Izz al-Din (, also spelled 'Az ed-Din) is a village in northern

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

, administratively part of the

Homs Governorate Homs Governorate ( / ALA-LC: ''Muḥāfaẓat Ḥimṣ'') is one of the fourteen Governorates of Syria, governorates (provinces) of Syria. It is situated in central Syria. Its geography differs in various locations in the governorate, from to . ...

, located northeast of

Homs Homs ( ; ), known in pre-Islamic times as Emesa ( ; ), is a city in western Syria and the capital of the Homs Governorate. It is Metres above sea level, above sea level and is located north of Damascus. Located on the Orontes River, Homs is ...

. Nearby localities include

Ghor al-Assi Ghawr al-Assi () is a Syrian village located in the Hama Subdistrict of the Hama District in the Hama Governorate. It is situated along the road between Homs and Hama, being 20 kilometers south of the latter. According to the Syria Central Burea ...

Murayj al-Durr Murayj al-Durr (; pronounced ''Merzhidor'', also spelled Mraij ad-Durr, Murij al-Durr) is a village in northern Syria, administratively part of the Homs Governorate, located northeast of Homs and southeast of Hama, on the eastern bank of the Oro ...

and

al-Rastan Al-Rastan () is the third largest city in the Homs Governorate, located north of its administrative capital Homs and from Hama. Nearby localities include Talbiseh and al-Ghantu to the south, al-Zaafaraniyah and al-Mashrafah to the southeast, Mur ...

to the west,

Deir Ful Deir Ful (, also spelled Derful or Deir Foul) is a village in northern Syria, administratively part of the Homs Governorate, located northeast of Homs. Nearby localities include al-Rastan to the west, al-Zaafaraniyah to the southwest, al-Mishirfe ...

and

al-Zaafaraniyah Al-Zaafaraniyah (, also spelled al-Za'afaranah) is a village in the northern Syria, administratively part of the Homs Governorate, located north of Homs. Nearby localities include Mashrafah to the southeast, Talbiseh to the southwest, Tasnin an ...

to the southwest, al-Mishirfeh and

Ayn al-Niser Ayn al-Niser (, also spelled Ain al-Nisr or Ayni-Nasir) is a town in central Syria, administratively part of the Homs Governorate, located northeast of Homs. Nearby localities include al-Mishirfeh to the west, Ayn al-Dananir to the northwest, Izz a ...

to the south, Dunaybah to the southeast, Khunayfis to the east,

Salamiyah file:Hama qalat shmemis salamiyyah syria 1995.jpg, A full view of Shmemis (spring 1995) Salamiyah (; also transliterated ''Salamiyya'', ''Salamieh'' or ''Salamya'') is a city in central Syria, administratively part of the Hama Governorate. It is ...

to the northeast and Taldara to the north. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Izz al-Din had a population of 2,620 in the 2004 census, making it the fifth-largest locality in the al-Rastan ''

nahiyah A nāḥiyah ( , plural ''nawāḥī'' ), also nahiyeh, nahiya or nahia, is a regional or local type of administrative division that usually consists of a number of villages or sometimes smaller towns. In Tajikistan, it is a second-level divisi ...

'' ("subdistrict").General Census of Population and Housing 2004
Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Homs Governorate. Its inhabitants are predominantly

Sunni Muslim Sunni Islam is the largest branch of Islam and the largest religious denomination in the world. It holds that Muhammad did not appoint any successor and that his closest companion Abu Bakr () rightfully succeeded him as the caliph of the Musli ...

s from

Bedouin The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu ( ; , singular ) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia (Iraq). The Bedouin originated in the Sy ...

tribes, such as the

Nu'aym The Nu'aym (), also spelled Na'imeh, Na'im, Nu'im or Ne'im, are a large tribal confederation present in different parts of Syria. Their main concentration is in the Hauran and Golan Heights regions of southern Syria, with a significant presence i ...

(Na'im). It is popularly believed that Izz al-Din was named after a patriarch of the Nu'aym who was buried in the village and whose ''

maqam Maqam, makam, maqaam or maqām (plural maqāmāt) may refer to: Musical structures * Arabic maqam, melodic modes in traditional Arabic music ** Iraqi maqam, a genre of Arabic maqam music found in Iraq * Persian maqam, a notion in Persian clas ...

'' (mausoleum) there was a site of visitation.

History

In 1838 Izz al-Din was classified as a '' khirba'' (ruined or deserted village') by English scholar

Eli Smith Eli Smith (September 13, 1801 – January 11, 1857) was an American Protestant missionary and scholar. Biography Smith was born in Northford, Connecticut, to Eli and Polly (née Whitney) Smith. He graduated from Yale College in 1821 and from A ...

. However, by December of that year Izz al-Din was one of roughly 20 ruined villages to be repopulated during the rule of

Muhammad Ali Muhammad Ali (; born Cassius Marcellus Clay Jr.; January 17, 1942 – June 3, 2016) was an American professional boxer and social activist. A global cultural icon, widely known by the nickname "The Greatest", he is often regarded as the gr ...

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

. The village was founded largely as a result of the Egyptian administration's major initiative to expand agricultural production. Izz al-Din was settled by the Bedouin tribes of the

Mawali ''Mawlā'' (, plural ''mawālī'' ), is a polysemous Arabic word, whose meaning varied in different periods and contexts.A.J. Wensinck, Encyclopedia of Islam 2nd ed, Brill. "Mawlā", vol. 6, p. 874. Before the Islamic prophet Muhammad, the te ...

and Uqaydat. Although by the 1840s, when the Egyptians withdrew from the

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

, most of the newly founded villages were abandoned, Izz al-Din remained inhabited. Other remaining villages included Salamiyah, Taldara and Taqsis.

References

Bibliography

* * {{Homs Governorate, rastan Populated places established in 1838 Populated places in al-Rastan District 1838 establishments in the Ottoman Empire