent figures in this field are Sabri Mdallal,Sabah Fakhri,[205]Shadi Jamil,Abed Azrie andNour Mhanna. Many iconic artists of the Arab music likeSayed Darwish andMohammed Abdel Wahab were visiting Aleppo to recognize the legacy of Aleppine art and learn from its cultural heritage.
Aleppo is also known for its knowledgeable and cultivated listeners, known assammi'a or "connoisseur listeners".[206] Aleppine musicians often claim that no major Arab artist achieved fame without first earning the approval of the Aleppinesammi'a.[207]
Aleppo hosts many music shows and festivals every year at the citadel amphitheatre, such as the "Syrian Song Festival", the "Silk Road Festival" and "Khan al-Harir Festival".
Al-Adeyat Archaeological Society founded in 1924 in Aleppo, is a cultural and social organization to preserve the tangible and intangible heritage of Aleppo and Syria in general. The society has branches in other governorates as well.[208]
Aleppo is surrounded by olive, nut and fruit orchards, and its cuisine is the product of its fertile land and location along theSilk Road.[132] The International Academy of Gastronomy in France awarded Aleppo its culinary prize in 2007.[132] The city has a wide selection of different types of dishes, such askebab,kibbeh,dolma,hummus, ful halabi,za'atar halabi, muhshi. Ful halabi is a typical Aleppine breakfast meal: fava bean soup with a splash of olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and Aleppo's red peppers. The za'atar of Aleppo (thyme) is a kind of oregano which is popular in the regional cuisines.
The kibbeh is one of the favourite foods of the locals, and the Aleppines have created more than 17 types of kibbeh dishes, which is considered a form of art for them. These includekibbeh prepared withsumac (kәbbe sәmmāʔiyye),yogurt (kәbbe labaniyye),quince (kәbbe safarjaliyye), lemon juice (kәbbe ḥāmḍa),pomegranate sauce andcherry sauce. Other varieties include the "disk"kibbeh (kәbbe ʔrāṣ), the "plate"kibbeh (kәbbe bәṣfīḥa orkәbbe bṣēniyye) and the rawkibbeh (kәbbe nayye). Kebab Halabi – influenced by Armenian and Turkish tastes – has around 26 variants[209] including:kebab prepared with cherry (kebab karaz), eggplant (kebab banjan),chili pepper withparsley andpine nut (kebab khashkhash),truffle (kebab kamayeh),tomato paste (kebab hindi), cheese andmushroom (kebab ma'juʔa), etc.[210] The favourite drink isArak, which is usually consumed along withmeze, Aleppine kebabs and kibbehs.Al-Shark beer – a product of Aleppo – is also among the favourite drinks. Local wines and brandies are consumed as well.
Aleppo is the origin of different types of sweets and pastries. The Aleppine sweets, such as mabrumeh, siwar es-sett, balloriyyeh, etc., are characterized by containing high rates of ghee butter and sugar. Other sweets include mamuniyeh, shuaibiyyat, mushabbak, zilebiyeh, ghazel al-banat etc. Most pastries contain Aleppine pistachios and other types of nuts.
Until the break-out of theBattle of Aleppo in July 2012, the city was known for its vibrantnightlife.[211] Several night-clubs, bars and cabarets operated at the centre of the city as well as at the northern suburbs. The historic quarter ofal-Jdayde was known for its pubs and boutique hotels, situated within ancient oriental mansions, providing special treats from the Aleppine flavour and cuisine, along with local music.[212][213]
Club d'Alep, opened in 1945, is a unique social club known forbridge games and other nightlife activities, located in a 19th-century mansion in the Aziziyah district of central Aleppo.[214]
TheAleppo Public Park, opened in 1949, is one of the largest planted parks in Syria, located near in the Aziziyah district, whereQueiq River breaks through the green park.[215]
TheBlue Lagoon water park – heavily damaged during the battles – was one of the favourite places among the locals, as it was the first water park in Syria. Aleppo'sShahba Mall – one of the largest shopping centres in Syria – was also among the most visited locations for the locals. It has received major damages during the civil war.
