Dimane (or Diman, ) is a mountainous village in the

Bsharri District Bsharri District is one of the 7 districts (''qadaa, قضاء'') of the North Governorate, Lebanon, North Governorate, Lebanon. Overview and geography Surrounded by mountains, the Bsharri District sits on cliffs. The district is bordered by the Z ...

, in the North Governorate of

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 sits at approximately 1400m above sea level, overlooking the

Kadisha Valley Kadisha Valley ( ar, وادي قاديشا), also romanized as the Qadisha Valley and also known as the Kadisha Gorge or Wadi Kadisha (french: Ouadi Qadisha), is a gorge that lies within the Bsharri and Zgharta Districts of the North Governorat ...

. The inhabitants of Dimane are Lebanese and are followers of the

Maronite Catholic Church 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 Maron ...

. Its patron saint is Saint Joseph and his feast day is celebrated on

19 March Events Pre-1600 *1277 – The Byzantine–Venetian treaty of 1277 is concluded, stipulating a two-year truce and renewing Venetian commercial privileges in the Byzantine Empire. * 1279 – A Mongol victory at the Battle of Yamen ends ...

each year.

Summer Patriarchal residence

The village is well known as the summer residence of the

Maronite Patriarch This is a list of the Maronite patriarchs of Antioch and all the East, the primate of the Maronite Church, one of the Eastern Catholic Churches. Starting with Paul Peter Massad in 1854, after becoming patriarch of the Maronite Catholic Patriarch ...

, currently Mar Béchara Pierre Raï. The foundation stone for the current Patriarchal residence was laid on 28 September 1899.

Key sites

Dimane is also known for the "Garden of the Patriarchs", located in the west end of the village, and for the ancient footpath which starts behind the village's parish church, Saint John Maroun, and leads to the bottom of the

where the Maronites headed by their Patriarch took refuge for centuries after the Arab Muslim invasions in the seventh century.

Families

Families of Dimane include Ghosn, Assaf, Francis, Jabbour, Laba,

Basil Basil (, ; ''Ocimum basilicum'' , also called great basil, is a culinary herb of the family Lamiaceae (mints). It is a tender plant, and is used in cuisines worldwide. In Western cuisine, the generic term "basil" refers to the variety also k ...

Moussa Moussa (sometimes spelled Mousa) is both a given name and a surname. It is a Gallicized spelling of the Arabic name '' Mūsā'' ( ar, موسی, " Moses"). Notable people with the name include: Given name: Moussa * Moussa Ag Amastan, Amenokal of th ...

, Yacoub,

Arab The Arabs (singular: Arab; singular ar, عَرَبِيٌّ, DIN 31635: , , plural ar, عَرَب, DIN 31635: , Arabic pronunciation: ), also known as the Arab people, are an ethnic group mainly inhabiting the Arab world in Western Asia, ...

Daher Daher, or DAHER, is a French industrial conglomerate. It is operational across the aerospace, defence, nuclear, and automotive industrial sectors in the fields of manufacturing, services, and transport. It was founded in 1863 as a shipping ...

, Harb, Metlege, Ramia, Daaboul, Saleh, Bazouni, Zeaiter, Abboud, Alphonse, and

Saab Saab or SAAB may refer to: Brands and enterprises * Saab Group, a Swedish aerospace and defence company, formerly known as SAAB, and later as Saab AB ** Datasaab, a former computer company, started as spin off from Saab AB * Saab Automobile, a fo ...

Photo gallery

Image:Maronite Patriarch Summer Residence in Dimane.JPG, The Maronite Patriarch summer residence, located in Dimane. Image:Qadisha5.jpg, Location of main sites in the Kadisha Valley. Populated places in the North Governorate Bsharri District Maronite Christian communities in Lebanon {{lebanon-geo-stub