Lebanese Druze ( ar, دروز لبنان, durūz lubnān) are
Lebanese people
The Lebanese people ( ar, الشعب اللبناني / ALA-LC: ', ) are the people inhabiting or originating from Lebanon. The term may also include those who had inhabited Mount Lebanon and the Anti-Lebanon Mountains prior to the creation ...
who are
Druze
The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings of ...
. The Druze faith is a
monotheistic
Monotheism is the belief that there is only one deity, an all-supreme being that is universally referred to as God. Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford ...
and
Abrahamic religion
The Abrahamic religions are a group of religions centered around worship of the God of Abraham. Abraham, a Hebrew patriarch, is extensively mentioned throughout Abrahamic religious scriptures such as the Bible and the Quran.
Jewish tradition ...
, and an
ethnoreligious
An ethnoreligious group (or an ethno-religious group) is a grouping of people who are unified by a common religious and ethnic background.
Furthermore, the term ethno-religious group, along with ethno-regional and ethno-linguistic groups, is a s ...
esoteric
Western esotericism, also known as esotericism, esoterism, and sometimes the Western mystery tradition, is a term scholars use to categorise a wide range of loosely related ideas and movements that developed within Western society. These ideas a ...
group originating from the
Near East
The ''Near East''; he, המזרח הקרוב; arc, ܕܢܚܐ ܩܪܒ; fa, خاور نزدیک, Xāvar-e nazdik; tr, Yakın Doğu is a geographical term which roughly encompasses a transcontinental region in Western Asia, that was once the hist ...
who self identify as
unitarians ( ar, موحدين, muwaḥḥidīn).
The Lebanese Druze people are believed to constitute about 5.2 percent
[Lebanon 2015 International Religious Freedom Report](_blank)
U.S. Department of State. Retrieved on 2019-04-23. of the total population of Lebanon and have around 1.5 million members worldwide. The Druze, who refer to themselves as al-Muwahhideen, or "believers in one God," are concentrated in the rural, mountainous areas east and south 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 ...
.
Lebanon has the world's second largest Druze population, after
Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
.
Under the Lebanese political division (Parliament of Lebanon Seat Allocation) the
Druze
The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings of ...
community is designated as one of the five
Lebanese Muslim communities in Lebanon (Sunni, Shia, Druze, Alawi, and Ismaili), even though the Druze are no longer considered Muslim.
Lebanon's constitution was intended to guarantee political representation for each of the nation's ethno-religious groups.
Wadi al-Taym Wadi al-Taym ( ar, وادي التيم, Wādī al-Taym), also transliterated as Wadi el-Taym, is a wadi (dry river) that forms a large fertile valley in Lebanon, in the districts of Rachaya and Hasbaya on the western slopes of Mount Hermon. It adjo ...
is generally considered the "birthplace of the Druze faith". The
Maronite
The Maronites ( ar, الموارنة; syr, ܡܖ̈ܘܢܝܐ) are a Christian ethnoreligious group native to the Eastern Mediterranean and Levant region of the Middle East, whose members traditionally belong to the Maronite Church, with the larges ...
Catholic
The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...
and the Druze founded modern
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 ...
in the early eighteenth century, through the ruling and social system known as the "Maronite-Druze dualism" in
Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate
The Mount Lebanon Mutasarrifate (1861–1918, ar, مُتَصَرِّفِيَّة جَبَل لُبْنَان, translit=Mutasarrifiyyat Jabal Lubnān; ) was one of the Ottoman Empire's subdivisions following the Tanzimat reform. After 1861, ther ...
. Under the terms of an unwritten agreement known as the
National Pact
The National Pact ( ar, الميثاق الوطني, translit-std=DIN, translit=al Mithaq al Watani) is an unwritten agreement that laid the foundation of Lebanon as a multiconfessional state following negotiations between the Shia, Sunni, and Ma ...
between the various political and religious leaders of Lebanon, the Chief of the General Staff must be a Druze.
