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 A kaza (, , , plural: , , ; ota, قضا, script=Arab, (; meaning 'borough') * bg, околия (; meaning 'district'); also Кааза * el, υποδιοίκησις () or (, which means 'borough' or 'municipality'); also () * lad, kaza , ...

'') of the

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 ...

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 the north and east and Israel to the south, while Cyprus li ...

. It is located to the northeast of Lebanon's capital

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 ...

. The capital is

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 880 ...

. The rivers of al-Madfoun and

Nahr Ibrahim The Abraham River (, Nahr Ibrahim) also known as Adonis River (), is a small river in the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate in Lebanon, with a length of about . The river emerges from a huge cavern, the Afqa Grotto, nearly above sea level before it dr ...

form the district's natural northern and southern borders respectively, with the

Mediterranean Sea The Mediterranean Sea is a sea connected to the Atlantic Ocean, surrounded by the Mediterranean Basin and almost completely enclosed by land: on the north by Western and Southern Europe and Anatolia, on the south by North Africa, and on the ea ...

bordering it from the west and

Mount Lebanon Mount Lebanon ( ar, جَبَل لُبْنَان, ''jabal lubnān'', ; syr, ܛܘܪ ܠܒ݂ܢܢ, ', , ''ṭūr lewnōn'' french: Mont Liban) is a mountain range in Lebanon. It averages above in elevation, with its peak at . Geography The Mount Le ...

from the east, separating it from the adjacent district of

Baalbek Baalbek (; ar, بَعْلَبَكّ, Baʿlabakk, Syriac-Aramaic: ܒܥܠܒܟ) is a city located east of the Litani River in Lebanon's Beqaa Valley, about northeast of Beirut. It is the capital of Baalbek-Hermel Governorate. In Greek and Roman ...

in the

Beqaa Valley The Beqaa Valley ( ar, links=no, وادي البقاع, ', Lebanese ), also transliterated as Bekaa, Biqâ, and Becaa and known in classical antiquity as Coele-Syria, is a fertile valley in eastern Lebanon. It is Lebanon's most important ...

Demographics

The district's population is predominantly

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 ...

, followed by a

Shia Muslim Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest branch of Islam. It holds that the Islamic prophet Muhammad designated ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his successor (''khalīfa'') and the Imam (spiritual and political leader) after him, most ...

minority community. The largest towns of the district are predominantly inhabited by Maronites; they are

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 ...

Aqoura Aqoura ( ar, عاقورة, also spelled ''Aaqoura'', "Akoura") is a mountainous village in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is 68 kilometers north of Beirut. Aqoura has an average elevation of 1,600 meters above sea ...

and

Amsheet Amsheet (, '; also spelled Amchit) is a seaside town and municipality in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon, about 40 km north of Beirut. The town's average elevation is 140 meters above sea level and its total land ...

. Most Shia Muslims live in the valley of the Ibrahim River, particularly in the villages of Almat, Ras Osta,

Hjoula Hjoula ( ar, حجولا) is a municipality in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is 70 kilometers north of Beirut. Hjoula has an elevation of between 920 and 1,100 meters above sea level. Hjoula has a total land area o ...

, Bichtlida, Lassa, and Mazraat es-Siyad. A

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek language, Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the Eastern Orthodox Church, entire body of Orthodox (Chalced ...

minority forms part of the population and is spread among several villages know locally as ''qornet el-roum'' (the corner of the Greek Orthodox). The villages that make up ''qournet el-roum'' are Mounsef, Jeddayel, Helwe,

Berbara Berbara ( ar, البربارة, also spelled ''al-Barbara'') is a municipality in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is located along the Mediterranean coast, 48 kilometers north of Beirut. Berbara has an average eleva ...

, Gharzouz, Rihanneh and Chikhane. Byblos District has three seats allocated to it in the Lebanese Parliament. Two of these seats are allocated to Maronite Catholics, while the other seat is allocated to Shia Muslims. As of 2009, the religious make-up of the Byblos District's 75,584 voters were roughly 80% Maronite Catholic, 5% Shia Muslim and 5%

Landmarks and sights

The Byblos District rises from 0 to 2,300 meters above sea level in the north. "Jabal el-Mnaitra" is also in the district, and said to have an altitude of 2,911/2,807 meters above sea level, but this isn't confirmed. Moreover, The District hosts a number of significant sites. The capital

is an important historical and archaeological site boasting Phoenician, Roman, and Crusader ruins. The mountain village of Aannaya hosts the Saint Maroun-Aannaya monastery and the Catholic shrine of

Saint Charbel Charbel Makhlouf, O.L.M. ( ar, شربل مخلوف, May 8, 1828 – December 24, 1898), born Youssef Antoun Makhlouf and venerated as Saint Charbel, was a Maronite monk and priest from Lebanon. During his life, he obtained a wide reputation for ...

(1828-1898), the first Lebanese saint (officially canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1977), both significant religious Maronite Christian holy sites. The village of

Laqlouq Laqlouq ( ar, لقلوق), also spelled ''Laklouk'' and also known as ′Arab Laqlouq ( ar, عرب القلوق) is a small mountainous village in mountainous area in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is located 69 kilo ...