The city's strategic trading position attracted settlers of all races and beliefs who wished to take advantage of the commercial roads that met in Aleppo from as far as China andMesopotamia to the east, Europe to the west, and theFertile Crescent andEgypt to the south. The largest coveredsouq-market in the world is in Aleppo, with an approximate length of 13 km (8.1 mi).[216][217]
Al-Madina Souq, as it is locally known, is an active trade centre for imported luxury goods, such as raw silk fromIran, spices and dyes from India, and coffee fromDamascus. Souq al-Madina is also home to local products such as wool, agricultural products and soap. Most of the souqs date back to the 14th century and are named after various professions and crafts, hence the wool souq, the copper souq, and so on. Aside from trading, the souq accommodated the traders and their goods inkhans (caravanserais) and scattered in the souq. Other types of small market-places were calledcaeserias (ﻗﻴﺴﺎﺭﻳﺎﺕ). Caeserias are smaller than khans in their sizes and functioned as workshops for craftsmen. Most of the khans took their names after their location in the souq and function, and are characterized by their façades, entrances and fortified wooden doors.
The old part of the city is surrounded with 5 km-long (3.1 mi), thick walls, pierced by the nine historical gates (many of them are well-preserved) of the old town. These are, clockwise from the north-east of the citadel:
The most significant historic buildings of the ancient city include:
The Citadel, a large fortress built atop a huge, partially artificial mound rising 50 m (160 ft) above the city, dates back to the first millennium BC. Recent excavations unearthed a temple and 25 statues dating back to the first millennium BC.[218] Many of the current structures date from the 13th century. The Citadel had been extensively damaged by earthquakes, notably in 1822.
The following are among the important historic mansions ofal-Jdayde Christian quarter:[219]
Beit Wakil, an Aleppine mansion built in 1603, with unique wooden decorations. One of its decorations was taken toBerlin and exhibited in theMuseum of Islamic Art, known as theAleppo Room.
Beit Achiqbash, an old Aleppine house built in 1757. The building is home to thePopular Traditions Museum since 1975, showing fine decorations of the Aleppine art.
Beit Ghazaleh, an old 17th-century mansion characterized with fine decorations, carved by the Armenian sculptorKhachadur Bali in 1691. It was used as an Armenian elementary school during the 20th century.
Great Mosque of Aleppo (Jāmi' Bani Omayya al-Kabīr), foundedc. 715 by Umayyad caliphWalid I and most likely completed by his successorSulayman. The building contains a tomb associated withZachary, father ofJohn the Baptist. Construction of the present structure for Nur al-Din commenced in 1158. However, it was damaged during theMongol invasion of 1260 and was rebuilt. The 45 m-high (148 ft) tower (described as "the principal monument of medieval Syria")[220] was erected in 1090–1092 under the first Seljuk sultan,Tutush I. It had four façades with different styles. The tower was completely destroyed during the Syrian civil war in March 2013 (reported on 24 March 2013).
Al-Nuqtah Mosque ("Mosque of the drop [of blood]"), aShī'ah mosque, which contains a stone said to be marked by a drop ofHusayn's blood. The site is believed to have previously been a monastery, which was converted into a mosque in 944.
Central Synagogue of Aleppo or al-Bandara synagogue, dating to the 9th century. The synagogue was destroyed during an anti-Jewish pogrom in 1947.[221] In the 1980s, the building was restored, but destroyed again during the civil war.[222]
Aleppo was home to 177hammams during the medieval period until the Mongol invasion, when many of the prominent structures of the city were destroyed. Before the civil war, 18 hammams were operating in the old city, including:
Hammam al-Nahhasin built during the 12th century near khan al-Nahhaseen.
Hammam al-Jawhary, hammam Azdemir, hammam Bahram Pasha, hammam Bab al-Ahmar, etc.
