Ras Maska (also Ra's Maska or Ras Masqa,

Lebanese Arabic Lebanese Arabic ( ar, عَرَبِيّ لُبْنَانِيّ ; autonym: ), or simply Lebanese ( ar, لُبْنَانِيّ ; autonym: ), is a Varieties of Arabic, variety of North Levantine Arabic, indigenous to and spoken primarily in Lebano ...

: ''Rāṣ Masʾa'', written as "رَأْسُ مَسْقَا", Classical ar, رَأْسُ مَسْقًى, translit=Raʾs Masqa, lit=Head/Top of a watering source,

Syriac Syriac may refer to: *Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic *Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region * Syriac alphabet ** Syriac (Unicode block) ** Syriac Supplement * Neo-Aramaic languages a ...

: ܪܺܫܳܐ ܡܰܣܩܳܐ) is a village located in the

Koura District Koura District ( ar, ٱلْكُورَة, from gr, χώρα, lit=country) is a district in the North Governorate, Lebanon. Koura is one of the 26 districts of Lebanon, particularly known for its olive tree cultivation and olive oil production ...

in the

North Governorate North Governorate ( ar, الشمال, ') (Lebanese pr. ''eš šmél'') (French: Gouvernorat du Liban-Nord) is one of the governorates of Lebanon. Its capital is Tripoli. Ramzi Nohra has been its governor since May 2, 2014. The population of North ...

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 ...

Geography

This village is located in the Koura district on the hills overlooking the Mediterranean to the south of

Tripoli Tripoli or Tripolis may refer to: Cities and other geographic units Greece *Tripoli, Greece, the capital of Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (region of Arcadia), a district in ancient Arcadia, Greece * Tripolis (Larisaia), an ancient Greek city in ...

. It is divided between the northern and southern regions. Northern Ras Maska, is the lowest part of the village, located at 60 meters (200 ft) above sea level. The religious majority of the northern population is

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 ...

Muslim. It witnessed an important economic development due to its excellent location that hosts many coastal beach resorts, also, Northern Ras Maska is known for its olive agriculture.. Southern Ras Maska is the highest part of the village, located at 200 meters (660 ft) above sea level. The religious majority is

Christian Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

, including

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 ...

and

Maronites 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 largest ...

Population

Families of Ras Maska include, but are not limited to: Abdo, Antoun, Bou Chahine, Dabboussi, Dib, El-Kari, Fahd, Ghajar, Hajj Youssef, Hraiky, Jalloul, Lattouf, Nakhoul, Sarouni, and Sleiman.

Etymology and names

The name of the village is probably derived from the

Aramaic language 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 ...

, ''ras'' meaning ''top'' and ''maska'' meaning ''drinking stream." The equivalent meaning could be the ''top of the stream''. Due to the geography of the village, this translation is more likely correct than the equivalent

Arabic Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C ...

translation: ''top of irrigation''. Many believe that Ras Maska's name is also derived from the Syriac word meaning "the ascension and progress." The town maintains an old, 3 km long tunnel called Al-Naqra, which is believed to have been constructed to irrigate the gardens of Tripoli. What appear to be tombs have been found in the area of Al-Khirbeh, and according to local legend the town's land is filled with buried gold jars.

History

Ras Maska first appears in the Ottoman census of 1519. It belonged to the Nahiyat Koura / Anfeh and was inhabited by 14 male adults (more than 15 years old), 80% of them being married.Khalifeh, Issam (1995), ''Abhath Fi Tarikh Shamal Loubnan'', Private Editor, Hadtoun, page 34. If we adopt the estimation of the HistoriansKhalifeh, Issam (1995), ''Abhath Fi Tarikh Shamal Loubnan'', Private Editor, Hadtoun, page 24.), the number of inhabitants of Ras Maska in 1519 would have been of 70 persons. In the Ottoman census of 1571, the number of male adults was 26. The population of Ras Maska practically doubled over the period, growing on average by 12 per mil per year to be compared to a growth of the number of inhabitants in the Nahiyat of 6.7% per mil per year.

Facilities, services and attractions

* Home to the Lebanese University - North Lebanon Campus * Centre universitaire du Liban-Nord - Université Saint-Joseph * HARIRI Canadian University - North Campus * Hospital Albert Haykel * Ras Maska Volley-Ball Club * Ras Maska Rd.Today and Rd.Tommorow * Ras Maska Steel Bridge * Ras Maska Red Bridge * Ras Maska Square * Tripoli Beton * Perla

References

External links

Ras Masqa
Localiban

Lycée Franco-Libanais Alphonse De Lamartine
{{Koura District Populated places in the North Governorate Koura District Populated places in Lebanon Eastern Orthodox Christian communities in Lebanon Sunni Muslim communities in Lebanon Maronite Christian communities in Lebanon