History
![Lebanon religious groups](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5b/Lebanon_religious_groups.jpg)
The Druze faith does not follow the
Five Pillars of Islam
The Five Pillars of Islam (' ; also ' "pillars of the religion") are fundamental practices in Islam, considered to be obligatory acts of worship for all Muslims. They are summarized in the famous hadith of Gabriel. The Sunni and Shia agree on ...
, such as fasting during the month of
Ramadan
, type = islam
, longtype = Religious
, image = Ramadan montage.jpg
, caption=From top, left to right: A crescent moon over Sarıçam, Turkey, marking the beginning of the Islamic month of Ramadan. Ramadan Quran reading in Bandar Torkaman, Iran. ...
, and making a pilgrimage to
Mecca
Mecca (; officially Makkah al-Mukarramah, commonly shortened to Makkah ()) is a city and administrative center of the Mecca Province of Saudi Arabia, and the Holiest sites in Islam, holiest city in Islam. It is inland from Jeddah on the Red ...
.
The Druze beliefs incorporate elements of
Ismailism
Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (imām) to Ja'far al-Sa ...
,
Gnosticism
Gnosticism (from grc, γνωστικός, gnōstikós, , 'having knowledge') is a collection of religious ideas and systems which coalesced in the late 1st century AD among Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people ...
,
Neoplatonism
Neoplatonism is a strand of Platonism, Platonic philosophy that emerged in the 3rd century AD against the background of Hellenistic philosophy and Hellenistic religion, religion. The term does not encapsulate a set of ideas as much as a chain of ...
and other philosophies. The Druze call themselves Ahl al-Tawhid "People of
Unitarianism
Unitarianism (from Latin ''unitas'' "unity, oneness", from ''unus'' "one") is a nontrinitarian branch of Christian theology. Most other branches of Christianity and the major Churches accept the doctrine of the Trinity which states that there i ...
or
Monotheism
Monotheism is the belief that there is only one deity, an all-supreme being that is universally referred to as God. Cross, F.L.; Livingstone, E.A., eds. (1974). "Monotheism". The Oxford Dictionary of the Christian Church (2 ed.). Oxford: Oxford ...
" or "
al-Muwaḥḥidūn."
"The Druze follow a lifestyle of isolation where no conversion is allowed, neither out of, or into, the religion. When Druze live among people of other religions, they try to blend in, in order to protect their religion and their own safety. They can pray as Muslims, or as Christians, depending on where they are. This system is apparently changing in modern times, where more security has allowed Druze to be more open about their religious belonging."
The
Tanukhids
The Tanûkhids ( ar, التنوخيون, transl=al-Tanūḫiyyūn) or Tanukh ( ar, تنوخ, translit=Tanūḫ) or Banū Tanūkh (, romanized as: ) were a confederation of Arab tribes, sometimes characterized as Saracens. They first rose to prom ...
inaugurated the Druze community in Lebanon when most of them accepted and adopted the new message that was being preached in the 11th century, due to their leaderships close ties with then Fatimid ruler
Al-Hakim bi-Amr Allah
Abū ʿAlī Manṣūr (13 August 985 – 13 February 1021), better known by his regnal name al-Ḥākim bi-Amr Allāh ( ar, الحاكم بأمر الله, lit=The Ruler by the Order of God), was the sixth Fatimid caliph and 16th Ismaili ima ...
.
The
relationship between the Druze and Christians in
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 ...
has been characterized by
harmony
In music, harmony is the process by which individual sounds are joined together or composed into whole units or compositions. Often, the term harmony refers to simultaneously occurring frequencies, pitches ( tones, notes), or chords. However ...
and
coexistence, with amicable relations between the two groups prevailing throughout history, with the exception of some periods, including
1860 Mount Lebanon civil war
The 1860 civil conflict in Mount Lebanon and Damascus (also called the 1860 Syrian Civil War) was a civil conflict in Mount Lebanon during Ottoman rule in 1860–1861 fought mainly between the local Druze and Christians. Following decisive Druze ...
.
Historically the relationship between the
Druze
The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings of ...
and
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
has been characterized by intense persecution. The Druze faith is often classified as a branch of
Isma'ili
Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (imām) to Ja'far al-Sa ...
