Tartus Governorate, also transliterated as Tartous Governorate, ( ar, مُحافظة طرطوس /

ALA-LC ALA-LC (American Library AssociationLibrary of Congress) is a set of standards for romanization, the representation of text in other writing systems using the Latin script. Applications The system is used to represent bibliographic information by ...

: ''Muḥāfaẓat Ṭarṭūs'') is one of the 14

governorates 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 State (administrative division), states or province, provinces, the term ''govern ...

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 ...

. It is situated in western Syria, bordering

Latakia Governorate Latakia Governorate, also transliterated as Ladhakia Governorate, ( ar, مُحافظة اللاذقية / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat al-Lādhiqīyah'') is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in western Syria, bordering Turkey's Hatay ...

to the north,

Homs Homs ( , , , ; ar, حِمْص / ALA-LC: ; Levantine Arabic: / ''Ḥomṣ'' ), known in pre-Islamic Syria as Emesa ( ; grc, Ἔμεσα, Émesa), is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is Metres above sea level ...

and

Hama Governorate Hama Governorate ( ar, مُحافظة حماة / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Ḥamā'') is one of the 14 Governorates of Syria, governorates of Syria. It is situated in western-central Syria, bordering Idlib Governorate, Idlib and Aleppo Governorates ...

s to the east,

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 ...

to the south, and 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 ...

to the west. It is one of the few governorates in Syria that has an Alawite majority. Sources list the area as 1,890 km² or 1,892 km², with its capital being

Tartus ) , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = , imagesize = , image_caption = Tartus corniche Port of Tartus • Tartus beach and boulevard Cathedral of Our Lady of Tortosa • Al-Assad Stadium&n ...

History

The governorate was historically part of the

Alawite State The Alawite State ( ar, دولة جبل العلويين, '; french: État des Alaouites), officially named the Territory of the Alawites (french: territoire des Alaouites), after the locally-dominant Alawites from its inception until its int ...

, which existed from 1920–1936.Longrigg, Stephen Hemsley. "Syria and Lebanon Under French Mandate." London: Oxford University Press, 1958. It was formerly part of Latakia governorate, but was split off circa 1972. The region has been relatively peaceful during the Syrian civil war, being a generally pro-

Assad Asad ( ar, أسد), sometimes written as Assad, is an Arabic male given name literally meaning " lion". It is used in nicknames such as ''Asad Allāh'', one of the by-names for Ali ibn Abi Talib. People Among prominent people named ''Asad'', ...

region that had remained under government control. However in 2013

massacres 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 ...

against Sunni Muslims occurred in Bayda and Baniyas, and a

suicide bombing A suicide attack is any violent attack, usually entailing the attacker detonating an explosive, where the attacker has accepted their own death as a direct result of the attacking method used. Suicide attacks have occurred throughout histor ...

claimed by

Islamic State An Islamic state is a State (polity), state that has a form of government based on sharia, Islamic law (sharia). As a term, it has been used to describe various historical Polity, polities and theories of governance in the Islamic world. As a t ...

occurred in Tartus in May 2016. Tartus is home to a major Russian naval base.

Archeological sites

Al-Kahf Castle Al-Kahf Castle or Castle of the Cave ( ar, قلعة الكهف) is a medieval Nizari Isma'ili castle located around southeast of Margat, in the al-Ansariyah mountains in northwest Syria. History The castle was built around 1120 by Saif al-Mulk ...

– Isma'ili castle *

Aleika Castle Aleika Castle or Aliqa Castle ( ar, قلعة العليقة) is located in Aliqa near Tartus at distance 85 km, it consists of two floor structures, a type of concentric castle. Historically (12th century) it was under Syrian Nizari Isma'ili ...

– Isma'ili castle *

Amrit Amrit ( ar, عمريت), the classical Marathus ( grc-gre, Μάραθος, ''Marathos''), was a Phoenician port located near present-day Tartus in Syria. Founded in the third millenniumBC, Marat ( phn, 𐤌𐤓𐤕, ) was the northernmost imp ...

