Sarmin ( ar, سَرْمِين, Sarmīn also spelled Sarmeen) is a town in northwestern

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 ...

, administratively part of the

Idlib Governorate Idlib Governorate ( ar, مُحافظة ادلب / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Idlib'') is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in northwestern Syria, bordering Turkey's Hatay province to the north, Aleppo Governorate to the east, Hama ...

, located 15 kilometers southeast of

Idlib ar, إدلبي, Idlibi , coordinates = , elevation_m = 500 , area_code = 23 , geocode = C3871 , blank_name = Climate , blank_info ...

. It has an altitude of about 390 meters. Nearby localities include

Binnish Binnish ( ar, بِنِّش, Binniš, also spelled Binsh) is a city in northwestern Syria, administratively belonging to the Idlib Governorate, located just north of Idlib. Nearby localities include Kafriya and Maarrat Misrin to the northwest, al ...

to the north, Talhiyah to the northeast,

Afs AFS is an initialism that may refer to: Computing * Andrew File System, a distributed networked file system ** OpenAFS, an open source implementation of the Andrew File System * Apple File Service, implementing the Apple Filing Protocol * Apple Fi ...

to the east, Saraqib to the southeast, al-Nayrab to the south and Qminas to southwest. The

Taftanaz Military Airbase Taftanaz Air Base is an airbase located south of Taftanaz, Idlib Governorate and east of Ta'um, Idlib Governorate, Syria. Taftanaz was home to two squadrons of Mil-8/17 Hip helicopters until its capture by the Syrian Opposition. Led by jihadis ...

is located to the northeast. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Sarmin had a population of 14,530 in the 2004 census. It is the only locality in the Sarmin '' nahiyah'' ("subdistrict").General Census of Population and Housing 2004
. Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Idlib Governorate. Its inhabitants are predominantly

Sunni Muslim 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 disagree ...

History

Medieval period

Sarmin was the site of a major military confrontation between the Crusaders and the Seljuk Turks. In the 13th century the town was celebrated, though small, and the inhabitants were

Ismaili 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 ...

s, according to Yaqut al-Hamawi.le Strange, 1890, p
532
/ref> The

Ayyubid The Ayyubid dynasty ( ar, الأيوبيون '; ) was the founding dynasty of the medieval Sultan of Egypt, Sultanate of Egypt established by Saladin in 1171, following his abolition of the Fatimid Caliphate, Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt. A Sunni ...

ruler of

Hama , timezone = EET , utc_offset = +2 , timezone_DST = EEST , utc_offset_DST = +3 , postal_code_type = , postal_code = , ar ...

and scholar

Abu'l-Fida Ismāʿīl b. ʿAlī b. Maḥmūd b. Muḥammad b. ʿUmar b. Shāhanshāh b. Ayyūb b. Shādī b. Marwān ( ar, إسماعيل بن علي بن محمود بن محمد بن عمر بن شاهنشاه بن أيوب بن شادي بن مروان ...

described Sarmin as a town with much land and dependencies, with very fertile soil. The town had a Friday mosque and lacked walls. In 1355 Sarmin was visited by

Ibn Batutah Abu Abdullah Muhammad ibn Battutah (, ; 24 February 13041368/1369),; fully: ; Arabic: commonly known as Ibn Battuta, was a Berber Maghrebi scholar and explorer who travelled extensively in the lands of Afro-Eurasia, largely in the Muslim worl ...

, who wrote of the abundance of trees, mostly

olive The olive, botanical name ''Olea europaea'', meaning 'European olive' in Latin, is a species of small tree or shrub in the family Oleaceae, found traditionally in the Mediterranean Basin. When in shrub form, it is known as ''Olea europaea'' ...

s, growing there. Soap-making was widely practiced, and their "brick soap" was exported to Damascus and Cairo. In addition, a perfumed soap, colored red and yellow, was produced. Cotton products were also made. He also made reference to a "fine" mosque with nine domes.

Syrian Civil War

Sarmin was shelled during the Syrian Civil War, and one of its mosques was severely damaged. On August 12, 2017, unidentified people killed seven

White Helmets White Helmets may refer to: * White Helmets Commission, a body of the Argentine Ministry of Foreign Affairs, International Trade and Worship * White Helmets (Syrian Civil War), a volunteer organization in Syria and Turkey ** ''The White Helmets'' ...

in a raid on their office here. A school was hit by artillery, killing 5 children on January 1, 2020."Five children reported killed in attack on school in Syria run by Manchester based charity", CNN.com
/ref>

References

Bibliography

* {{Idlib Governorate, idlib Populated places in Idlib District Towns in Syria