. Even though the faith originally developed out of
Ismaili Islam
Isma'ilism ( ar, الإسماعيلية, al-ʾIsmāʿīlīyah) is a branch or sub-sect of Shia Islam. The Isma'ili () get their name from their acceptance of Imam Isma'il ibn Jafar as the appointed spiritual successor (Imamate in Nizari doct ...
, most Druze do not identify as
Muslims
Muslims ( ar, المسلمون, , ) are people who adhere to Islam, a monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God of Abraha ...
, and they do not accept the
five pillars of Islam
The Five Pillars of Islam (' ; also ' "pillars of the religion") are fundamental practices in Islam, considered to be obligatory acts of worship for all Muslims. They are summarized in the famous hadith of Gabriel. The Sunni and Shia agree on ...
. The Druze have frequently experienced persecution by different Muslim regimes such as the
Shia
Shīʿa Islam or Shīʿīsm is the second-largest Islamic schools and branches, branch of Islam. It holds that the Prophets and messengers in Islam, Islamic prophet Muhammad in Islam, Muhammad designated Ali, ʿAlī ibn Abī Ṭālib as his S ...
Fatimid Caliphate
The Fatimid Caliphate was an Isma'ilism, Ismaili Shia Islam, Shi'a caliphate extant from the tenth to the twelfth centuries AD. Spanning a large area of North Africa, it ranged from the Atlantic Ocean in the west to the Red Sea in the ea ...
,
Sunni
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...
Ottoman Empire
The Ottoman Empire, * ; is an archaic version. The definite article forms and were synonymous * and el, Оθωμανική Αυτοκρατορία, Othōmanikē Avtokratoria, label=none * info page on book at Martin Luther University) ...
, and
Egypt Eyalet
The Eyalet of Egypt (, ) operated as an administrative division of the Ottoman Empire from 1517 to 1867. It originated as a result of the conquest of Mamluk Egypt by the Ottomans in 1517, following the Ottoman–Mamluk War (1516–17) and the a ...
.
[Goren, Haim. ''Dead Sea Level: Science, Exploration and Imperial Interests in the Near East.'' p.95-96.] The persecution of the Druze included
massacre
A massacre is the killing of a large number of people or animals, especially those who are not involved in any fighting or have no way of defending themselves. A massacre is generally considered to be morally unacceptable, especially when per ...
s, demolishing Druze prayer houses and holy places and
forced conversion
Forced conversion is the adoption of a different religion or the adoption of irreligion under duress. Someone who has been forced to convert to a different religion or irreligion may continue, covertly, to adhere to the beliefs and practices which ...
to Islam. Those were no ordinary killings in the Druze's narrative, they were meant to eradicate the whole community according to the Druze narrative.
The Druze community in Lebanon played an important role in the formation of the modern state of Lebanon, and even though they are a minority they play an important role in the Lebanese political scene. Before and during the
Lebanese Civil War
The Lebanese Civil War ( ar, الحرب الأهلية اللبنانية, translit=Al-Ḥarb al-Ahliyyah al-Libnāniyyah) was a multifaceted armed conflict that took place from 1975 to 1990. It resulted in an estimated 120,000 fatalities a ...
(1975–90), the Druze were in favor of
Pan-Arabism
Pan-Arabism ( ar, الوحدة العربية or ) is an ideology that espouses the unification of the countries of North Africa and Western Asia from the Atlantic Ocean to the Arabian Sea, which is referred to as the Arab world. It is closely c ...
and Palestinian resistance represented by the
PLO
The Palestine Liberation Organization (PLO; ar, منظمة التحرير الفلسطينية, ') is a Palestinian nationalist political and militant organization founded in 1964 with the initial purpose of establishing Arab unity and s ...