As a city with an ancient architectural style characterized by covered markets, khans, baths, and schools, in addition to mosques and churches, the city is an archaeological treasure in need of continuous care and maintenance. The city was significantly replanned after the end of World War II. In 1954, an architectural plan was adopted by the French architect André Guitton, who proposed the construction of several wide avenues through the city to accommodate the entry of cars. Between 1954 and 1983, many old neighborhoods were demolished under this pretext for expansion, particularly in the northern areas such as Bab al-Faraj and Bab Janin. However, growing awareness of the importance of these buildings ultimately led to the cancellation of Guitton's plan in 1979 and its replacement by a plan by the Swiss urban engineer Stefano Bianco, who launched the idea of preserving the ancient urban fabric of Old Aleppo. This paved the way for UNESCO to include the Old City of Aleppo on the World Heritage List in 1986.[224]
Aleppo's western suburbs are home to a group of historical sites and villages which are commonly known as theDead Cities. Around 700 abandoned settlements in the northwestern parts of Syria before the 5th century, contain remains of ChristianByzantine architecture. Many hundreds of those settlements are inMount Simeon (Jabal Semaan) and Jabal Halaqa regions at the western suburbs of Aleppo, within the range ofLimestone Massif.[225] Dead Cities were inscribed as aUNESCO World Heritage Site in 2011, under the name of "Ancient Villages of Northern Syria".[226]
Church of Saint Simeon Stylites, 5th century
The most notableDead cities and archaeological sites in Mount Simeon andMount Kurd near Aleppo include: Kalota Castle and churches northwest of Aleppo, Kharab Shams Byzantine basilica of the 4th century,[227] the half-ruined Roman basilica inFafertin village dating back to 372 AD, the old Byzantine settlement ofSurqanya village at the northwest of Aleppo, the 4th-century Basilica of Sinhar settlement, the Mushabbak Basilica dating back to the second half of the 5th century, the 9th-century BC Assyrian settlement ofKafr Nabu,Brad village and theSaint Julianus Maronite monastery (399–402 AD) where the shrine ofSaint Maron is located, the 5th-century Kimar settlement of the Roman and Byzantine eras, theChurch of Saint Simeon Stylites of the 5th century, theSyro-HittiteAin Dara temple of theIron Age dating back to the 10th and 8th centuries BC, the ancient city ofCyrrhus with the old Roman amphitheatre and two historic bridges, etc.
The main highway leading to and within the city is theM4 Highway, which runs in the eastern side of the city from south to north along theQueiq River.[228] Driving south on M4 Highway gives access toM5 Highway leading toHoms,Hama, andDamascus. The northern bypass of the city called Castello Road leads throughAzaz to the border with Turkey and further to the city ofGaziantep.[229] Driving east on M4 Highway gives access to the coastal road leading toLatakia andTartus. Within the city, main routes include Al Jalaa Street, Shukri Al-Quwatly Street,King Faisal Street, Bab Antakya Street, Ibrahim Hanano Street and Tishreen Boulevard.
The city of Aleppo is a major transportation hub, served by a comprehensivepublic transport network of buses and minibuses. New modern buses are used to connect the city with Damascus and the other Syrian cities to the east and the south of Aleppo. The city is also served by local and inter-cityshare taxis.
Aleppo was one of the major stations of Syria that was connected to theBaghdad Railway in 1912, within theOttoman Empire. The connections to Turkey and onwards toAnkara still exist today, with a twice weekly train from Damascus. It is perhaps for this historical reason that Aleppo is the headquarters of Syria national railway network,Chemins de Fer Syriens. As the railway is relatively slow, much of the passenger traffic to the port ofLatakia had moved to road-based air-conditioned coaches. But this has reversed in recent years with the 2005 introduction of South Korean builtDMUs providing a regular bi-hourly express service to both Latakia and Damascus, which miss intermediate stations.
