Taldara تل الدرة Tall al-Dirrah, Tall Derah, Tell Dera, Tell ad-Dura | |
|---|---|
Village | |
 Skyline of Taldara, 2024 | |
  Taldara Location in Syria | |
| Coordinates:35°1′51″N36°56′18″E / 35.03083°N 36.93833°E /35.03083; 36.93833 | |
| Country |  Syria |
| Governorate | Hama |
| District | Salamiyah |
| Subdistrict | Salamiyah |
| Population (2004 census) | |
• Total | 5,986 |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | UTC+3 (EEST) |
| City Qrya Pcode | C3224 |
Taldara (Arabic:تل الدرة, also spelledTell Dirrah,Tall Derah,Talldarra orTell ad-Dura) is a village in centralSyria, administratively part of theSalamiyah District of theHama Governorate. It is located 23 kilometers (14 mi) southeast ofHama and 12 kilometers (7.5 mi) west ofSalamiyah.[1] According to theSyria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Taldara had a population of 5,986 in the 2004 census.[2] Its inhabitants are predominantlyIsmailis.[3]
Taldara was initially founded in 1836 when it was acquired by Muhammad Khurfan Bey, a chief of theMawali tribe in the Hama region. Before that, the village had been deserted. Like other places in theSalamiyah area that the Ottoman authorities encouraged to be repopulated, the settlers of Taldara came from the Mawali, Nu'aym andUqaydat tribes.[4] However, just two years later, Taldara and all of the other villages of Salamiyah were reported to have been deserted.[5]
An attempt to reestablish Taldara in 1876 led by Muhammad Qahwaji and Haydar Watad did not succeed due to conflicts withBedouin tribes from the neighboringal-A'la hill country and the environs ofal-Saan, who frequently grazed their sheep flocks at the village site. Watad and Qahwaji planted corn fields on the northern hillside of thetell (archaeological mound) and built two huts nearby, but their venture was ended when Qahwaji was killed by the Bedouins in revenge for his killing of a Bedouin in an earlier quarrel. Qahwaji was buried on the top of thetell.[1]
Modern Taldara was re-established in 1883 byIsmaili migrants from other parts of northern Syria led by Ali Sharba from theKhawabi valley, who was later joined by the Askur, Warda and al-Dabiyat families.[1] They chose to settle the place because of worsening economic conditions in their former areas of residence, the low taxes living in theSyrian Desert fringes offered, and Taldara's proximity to Salamiyah, the center of Ismaili life in Syria.[3]
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