. Most of the community supported the
Progressive Socialist Party
The Progressive Socialist Party ( ar, الحزب التقدمي الاشتراكي, translit=al-Hizb al-Taqadummi al-Ishtiraki) is a Lebanese political party. Its confessional base is in the Druze sect and its regional base is in Mount Lebanon ...
formed by their leader
Kamal Jumblatt
Kamal Fouad Jumblatt ( ar, كمال فؤاد جنبلاط; 6 December 1917 – 16 March 1977) was a Lebanese politician who founded the Progressive Socialist Party. He led the National Movement during the civil war against the Lebanese Front. H ...
and they fought alongside other leftist and Palestinian parties against the
Lebanese Front
The Lebanese Front ( ar, الجبهة اللبنانية, ''al-Jabha al-Lubnaniyya'') or ''Front Libanais'' in French, was a coalition of mainly Lebanese Nationalist parties formed in 1976 by majority Christian intellectuals during the Lebane ...
that was mainly constituted of Christians. After the assassination of Kamal Jumblatt on 16 March 1977, his son
Walid Jumblatt
Walid Kamal Jumblatt ( ar, وليد جنبلاط; born 7 August 1949) is a Lebanese Druze politician and former militia commander who has been leading the Progressive Socialist Party since 1977. While leading the Lebanese National Resistance Fr ...
took the leadership of the party and played an important role in preserving his father's legacy after winning the
Mountain War
The Mountain War ( ar, حرب الجبل , ''Harb al-Jabal''), also known as the War of the Mountain and Guerre de la Montagne in French language, French, was a subconflict between the Lebanese Civil War#Second phase of the war.2C 1982-1983, 1 ...
and sustained the existence of the Druze community during the sectarian bloodshed that lasted until 1990.
In August 2001,
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 Mar ...
Patriarch Nasrallah Boutros Sfeir toured the predominantly Druze Chouf region of Mount Lebanon and visited
Mukhtara
, alternate_name =
, image = HARVEY(1861) p008 PALACE OF SAID BAG JUMBULAH AT MOKTARAH.jpg
, alt =
, caption = The Jumblatt family palace in Moukhtara, 1861
, map_type = Lebanon
, map_alt =
, latitude =
, longitude =
, map_size =
, locati ...
, the ancestral stronghold of Druze leader Walid Jumblatt. The tumultuous reception that Sfeir received not only signified a historic reconciliation between Maronites and Druze, who fought a bloody war in 1983–84, but underscored the fact that the banner of Lebanese sovereignty had broad multi-confessional appeal and was a cornerstone for the
Cedar Revolution
The Cedar Revolution ( ar, ثورة الأرز, ''thawrat al-arz'') or Independence Uprising ( ar, انتفاضة الاستقلال, ''intifāḍat al-istiqlāl'') was a chain of demonstrations in Lebanon (especially in the capital Beirut) trig ...
in 2005. Jumblatt's post-2005 position diverged sharply from the tradition of his family. He also accused Damascus of being behind the 1977 assassination of his father, Kamal Jumblatt, expressing for the first time what many knew he privately suspected. The BBC describes Jumblatt as "the smartest leader of Lebanon's most powerful Druze clan and heir to a leftist political dynasty".
The second largest political party supported by Druze is the
Lebanese Democratic Party
The Lebanese Democratic Party ( ar, الحزب الديمقراطي اللبناني, al-ḥizb ad-dīmuqrāṭī al-Lubnānī'') is a political party in Lebanon established by Prince Talal Arslan and Marwan Abou Fadel in 2001. Prince Talal i ...
led by
Prince Talal Arslan
Emir Talal Arslan ( ar, الأمير طلال أرسلان) is a Lebanese politician, Political Leader of the Druze sect. He is the chief of the Arslan family, who claim to be descendants of the Lakhmids.
Early life
Arslan was born in Chouei ...
, the son of Lebanese independence hero
Emir Majid Arslan
Emir Majid Toufic Arslan ( ar, الأمير مجيد توفيق أرسلان) (February 1908 — September 18, 1983) was a Lebanese Druze leader and head of the Arslan feudal Druze ruling family. Arslan was the leader of the Yazbaki (Arslan affi ...
.
On May 10, 2008 as part of the 2008 Conflict, clashes occurred between Hezbollah forces and Druze militias in their mountain resulting is casualties on both sides. The clashes started in Aytat, near Kayfoun and soon expanded to cover many spots in Mount Lebanon including Baysur, Shuweifat and Aley. Most of the fighting was concentrated on Hill 888. After negotiations a ceasefire was called in from outside the country before Hezbollah could call in artillery support. Releases from Hezbollah leaders in 2016 stated that bombing the mountain with close-range artillery from the South and longer-ranged artillery from Syria were both an option and greatly considered.