– Phoenician city *

Chastel Rouge Chastel Rouge, also called Qal’at Yahmur ( ar, قلعة يحمور, Castle of Yahmur) is a small Crusader stronghold in the North West of Syria that belonged to the County of Tripoli. It is also identified as Castrum Rubrum mentioned in Latin te ...

(Qal’at Yahmur) – Crusader castle *

Hosn Suleiman Hosn Suleiman ( ar, حصن سليمان), a Syrian village, is found on the slope of the Al-Nabi Saleh mountain (جبل النبي صالح) at an altitude 950 m, at a distance of 20 km from Duraykish and 56 km from Tartous. History Ho ...

Margat Margat, also known as Marqab ( ar, قلعة المرقب, ''Qalaat al-Marqab'', lit=Castle of the Watchtower), is a castle near Baniyas, Syria, which was a Crusader fortress and one of the major strongholds of the Knights Hospitaller. It is locat ...

– Crusader castle *

Tell Kazel Tell Kazel ( ar, تل الكزل, translit=Tall al-Kazil) is an oval-shaped tell that measures at its base, narrowing to at its top. It is located in the Safita district of the Tartus Governorate in Syria in the north of the Akkar plain on the ...

– Bronze age site (possibly the ancient city of Sumur)

Geography

Tartus comprises roughly half of Syria's Mediterranean coastline; offshore lie five small

islands An island (or isle) is an isolated piece of habitat that is surrounded by a dramatically different habitat, such as water. Very small islands such as emergent land features on atolls can be called islets, skerries, cays or keys. An island ...

, the largest of which is

Arwad Arwad, the classical Aradus ( ar, أرواد), is a town in Syria on an eponymous island in the Mediterranean Sea. It is the administrative center of the Arwad Subdistrict (''nahiyah''), of which it is the only locality.Syrian Coastal Mountain Range (Nusayriyah Mountains).Federal Research Division, Library of Congress (2005
"Country Profile: Syria"
page 5 The

Nahr al-Kabir The Nahr al-Kabir, also known in Syria as al-Nahr al-Kabir al-Janoubi ( ar, النهر الكبير الجنوبي, lit=the southern great river, by contrast with the Nahr al-Kabir al-Shamali) or in Lebanon simply as the Kebir, is a river in Syria ...

river forms the

border Borders are usually defined as geographical boundaries, imposed either by features such as oceans and terrain, or by political entities such as governments, sovereign states, federated states, and other subnational entities. Political borders c ...

with Lebanon to the south.

Settlements

is the regional capital; other major settlements include

Al-Hamidiyah Al-Hamidiyah ( ar, الحميدية, al-Hamidiyya, gr, Χαμιδιέ) is a town on the Syrian coast, about 3 km from the Lebanese border. The town was founded in a very short time on the direct orders of the Ottoman Sultan Abdülhamit ...

, Al Qadmus,

Al-Sawda Al-Sawda ( ar, السودا, also spelled Sauda or al-Soda) is a town in northwestern Syria, administratively part of the Tartus Governorate, located 15 kilometers northeast of Tartus. Nearby localities include Annazah to the northeast, Maten al-S ...

, Ayn ash Shams,

Baniyas Baniyas ( ar, بَانِيَاس ') is a Mediterranean coastal city in Tartous Governorate, northwestern Syria, located south of Latakia (ancient Laodicea) and north of Tartous (ancient Tortosa). It is known for its citrus fruit orchards an ...

, Qusaybah and

Safita Safita ( ar, صَافِيتَا '; phn, 𐤎‬𐤐𐤕‬𐤄, ''Sōpūte'') is a city in the Tartous Governorate, northwestern Syria, located to the southeast of Tartous and to the northwest of Krak des Chevaliers. It is situated on the tops ...

Districts

The governorate is divided into five

districts A district is a type of administrative division that, in some countries, is managed by the local government. Across the world, areas known as "districts" vary greatly in size, spanning regions or counties, several municipalities, subdivisions o ...

(

manatiq Minṭaqah ( ; plural ''manāṭiq'' ) is a first-level administrative division in Saudi Arabia and Chad and for a second-level administrative division in several other Arab countries. It is often translated as ''region'' or ''district'', but the ...

