Greeks in Lebanon - AbsoluteAstronomy.com

The Greek presence in Lebanon

Lebanon

Lebanon , officially the Republic of LebanonRepublic of Lebanon is the most common term used by Lebanese government agencies. The term Lebanese Republic, a literal translation of the official Arabic and French names that is not used in today's world. Arabic is the most common language spoken among...

is dated to ancient times and the Phoenicians and Greeks, both maritime peoples shared close ties. The Greek alphabet for example is derived from the Phoenician. The Greek presence is attested by several place names and the close ties between Greeks and the Lebanese Greek Orthodox and Greek Catholic

Melkite Greek Catholic Church

The Melkite Greek Catholic Church is an Eastern Catholic Church in full communion with the Holy See as part of the worldwide Catholic Church. The Melkites, Byzantine Rite Catholics of mixed Eastern Mediterranean and Greek origin, trace their history to the early Christians of Antioch, Syria, of...

communities.

History

In ancient times Lebanon was the site of several Greek colonies. Following Christianization Greek culture remained a strong influence, waning as the centuries passed, though not disappearing. The city of Amioun

Amioun

Amioun in and other scripts of the name, are most probably transliterated from the original Amyūn. It is the capital town of the predominantly Greek Orthodox area Koura District in the North of Lebanon.-Name:...

, (possibly from the Semitic word for Greeks: Yunan

Yunan

Yunan may refer to:in fictional characters* King Yunan, a character in One Thousand and One Nights, a collection of Middle Eastern and South Asian stories and folk talesin places...

) capital of the Koura District (from the Greek χωριά, villages) in the north of the country is a living testament of that. Following the 2006 invasion of Lebanon by Israel most Greeks have fled the country in order to avoid war operations. There remains a Greek community and Hellenic club in Beirut

Beirut

Beirut is the capital and largest city of Lebanon, with a population ranging from 1 million to more than 2 million . Located on a peninsula at the midpoint of Lebanon's Mediterranean coastline, it serves as the country's largest and main seaport, and also forms the Beirut Metropolitan...

Greek Muslims in Lebanon

There are about 7,000 Greeks living in Tripoli

Tripoli

Tripoli is the capital and largest city in Libya. It is also known as Western Tripoli , to distinguish it from Tripoli, Lebanon. It is affectionately called The Mermaid of the Mediterranean , describing its turquoise waters and its whitewashed buildings. Tripoli is a Greek name that means "Three...

, Lebanon

Lebanon

. The majority of them are Muslims of Cretan origin. Records suggest that the community left Crete between 1866 and 1897, on the outbreak of the last Cretan uprising against the Ottoman empire, which ended the Greco-Turkish War of 1897

Greco-Turkish War (1897)

The Greco-Turkish War of 1897, also called the Thirty Days' War and known as the Black '97 in Greece, was a war fought between the Kingdom of Greece and Ottoman Empire. Its immediate cause was the question over the status of the Ottoman province of Crete, whose Greek majority long desired union...

. Many Greek Muslims of Lebanon somewhat managed to preserve their identity and language. Unlike neighbouring communities, they are monogamous

Monogamy

Monogamy /Gr. μονός+γάμος - one+marriage/ a form of marriage in which an individual has only one spouse at any one time. In current usage monogamy often refers to having one sexual partner irrespective of marriage or reproduction...

and consider divorce

Divorce

Divorce is the final termination of a marital union, canceling the legal duties and responsibilities of marriage and dissolving the bonds of matrimony between the parties...

a disgrace. Until the Lebanese Civil War

Lebanese Civil War

The Lebanese Civil War was a multifaceted civil war in Lebanon. The war lasted from 1975 to 1990 and resulted in an estimated 150,000 to 230,000 civilian fatalities. Another one million people were wounded, and today approximately 350,000 people remain displaced. There was also a mass exodus of...

, their community was close-knit and entirely endogamous

Endogamy

Endogamy is the practice of marrying within a specific ethnic group, class, or social group, rejecting others on such basis as being unsuitable for marriage or other close personal relationships. A Greek Orthodox Christian endogamist, for example, would require that a marriage be only with another...

. However many of them left Lebanon during the 15 years of the war. By 1988, many Greek Muslims from both Lebanon

Lebanon

and Syria

Syria

Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest....

had reported being subject to discrimination by the Greek embassy because of their religious affiliation. The community members would be regarded with indifference and even hostility, and would be denied visas and opportunities to improve their Greek through trips to Greece.

History

Greek Muslims in Lebanon

See also