Lebanese Christians
Christianity in Lebanon has a long and continuous history. Biblical Scriptures purport that Peter and Paul evangelized the Phoenicians, whom they affiliated to the ancient patriarchate of Antioch. The spread of Christianity in Lebanon was ...
and Druze became a genetic isolate in the predominantly
Islamic world
The terms Muslim world and Islamic world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is practiced. In ...
.
A number of the
Druze embraced Christianity, such as some of
Shihab dynasty
The Shihab dynasty (alternatively spelled Chehab; ar, الشهابيون, ALA-LC: ''al-Shihābiyūn'') was an Arab family whose members served as the paramount tax farmers and local chiefs of Mount Lebanon from the early 18th to mid-19th centu ...
members,
[Mishaqa, p. 23.] as well as the Abi-Lamma clan,
and
Khazen
Khazen (also El-Khazen, Al-Khazen, Khazin or De Khazen, ar, آل الخازن, is a prominent Levantine family and clan based in Keserwan District, Lebanon, Damascus, Syria, Nablus, Palestine, as well as other districts around the Levant, predomin ...
family. During the nineteenth and twentieth centuries, Protestant missionaries established schools and churches in Druze strongholds, with some Druze converting to
Protestant Christianity
Protestantism is a Christian denomination, branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Reformation, Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century agai ...
; yet they did not succeed to convert Druze to Christianity en masse. On the other hand, many Druze immigrants to the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...
converted to
Protestantism
Protestantism is a branch of Christianity that follows the theological tenets of the Protestant Reformation, a movement that began seeking to reform the Catholic Church from within in the 16th century against what its followers perceived to b ...
, becoming communicants of the
Presbyterian
Presbyterianism is a part of the Reformed tradition within Protestantism that broke from the Roman Catholic Church in Scotland by John Knox, who was a priest at St. Giles Cathedral (Church of Scotland). Presbyterian churches derive their nam ...
or
Methodist
Methodism, also called the Methodist movement, is a group of historically related denominations of Protestant Christianity whose origins, doctrine and practice derive from the life and teachings of John Wesley. George Whitefield and John's b ...
Churches.
Demographics
![Prophet Job Shrine](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5f/Prophet_Job_Shrine.jpg)
According to scholar Colbert C. Held of
University of Nebraska, Lincoln
A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States, t ...
the number of Druze people worldwide is around one million, with about 45% to 50% live in Syria, 35% to 40% live in Lebanon, and less than 10% live in Israel, with recently there has been a growing Druze diaspora.
The Druze are concentrated in the rural, mountainous areas east and south 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 ...
.
The Lebanese Druze are estimated to constitute 5.2 percent of Lebanon's population.
They live in 136 villages in
Hasbaya
Hasbeya or Hasbeiya ( ar, حاصبيا) is a town in Lebanon, situated at the foot of Mount Hermon, overlooking a deep amphitheatre from which a brook flows to the Hasbani. In 1911, the population was about 5000.
Hasbaya is the capital of the Wadi ...
,
Rashaya
Rashaya, Rachaya, Rashaiya, Rashayya or Rachaiya ( ar, راشيا), also known as Rashaya al-Wadi or Rachaya el-Wadi (and variations), is a town of the Rashaya District in the west of the Jnoub Government of Lebanon. It is situated at around abov ...
,
Chouf
Chouf (also spelled Shouf, Shuf or Chuf, in ''Jabal ash-Shouf''; french: La Montagne du Chouf) is a historic region of Lebanon, as well as an administrative district in the governorate (muhafazat) of Mount Lebanon.
Geography
Located south-east ...
,
Aley
Aley ( ar, عاليه) is a major city in Lebanon. It is the capital of the Aley District and fourth largest city in Lebanon.
The city is located on Mount Lebanon, 15 km uphill from Beirut on the freeway to Damascus. Aley has the nickn ...