However, after the break-out of the civil war in 2011, the Syrian railway network has suffered major damage and is partially out of use. Reconstruction of the Damascus-Aleppo railway line was started in 2020, after its completion and securing rail transport will be resumed.[230]
The opening scene inAgatha Christie'sMurder on the Orient Express takes place on the railway station in Aleppo: "It was five o'clock on a winter's morning in Syria. Alongside the platform at Aleppo stood the train grandly designated in railway guides as the Taurus Express."
Aleppo International Airport (IATA: ALP,ICAO: OSAP) is the international airport serving the city. The airport serves as a secondary hub forSyrian Air. The history of the airport dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. It was upgraded and developed in the years to 1999 when the new current terminal was opened.[231]
The airport was closed since the beginning of 2013 as a result of the military operations in the area. However, following the Syrian government's recapture of eastern Aleppo during theBattle of Aleppo, an airplane conducted its first flight from the airport in four years.[232]
The main role of the city was as a trading place throughout the history, as it sat at the crossroads of two trade routes and mediated the trade from India, theTigris andEuphrates regions and the route coming fromDamascus in the South, which traced the base of the mountains rather than the rugged seacoast. Although trade was often directed away from the city for political reasons[why?], it continued to thrive until the Europeans began to use theCape route to India and later to use the route throughEgypt to theRed Sea.
The commercial traditions in Aleppo have deep roots in the history. The Aleppo Chamber of commerce founded in 1885, is one of the oldest chambers in the Middle East and the Arab world. According to many historians, Aleppo was the most developed commercial and industrial city in theOttoman Empire afterConstantinople andCairo.[21] However the post-Ottoman conditions favored other cities, such asHaifa, whose economy thrived more in the new circumstances. The issue was that the city's hinterland wasn't included in the "customs-free zone" between the newly establishedBritish and French mandates which hurt the city's economic growth.[233]
Markets at Tilel street
As the largest urban area in pre-civil war Syria, Aleppo was considered the capital of Syrian industry.[234] The economy of the city was mainly driven by textiles, chemicals, pharmaceutics, agro-processing industries, electrical commodities, alcoholic beverages, engineering and tourism. It occupied a dominant position in the country's manufacturing output, with a share of more than 50% of manufacturing employment, and an even greater export share.[235]
Tilel street
Possessing the most developed commercial and industrial plants in Syria, Aleppo is a major centre for manufacturing precious metals and stones.[236] The annual amount of the processed gold produced in Aleppo is around 8.5 tonnes, making up to 40% of the entire manufactured gold in Syria.[237]
The industrial city of Aleppo inSheikh Najjar district is one of the largest in Syria and the region. Occupying an area of 4,412 ha (10,900 acres) in the north-eastern suburbs of Aleppo, the total investments in the city counted more than US$3.4 billion during 2010.[238] Still under development, it is envisaged to open hotels, exhibition centres and other facilities within the industrial city.
In July 2022, the Aleppo Thermal Power Plant, which generates 200 megawatts of electricity for the city and its surroundings, was put into partial operation after restoration.[239]
The old traditional crafts are well-preserved in the old part of the city. The famous laurelsoap of Aleppo is considered to be the world's first hard soap.[240]
In the 2000s, Aleppo was one of the fastest-growing cities in Syria and the Middle East.[241] Many villagers and inhabitants of other Syrian districts are migrating to Aleppo in an effort to find better job opportunities, a fact that always increases population pressure, with a growing demand for new residential capacity. New districts and residential communities have been built in the suburbs of Aleppo, many of them were still under construction as of 2010[update].
Two major construction projects are scheduled in Aleppo: the "Old City Revival" project and the "Reopening of the stream bed of Queiq River":
The Old City revival project completed its first phase by the end of 2008, and the second phase started in early 2010. The purpose of the project is the preservation of the old city of Aleppo with its souqs and khans, and restoration of the narrow alleys of the old city and the roads around the citadel.