). The districts are further divided into 27 sub-districts ( nawahi): *

Tartus District Tartus District ( ar-at, منطقة طرطوس, manṭiqat Ṭarṭūs) is a district of the Tartus Governorate in northwestern Syria. The administrative centre is the city of Tartus ) , settlement_type = City , image_skyline = ...

(7 sub-districts) ** Tartus Subdistrict ** Arwad Subdistrict ** Al-Hamidiyah Subdistrict ** Khirbet al-Maazah Subdistrict ** Al-Sawda Subdistrict ** Al-Karimah Subdistrict ** Al-Safsafah Subdistrict *

Baniyas District Baniyas District ( ar-at, منطقة بانياس, manṭiqat Bāniyās) is a district of the Tartus Governorate Tartus Governorate, also transliterated as Tartous Governorate, ( ar, مُحافظة طرطوس / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Ṭarṭ ...

(7 sub-districts) ** Baniyas Subdistrict ** Al-Rawda Subdistrict ** Al-Annazah Subdistrict ** Al-Qadmus Subdistrict ** Hammam Wasel Subdistrict ** Al-Tawahin Subdistrict ** Talin Subdistrict *

Duraykish District Duraykish District ( ar-at, منطقة دريكيش, manṭiqat Dreikiche) is a district of the Tartus Governorate in northwestern Syria. Administrative centre is the town of Duraykish Duraykish ( ar, دريكيش, Duraykīš, also spelled Drei ...

(4 sub-districts) ** Duraykish Subdistrict ** Junaynet Ruslan Subdistrict ** Hamin Subdistrict ** Dweir Ruslan Subdistrict *

Safita District Safita District ( ar-at, منطقة صافيتا, manṭiqat Ṣāfītā) is a district of the Tartus Governorate in northwestern Syria. Administrative centre is the city of Safita Safita ( ar, صَافِيتَا '; phn, 𐤎‬𐤐𐤕‬� ...

(6 sub-districts) ** Safita Subdistrict ** Mashta al-Helu Subdistrict ** Al-Bariqiyah Subdistrict ** Sebei Subdistrict ** Al-Sisiniyah Subdistrict ** Ras al-Khashufah Subdistrict * Al-Shaykh Badr District (3 sub-districts) ** Al-Shaykh Badr Subdistrict ** Brummanet al-Mashayekh Subdistrict ** Al-Qamsiyah Subdistrict

Demographics

As per the 2004 Syrian census the population was 701,400. A 2011

UNOCHA The United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) is a United Nations (UN) body established in December 1991 by the General Assembly to strengthen the international response to complex emergencies and natural disaste ...

estimate put the population at 797,000, though this has likely changed since the start of the war. The majority at 72% are

Alawites The Alawis, Alawites ( ar, علوية ''Alawīyah''), or pejoratively Nusayris ( ar, نصيرية ''Nuṣayrīyah'') are an ethnoreligious group that lives primarily in Levant and follows Alawism, a sect of Islam that originated from Shia Isla ...

, 7%

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 ...

, 8%

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 ...

, and 13%

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 ...

. There is a small

Cretan Greek Cretan Greek, or the Cretan dialect ( el, Κρητική Διάλεκτος, ), is a variety of Modern Greek spoken in Crete and by the Cretan diaspora. Geographic distribution The Cretan dialect is spoken by the majority of the Cretan Greek ...

community concentrated in Al-Hamidiyah, the descendants of refugees who fled the Greco-Turkish War of 1897.Greek-Speaking Enclaves of Lebanon and Syria
by Roula Tsokalidou. Proceedings ''II Simposio Internacional Bilingüismo''. Retrieved 4 December 2006

Gallery

File:Tartus_governorate_-_physical_map.png, Map of Tartus governorate File:Safita overview.jpg, Safita File:Kaf Aljaa.jpg, Mountains near Kaff al-Jaa File:Marqab2.jpg, Margat Castle File:Al-Kafroun (Arabic الكفرون).jpg, Al Kafrun File:Arwad Castle 阿瓦德古堡 - panoramio.jpg, Arwad Castle

References

External links

etartus
The First Complete website for Tartus news and services {{Authority control Governorates of Syria