,
Marjeyoun
Marjayoun ( ar, مرج عيون: Lebanese pronunciation), also Marj 'Ayoun, Marjuyun or Marjeyoun (lit. "meadow of springs") and Jdeideh / Jdeida / Jdeidet Marjeyoun, is a Lebanese town and an administrative district, the Marjeyoun District, in ...
and
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 ...
,
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and they constitute the majority of the population in the city of
Aley
Aley ( ar, عاليه) is a major city in Lebanon. It is the capital of the Aley District and fourth largest city in Lebanon.
The city is located on Mount Lebanon, 15 km uphill from Beirut on the freeway to Damascus. Aley has the nickn ...
,
Baakleen
Baakleen or Baakline ( ar, بعقلين) is a major Druze town located in Mount Lebanon, Chouf District, 45 kilometers southeast of Beirut. Altitude 850 – 920 meters high, population is 30,000, area 14 square km, number of homes 2,870. Bord ...
,
Hasbaya
Hasbeya or Hasbeiya ( ar, حاصبيا) is a town in Lebanon, situated at the foot of Mount Hermon, overlooking a deep amphitheatre from which a brook flows to the Hasbani. In 1911, the population was about 5000.
Hasbaya is the capital of the Wadi ...
and
Rashaya
Rashaya, Rachaya, Rashaiya, Rashayya or Rachaiya ( ar, راشيا), also known as Rashaya al-Wadi or Rachaya el-Wadi (and variations), is a town of the Rashaya District in the west of the Jnoub Government of Lebanon. It is situated at around abov ...
.
The Druze make up more than half of the population of the
Aley District
Aley ( ar, عاليه) is a district (''qadaa'') in Mount Lebanon, Lebanon, to the south-east of the Lebanon's capital Beirut. The capital is Aley. Aley city was previously known as the "bride of the summers" during the 1960 and 1970s, when Aley ...
, and they constitute about a third of the residents of the
Rachaya District
Rashaya District ( ar, قضاء راشيا) is an administrative district in the Beqaa Governorate of the Republic of Lebanon.
Most of Rachaya's population are Druze with a Sunni and Shia and Christian
Christians () are people who follow ...
, and they constitute about the quarter of residents of the
Chouf District
Chouf (also spelled Shouf, Shuf or Chuf, in ''Jabal ash-Shouf''; french: La Montagne du Chouf) is a historic region of Lebanon, as well as an administrative district in the governorate (muhafazat) of Mount Lebanon.
Geography
Located south-east o ...
and the
Matn District
Matn ( ar, قضاء المتن, '), sometimes spelled Metn (or preceded by the article El, as in El Matn), is a district (''qadaa'') in the Mount Lebanon Governorate of Lebanon, east of the Lebanon's capital Beirut. The district capital is Jd ...
.
Notable people
*
Fakhr-al-Din II
Fakhr al-Din ibn Qurqumaz Ma'n ( ar, فَخْر ٱلدِّين بِن قُرْقُمَاز مَعْن, Fakhr al-Dīn ibn Qurqumaz Maʿn; – March or April 1635), commonly known as Fakhr al-Din II or Fakhreddine II ( ar, فخر الدين ال ...
(1572–1635), a Druze prince and an early leader of the Emirate of
Chouf
Chouf (also spelled Shouf, Shuf or Chuf, in ''Jabal ash-Shouf''; french: La Montagne du Chouf) is a historic region of Lebanon, as well as an administrative district in the governorate (muhafazat) of Mount Lebanon.
Geography
Located south-east ...
.
*
Emir Shakib Arslan (1869–1946), a Druze prince and notable Islamic scholar.
*
Emir Majid Arslan
Emir Majid Toufic Arslan ( ar, الأمير مجيد توفيق أرسلان) (February 1908 — September 18, 1983) was a Lebanese Druze leader and head of the Arslan feudal Druze ruling family. Arslan was the leader of the Yazbaki (Arslan affi ...
(1908–1983), head of the Arslan feudal Druze ruling family and leader of the final independence movement for Lebanon.