, which has an altitude of 1,750 meters to 2,000 meters, is a ski resort. The village of

Afqa Afqa ( ar, افقا; also spelled ''Afka'') is a village and municipality located in the Byblos District of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, northeast of Beirut in Lebanon. It has an average elevation of 1,200 meters above sea level and a total la ...

contains the Afqa grotto, which is the source of the Nahr Ibrahim, also known as the Adonis River. The village of Bentaël (also spelled Bintaael) contains the first

protected area Protected areas or conservation areas are locations which receive protection because of their recognized natural, ecological or cultural values. There are several kinds of protected areas, which vary by level of protection depending on the ena ...

in Lebanon, established in 1981. The village of

Jaj Jaj ( ar, جاج, also spelled ''Jaje'') is a mountainous village in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is 68 kilometers north of Beirut. Jaj has an average elevation of 1,220 meters above sea level and a total land are ...

hosts surviving

cedar Cedar may refer to: Trees and plants *''Cedrus'', common English name cedar, an Old-World genus of coniferous trees in the plant family Pinaceae *Cedar (plant), a list of trees and plants known as cedar Places United States * Cedar, Arizona * ...

trees from the ancient cedar forests from which cedar wood was exported to Egypt and later to

Jerusalem Jerusalem (; he, יְרוּשָׁלַיִם ; ar, القُدس ) (combining the Biblical and common usage Arabic names); grc, Ἱερουσαλήμ/Ἰεροσόλυμα, Hierousalḗm/Hierosóluma; hy, Երուսաղեմ, Erusałēm. i ...

. The village Chikhane is considered the birthplace of the first Russian school in the

Middle East The Middle East ( ar, الشرق الأوسط, ISO 233: ) is a geopolitical region commonly encompassing Arabian Peninsula, Arabia (including the Arabian Peninsula and Bahrain), Anatolia, Asia Minor (Asian part of Turkey except Hatay Pro ...

, believed to have been established during

World War I World War I (28 July 1914 11 November 1918), often abbreviated as WWI, was one of the deadliest global conflicts in history. Belligerents included much of Europe, the Russian Empire, the United States, and the Ottoman Empire, with fightin ...

. The village of Hjoula is among the very rare villages in Lebanon to contain fossilized sea animals in it, along the village of Haqel. Byblos District also has a notable beach life with many public and private resorts existing along the seaside.

Towns and villages

* Aabaydat * Almat el-Chmaliyeh * Almat el-Jnoubiyeh *

* Annaya *

* Adonis *

* Ain ed-Delbeh * Ain el-Ghouaybeh * Ain Jrain * Ain Kfaa * Bazyoun * Bchilleh * Beer el-Hit * Behdidat * Bejjeh * Bekhaaz *

* Beithabbak * Bichtlida * Bentaël * Birket Hjoula * Blat * Boulhos * Brayj *

* Chatine * Chikhane * Chmout * Edde *

Ehmej Ehmej ( ar, إهمج; also spelled ''Ihmij'') is a municipality in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is located 57 kilometers northeast of Beirut. Ehmej's inhabitants are predominantly Maronite Catholics. There are tw ...

* Fatreh * Ferhet * Fghal *

Fidar Fidar ( ar, فيدار), municipality in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is 61 kilometers north of Beirut. Fdar has an average elevation of 100 meters above sea level and a total land area of 390 hectare The hectar ...

Ghabat Ghabat (or Al-Ghabat) is a village in Lebanon located in the Jurd area of the district of Byblos in the Mount Lebanon region, about 74 kilometres northeast of Beirut. Its inhabitants are predominantly Maronite Catholics. Al Ghabat has a dry-summer ...

* Ghalboun * Gharzouz * Ghorfine * Habil * Halat * Haqel * Hay el-Arabeh * Hbaline * Hboub * Hdayneh *

* Hosrayel * Hsarat * Hsoun *

* Janneh * Jeddayel * Jenjol * Jlisseh * Jouret El Qattine * Kafr * Kfar Baal * Kfar Hitta * Kfar Kiddeh * Kfar Masshoun * Kfar Qouas * Kfoun *

* Lassa *

Lehfed Lehfed ( ar, لحفد, also known as ''Lihfid'') is a municipality in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is 55 kilometers north of Beirut. Lehfed has an average elevation of 1000 meters above sea level and a total land a ...

* Maad * Majdel * Marj * Mastita *

Mayfouq Mayfouq ( ar, ميفوق) is a village and municipality in the Byblos District of Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is located 64 km north of Beirut. Mayfouq has an average elevation of 860 meters above sea level and its total land area ...

* Mazarib * Mazraat es-Siyad *

Mechane A mechane (; el, μηχανή, ''mēkhanḗ'') or machine was a crane used in Greek theatre, especially in the 5th and 4th centuries BC. Made of wooden beams and pulley systems, the device was used to lift an actor into the air, usually represen ...

* Mghayreh * Mish Mish * Mounsef *

* Qahmez *

* Qartaboun * Qorqraiya * Ram * Ramout * Ras Osta * Rihaneh * Seraaita * Souaneh * Tartej * Tourzaiya *

Yanouh Yanouh ( ar, يانوح) is a village and municipality in the Byblos District of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate, Lebanon. It is located 94 kilometers north of Beirut. Yanouh's inhabitants are predominantly Maronites, Maronite Catholics. Its ave ...

* Zebdine

References

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