Aqoura ( ar, عاقورة, also spelled ''Aaqoura'', "Akoura") is a mountainous village in the

Byblos District Byblos District ( ar, قضاء جبيل; transliteration: ''Qadaa' Jbeil''), also called the Jbeil District (''Jbeil'' is Lebanese Arabic for "Byblos"; standard Arabic ''Jubail''), is a district ('' qadaa'') of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate of L ...

Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate Keserwan-Jbeil ( ar, كسروان - جبيل) is the most recently created governorate of Lebanon. It consists of the districts of Jbeil and Keserwan. Keserwan-Jbeil covers an area of and is bounded by the North Governorate to the north, the B ...

Lebanon Lebanon ( , ar, لُبْنَان, translit=lubnān, ), officially the Republic of Lebanon () or the Lebanese Republic, is a country in Western Asia. It is located between Syria to Lebanon–Syria border, the north and east and Israel to Blue ...

. It is 68 kilometers north of

Beirut Beirut, french: Beyrouth is the capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, which makes it the third-largest city in the Levant region. The city is situated on a peninsula at the midpoint o ...

. Aqoura has an average elevation of 1,600 meters above sea level and a total land area of around 10.5 square kilometers . Aqoura's inhabitants are

Maronite Catholic The Maronite Church is an Eastern Catholic '' sui iuris'' particular church in full communion with the pope and the worldwide Catholic Church, with self-governance under the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. The current head of the ...

s. By area, Aaqoura is the largest village belonging to its citizens (not emirate lands) in Lebanon. By voting, it is the third largest town in the Byblos District, along with the district capital

Byblos Byblos ( ; gr, Βύβλος), also known as Jbeil or Jubayl ( ar, جُبَيْل, Jubayl, locally ; phn, 𐤂𐤁𐤋, , probably ), is a city in the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate of Lebanon. It is believed to have been first occupied between 8 ...

and

Qartaba Qartaba ( ar, قرطبا, also spelled ''Kartaba'' or ''Artaba'') is a mountainous town in the Byblos District of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is located 57 kilometers north Beirut on the mountains above Byblos at an average altitu ...

. Maronites emerged from Aaqoura in the fourth century when Saint Maroun's disciple Ibrahim El Korchy started preaching and converting pagans to the Christian faith in the Aaqoura area. The carved stone Saint Peter and Paul church in Aaqoura is by far the oldest existing church in Lebanon and one of the oldest in the world. It was converted in the 4th century from a tomb place to the priests of the temple of Ashtarout in Afqa to a church. The village of Aaqoura is known by the famous mountain chains surrounding and protecting it. These mountains have offered refuge for the citizens of Aaqoura during the different wars in Lebanon and the region. Also known for their courage, hospitality, and their intelligence the people of Aaqoura are studying and working worldwide. The local citizens work, value and guard their lands. They cherish and proclaim their Christianity and play a major role in Lebanon through their political influence and their international relations.

References

Populated places in Byblos District Maronite Christian communities in Lebanon {{Lebanon-geo-stub