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Kamal Jumblatt
Kamal Fouad Jumblatt ( ar, كمال فؤاد جنبلاط; 6 December 1917 – 16 March 1977) was a Lebanese politician who founded the Progressive Socialist Party. He led the National Movement during the civil war against the Lebanese Front. H ...
(1917–1977), a prominent Lebanese progressive socialist politician.
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Casey Kasem
Kemal Amin "Casey" Kasem (April 27, 1932 – June 15, 2014) was an American disc jockey, actor, and radio personality, who created and hosted several radio countdown programs, notably '' American Top 40''. He was the first actor to voice Nor ...
(1932–2014), a Lebanese-American radio personality/DJ born in Detroit.
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Ahmad Abou Zaki (1941-2014), a general in the Lebanese Internal Security Forces.
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Nabil Kanso
Nabil Kanso (1940-2019) was an American painter. Kanso began his career in New York.
His works dealt with contemporary, historical and literary themes, and were marked by figurative imagery executed with spontaneous and vigorous handling of the p ...
(born 1946), a Lebanese-American painter.
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Akram Chehayeb
Akram Hussein Chehayeb ( ar, أكرم شهيب; born 17 October 1947) is a Lebanese Druze politician who is a member of the Progressive Socialist Party headed by Walid Jumblatt. Cheheyab is a long-term member of the parliament and has also ser ...
(born 1947), a Lebanese politician, member of parliament, and Minister of Agriculture.
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Walid Jumblatt
Walid Kamal Jumblatt ( ar, وليد جنبلاط; born 7 August 1949) is a Lebanese Druze politician and former militia commander who has been leading the Progressive Socialist Party since 1977. While leading the Lebanese National Resistance Fr ...
(born 1949), a Lebanese politician and the current leader of the
Progressive Socialist Party
The Progressive Socialist Party ( ar, الحزب التقدمي الاشتراكي, translit=al-Hizb al-Taqadummi al-Ishtiraki) is a Lebanese political party. Its confessional base is in the Druze sect and its regional base is in Mount Lebanon ...
(PSP).
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Raghida Dergham
Raghida Dergham ( ar, راغدة درغام; born 1953) is a Lebanese-American journalist based in Lebanon. She is the Founder and Executive Chairman of Beirut Institute and Columnist for Annahar Al Arabi and The National. She served as Columnist, ...
(born 1953), a Lebanese-American journalist based in New York.
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Ghazi Aridi
Ghazi Aridi (born 17 October 1954) is a Lebanese people, Lebanese politician who has held various cabinet portfolios. He was the minister of public works and transportation from 13 June 2011 to December 2013.
Early life
Aridi was born into a Dru ...
(born 1954), a Lebanese politician, and member of parliament.
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Samir Kuntar
Samir Kuntar ( ar, سمير القنطار, also transcribed ''Sameer'', ''Kantar'', ''Quntar'', ''Qantar''; 20 July 1962 – 19 December 2015) was a Lebanese Druze member of the Palestine Liberation Front and Hezbollah. He was convicted of terr ...
(1962–2015), a member of the
Palestine Liberation Front
The Palestinian Liberation Front ( ar, جبهة التحرير الفلسطينية, PLF) is a Palestinian political faction. Since 1997, the PLF has been a designated terrorist organization by the United States and by Canada since 2003. The P ...
representing
Hezbollah
Hezbollah (; ar, حزب الله ', , also transliterated Hizbullah or Hizballah, among others) is a Lebanese Shia Islamist political party and militant group, led by its Secretary-General Hassan Nasrallah since 1992. Hezbollah's parami ...
.
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Emir Talal Arslan
Emir Talal Arslan ( ar, الأمير طلال أرسلان) is a Lebanese politician, Political Leader of the Druze sect. He is the chief of the Arslan family, who claim to be descendants of the Lakhmids.
Early life
Arslan was born in Choueif ...
(born 1965), Lebanese politician and the head of the mostly Druze
Lebanese Democratic Party
The Lebanese Democratic Party ( ar, الحزب الديمقراطي اللبناني, al-ḥizb ad-dīmuqrāṭī al-Lubnānī'') is a political party in Lebanon established by Prince Talal Arslan and Marwan Abou Fadel in 2001. Prince Talal i ...
