Nabay ( ar, نابيه, from the

Aramaic The Aramaic languages, short Aramaic ( syc, ܐܪܡܝܐ, Arāmāyā; oar, 𐤀𐤓𐤌𐤉𐤀; arc, 𐡀𐡓𐡌𐡉𐡀; tmr, אֲרָמִית), are a language family containing many varieties (languages and dialects) that originated in ...

: נביא ; ܢܒܺܝܶ̈ܐ) is a village located in the

Matn Hadith studies ( ar, علم الحديث ''ʻilm al-ḥadīth'' "science of hadith", also science of hadith, or science of hadith criticism or hadith criticism) consists of several religious scholarly disciplines used by Muslim scholars in th ...

District ('' kada''),

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 ...

Governorate (

Mohafazat A governorate is an administrative division of a state. It is headed by a governor. As English-speaking nations tend to call regions administered by governors either states or provinces, the term ''governorate'' is often used in translation from ...

). Nabay is located 16 kilometers (9.9424 mi) away from the 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 ...

. Its elevation is 500 meters (1640.5 ft - 546.8 yd) above sea level. Nabay surface stretches for 388 hectares (3.88 km² - 1.49768 mi²). The name of Nabay is derived from the Aramaic and

Biblical Hebrew Biblical Hebrew (, or , ), also called Classical Hebrew, is an archaic form of the Hebrew language, a language in the Canaanite branch of Semitic languages spoken by the Israelites in the area known as the Land of Israel, roughly west of ...

words for "prophets", written as ܢܒܝܐ in cursive Syriac, and as נביא in block script. Thus, the implied meaning of the name is "land of prophets" or "of the prophets." This word has its cognate in the Arabic plural, الأنبياء (''al'anbia), and in the singular form, نبي (''nabī''). The village locals are entirely Eastern Rite Christians, with the

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 ...

population consisting of the majority. However, a substantial amount of the population also belong to

Greek Catholic The term Greek Catholic Church can refer to a number of Eastern Catholic Churches following the Byzantine (Greek) liturgy, considered collectively or individually. The terms Greek Catholic, Greek Catholic church or Byzantine Catholic, Byzantine Ca ...

and

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 ...

churches. One shared trait amongst all three groups is their patronage to Saint Michael the Archangel (Mar Mikhael). Saint Michael is considered to be the patron saint of the village, and a large icon of him can be seen upon entering the village from the lower end. In the center of the village, there are three churches across from each other all dedicated to St. Michael, with each church belonging to one of the three primary sects listed above. It is a commonly held belief that St. Michael miraculously defended the local population from being massacred by Druze and Muslims during the

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 ...

. Each year, on September 6th, the villagers celebrate the Feast of St. Michael, commemorating the miracle of St. Michael at Colossae (

Chonae Colossae (; grc-gre, Κολοσσαί) was an ancient city of Phrygia in Asia Minor, and one of the most celebrated cities of southern Anatolia (modern Turkey). The Epistle to the Colossians, an early Christian text which identifies its author ...

) in the 4th century. Currently, there is a new Greek Orthodox church under construction in the heart of the village, dedicated to St. Isaac the Assyrian and to hieromon
Fr. Isaac Atallah
A native of the village, Isaac (whose birth name was Fares) became a priest-monk of the Greek Orthodox church and lived in several monasteries in Lebanon before finally settling at Mt. Athos in Greece. As is customary in monasticism, he received the name Isaac in honor of his patron saint, St. Isaac of Nineveh. Father Isaac is widely venerated amongst the local population, and has gained a strong spiritual following both in his home country of Lebanon and in Greece. Within Nabay, there are various subsections and areas. For instance, the portion of the village that houses the mausoleums is called ''Rām'', which is derived from the

: רמ ( Syriac: ܪܡܐ), meaning "a high place." There also exists a densely wooded and forested portion of the village, which is called ''Rāmayyah''. The suffix, ''-ayyah'', is unique to Western Levantine Aramaic. It denotes a plural, thus, the word ''Rāmayyah'' means "the heights." Towns near Nabay include

Brummana Brummana ( ar, برمانا) is a town in the Matn District of the Mount Lebanon Governorate in Lebanon. It is located east of Beirut, overlooking the capital and the Mediterranean. Brummana has long been a summer destination for visitors and loca ...

Rabieh Rabieh () is a suburban area on the northern edge of Greater Beirut, Lebanon, about 13 kilometers driving distance from Beirut. It is located in the foothills of Mount Lebanon, on the road to Bikfaya. Rabieh saw its population increase sharply in ...

Bsalim Bsalim ( ar, بصاليم) is a village in the Matn District in Mount Lebanon Governorate in Lebanon. The population is almost exclusively Christian. Bsalim's municipality also contains two small districts which are found around Bsalim, and they ...

, and

Antelias Antelias ( ar, أنطلياس) is a city in Lebanon in the Matn District of the Mount Lebanon Governorate. It is located around 5 km to the north of Beirut. Etymology The name is originally Greek, ἀντήλιος – from ἀντί(ant ...

References

External links

Nabay
Localiban {{Matn District Populated places in the Matn District