The restoration ofQueiq River is directed towards the revival of the flow of the river, demolishing both the artificial cover of the stream bed and the reinforcement of the stream banks along the river in the city centre. The flow of the river was blocked during the 1960s by the Turks, turning the river into a tiny sewage channel, something that led the authorities to cover the stream during the 1970s. In 2008 the flow of pure water was restored through the efforts of the Syrian government, granting a new life to the Quweiq River.[242]
Like other major Syrian cities, Aleppo is suffering from the dispersal ofinformal settlements: almost half of its population (around 1.2 million) is estimated to live in 22 informal settlements of different types.[243]
As the main economic centre of Syria, Aleppo has a large number of educational institutions. According to the UNICEF, there are around over 1280 schools in Aleppo and its suburbs that welcomed 485,000 new students as of September 2018,[244] and around 25,000 students resumed their learning as of December 2021.[245]
Not to mention there are some colleges. In addition to theUniversity of Aleppo, there are state colleges and private universities which attract large numbers of students from other regions of Syria and the Arab countries. The number of the students in Aleppo University is more than 60,000.[246] The university has 18 faculties and 8 technical colleges in the city of Aleppo.
Aleppo is home to several Christian schools, such as St. Mariam's Christian School (the city's main Christian school) and Armenian private schools as well as two international schools:International School of Aleppo andLycée Français d'Alep.
Basketball is also played in the city. All of the 5 Aleppine major sport clubs participate in the men's and women's top division of theSyrian Basketball League, in which bothJalaa SC andAl-Ittihad SC consecutively dominated winning the league from 1956 to 1993.[248][249]
The city of Aleppo is the capital ofAleppo Governorate and the centre ofMount Simeon District. Aleppo City Council is the governing body of the city. The first municipality council was formed in 1868.[255] However, the governor being appointed directly by the president of the republic, has a supreme authority over the city and the entire governorate. But the city is managed directly by the mayor.
Souq al-Dira', maintaining its traditional role as a tailoring centre
The "Integrated Urban Development in Aleppo" (UDP) is a joint programme between the German Development Cooperation (GTZ) and the Municipality of Aleppo.[256] The programme promotes capacities for sustainable urban management and development at the national and municipal level.
The Programme has three fields of work:
Aleppo City Development Strategy (CDS): promoting support structures for the municipality, including capacity building, networking, and developing municipal strength in the national development dialogue.
Informal Settlements (IS): includes strategy and management development of informal settlements.
The Project for the Rehabilitation of the Old City of Aleppo (OCA): includes further support for the rehabilitation of the Old City, as well as for a city development strategy oriented to the long term.
The UDP cooperates closely with other interventions in the sector, namely the EU-supported 'Municipal Administration Modernization' programme. It is planned to operate from 2007 to 2016.
As an ancient trading centre, Aleppo has impressivesouqs,khans,hammams,madrasas, mosques and churches, all in need of more care and preservation work. AfterWorld War II the city was significantly redesigned; in 1954 French architectAndré Gutton had a number of wide new roads cut through the city to allow easier passage for modern traffic. Between 1954 and 1983 many buildings in the old city were demolished to allow for the construction of modern apartment blocks, particularly in the northwestern areas (Bab al-Faraj andBab al-Jinan). As awareness for the need to preserve this unique cultural heritage increased, Gutton's master plan was finally abandoned in 1979 to be replaced with a new plan presented by the Swiss expert andurban designerStefano Bianca, which adopted the idea of "preserving the traditional architectural style of Ancient Aleppo" paving the way forUNESCO to declare theOld City of Aleppo as a World Heritage Site in 1986.[167]
The historic street of al-Khandaq, restored just before the civil war
Several international institutions have joined efforts with local authorities and the Aleppo Archaeological Society, to rehabilitate the old city by accommodating contemporary life while preserving the old one. The governorate and the municipality are implementing serious programmes directed towards the enhancement of the ancient city and Jdeydeh quarter.
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