As-Suwayda
As-Suwayda السويداء | |
|---|---|
 The Roman amphitheatre | |
  As-Suwayda Location in Sirie | |
| Coordinates: 32°42′N 36°34′E / 32.700°N 36.567°E | |
| Kintra |  Sirie |
| Governorate | As-Suwayda Govrenorate |
| Destrict | As-Suwayda Destrict |
| Population (2008 est.) | |
| • Total | 63,324 |
| Time zone | UTC+2 (EET) |
| • Summer (DST) | +3 |
| Area code(s) | 16 |
As Suwayda (Arabic: السويداء As Suwaidā), an aw spelt Sweida, is a mainly Druze ceety locatit in soothwastren Sirie, close tae the border wi Jordan.
It is the caipital o the As-Suwayda Govrenorate, ane o Sirie's 14 govrenorates, borderin Jordan in the sooth an the govrenorates o Daraa in the wast an Rif Dimashq in the northeast.
Demographics an Population
[eedit | eedit soorce]The inhabitants o the ceety are mainly Druze wi a prominent Greek orthodox minority, The population o the ceety is estimatit at 63,324 (2008).
History
[eedit | eedit soorce]The ceety wis foondit bi the Nabataeans as Suada. It became kent as Dionysias in the Hellenistic an Roman times, for Dionysus the god o wine - the ceety is situatit in a famous auncient wine-producin region.
The name Dionysias replacit the umwhile Nabatean name o Suada in 149 AD efter the Nabataean influence decreased an then concentrated towards the sooth, as a result o the acceleratin Hellenization o Coele-Sirie at that time.
Dionysias wis a pairt o the Roman province o Arabia Petraea, an receivit the richts o civitas unner the reign o Commodus atween 180–185.
Dionysus wis worshipped in the same Nabatean temple dedicatit for Dushara. This practice o associatin the wirship o local an Hellenic gods wis common in Hellenistic Sirie.
This name remained in uise durin the Byzantine period, when the toun wis unner the influence o Ghassanids, Dionysias then wis a Diocese as a suffragan o Bosra. It wis mentioned in the Synecdemus o Hierocles. Efter the Muslim conquests it became a titular see.[1]
In recent times Dionysias wis firstly identifeed as Sweida bi William Henry Waddington.
Airchaeology
[eedit | eedit soorce]
Mony aircheological remains can be foond in the auld pairt o Sweida includin:
- Temple o Dionysus-Dushara: aicht well-decoratit columns are still staundin frae the temple.
- Saint Sergius Basilica: wis built in the fift century A.D. It haes Byzantine airchitectur elements, wi an abbey surroondin it. The basilica wis dedicatit tae Saunt Sergius.
- The airch o the lesser kirk: the kirk itsel is ruined. An airch is still staundin there kent locally as Al Mashnaqa wi grape motif decorations.
- The amphitheatre: wis recently discovered, sooth o the Agora.
The ceety haes an aw mony Roman time auld hooses that are still inhabitit bi locals, auncient reservoirs, an watch touers.
Mony pairts o the auld ceety are still tae be excavatit like the Roman aqueduct, a conical reservoir, an a lairger Roman amphitheatre.
References
[eedit | eedit soorce]- ↑ http://www.newadvent.org/cathen/05009a.htm Dionysias in the Catholic Encyclopedia.
 |
Wikimedia Commons haes media relatit tae Category:As-Suwayda. |