.
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Mona Abou Hamze
Mona Abou Hamze ( ar, منى أبو حمزة) ( Abu Alwan; october 2, 1972) is a Lebanese people, Lebanese TV personality and presenter, born in Barouk into a Lebanese Druze family. She is best known for hosting the Lebanese show ''Talk of the To ...
(born 1972), a TV presenter.
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Amal Clooney
Amal Clooney (; ar, أمل علم الدين; born 3 February 1978) is a Lebanese and British barrister.
Her clients include Filipino and American journalist Maria Ressa; former President of the Maldives Mohamed Nasheed; Julian Assange, the ...
(born 1978), a London-based British-Lebanese lawyer, activist, and author (Druze father and
Sunni
Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word '' Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...
mother).
See also
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Chouf District
Chouf (also spelled Shouf, Shuf or Chuf, in ''Jabal ash-Shouf''; french: La Montagne du Chouf) is a historic region of Lebanon, as well as an administrative district in the governorate (muhafazat) of Mount Lebanon.
Geography
Located south-east o ...
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Druze
The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings of ...
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Sunni Islam in Lebanon
Lebanese Sunni Muslims ( ar, المسلمون السنة اللبنانيين) refers to Lebanese people who are adherents of the Sunni branch of Islam in Lebanon, which is one of the largest denomination in Lebanon tied with Shias. Sunni Islam ...
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Maronite Christianity in Lebanon
Lebanese Maronite Christians ( ar, المسيحية المارونية في لبنان; syc, ܡܫܝܚܝ̈ܐ ܡܪ̈ܘܢܝܐ ܕܠܒܢܢ) are adherents of the Maronite Church in Lebanon, which is the largest Christian denomination in the country ...
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Christianity in Lebanon
Christianity in Lebanon has a long and continuous history. Biblical Scriptures purport that Peter and Paul evangelized the Phoenicians, whom they affiliated to the ancient patriarchate of Antioch. The spread of Christianity in Lebanon was ...
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Roman Catholicism in Lebanon
The Catholic Church in Lebanon ( ar, الكنيسة الكاثوليكية في لبنان) is part of the worldwide Catholic Church under the spiritual leadership of the Pope in Rome.
There are about 1.8 million Catholics in Lebanon in total, the ...
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Melkite Christianity in Lebanon
Lebanese Melkite Christians are the adherents of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church in Lebanon, which is the third largest Christian group in the country after the Maronite Church
The Maronite Church is an Eastern Catholic Churches, Eas ...
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Eastern Orthodox Christianity in Lebanon
Lebanese Greek Orthodox Christians (Arabic language, Arabic: المسيحية الأرثوذكسية الرومية في لبنان) refers to Lebanese people who are adherents of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch in Lebanon, which is an auto ...
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Protestantism in Lebanon
Lebanese Protestant Christians ( ar, بروتستانت لبنان) refers to Lebanese people who are adherents of Protestantism in Lebanon and who are a Christian minority in an overwhelmingly Muslim (28% Shia, 28% Sunni), 5.5% Druze and Christi ...
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Religion in Lebanon
Lebanon is an eastern Mediterranean country that has the most religiously diverse society within the Middle East, comprising 18 recognized religious sects. The primary religions are Islam (Sunni, Shia, and a small number of Alawites and Ismai ...
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Lebanese Democratic Party
The Lebanese Democratic Party ( ar, الحزب الديمقراطي اللبناني, al-ḥizb ad-dīmuqrāṭī al-Lubnānī'') is a political party in Lebanon established by Prince Talal Arslan and Marwan Abou Fadel in 2001. Prince Talal i ...
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Progressive Socialist Party
The Progressive Socialist Party ( ar, الحزب التقدمي الاشتراكي, translit=al-Hizb al-Taqadummi al-Ishtiraki) is a Lebanese political party. Its confessional base is in the Druze sect and its regional base is in Mount Lebanon ...
References
{{Lebanese people by religious background