Darkush
دركوش
Town
Country Syria
GovernorateIdlib Governorate
DistrictJisr al-Shughur District
NahiyahDarkush
Population
 (2004 census)[1]
 • Total5,295
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)

Darkush (Arabic: دركوش; also spelled Darkoush, Derkush) is a town in northern Syria, administratively part of the Idlib Governorate, located northwest of Idlib along the Syrian-Turkish borderns on the Orontes River. Nearby localities include al-Janudiyah, Zarzur and al-Najiyah to the southwest, Jisr al-Shughur to the south and Millis and Maarrat Misrin to the east. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics, Darkush had a population of 5,295 in the 2004 census.[1] The town is also the administrative center of the Darkush nahiyah which consists of 19 villages with a combined population of 23,022.[1]

History

An inscription at the town, dating back to Roman times, attests to the existence of a shipwright in the town, building river-going boats to use on the Orontes.[2] The town also has the remains of an ancient bridge.[3] The Christianization of the city probably happened after 322.[4]

During the Crusades, the town was the property of the Principality of Antioch[3] until it was captured by Saladin in 1188. The town fell back to the Crusaders under Bohemond VI of Antioch and Tripoli in 1260.[5] The city was finally re-captured by the Mamluk Sultan Baibars in 1267. Nothing remains of the town's Crusader citadel, as it was quarried for building stones.[3]

Darkush was visited by Syrian geographer Yaqut al-Hamawi in the early 13th-century, during Ayyubid rule. He noted that it was a "fortress near Antâkiyyah, in the 'Awâsim Province."[6]

On 13 August 1822 the town and its surrounding areas were devastated by a massive earthquake. The earthquake is said to have killed 20,000 people all together.[7]

Geography

The town of Darkush lies in a wadi in the Orontes River basin, at the foothills of the An-Nusayriyah Mountains.[8]

References

  1. ^ a b c General Census of Population and Housing 2004. Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Rif Dimashq Governorate. Template:Ar icon
  2. ^ Butcher, 2004, p. 133.
  3. ^ a b c Boulanger, ed., 1966, p. 477.
  4. ^ Trombley, 2001, p. 279.
  5. ^ Molin, 2003, p. 68.
  6. ^ le Strange, 1890, p. 429].
  7. ^ Barker, 2002, p. 322.
  8. ^ Royal Geographic Society, 1886, p. 94.

Bibliography

  • Butcher, Kevin (2004). Roman Syria and the Near East. Getty Publications. ISBN 9780892367153.
  • Boulanger, Robert, ed. (1966). The Middle East, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, Iran. Hachette.
  • Trombley, Frank R. (2001). Hellenic Religion and Christianization, C. 370-529. Vol. 2. BRILL. ISBN 9780391041219.
  • Molin, Kristian (2003). Unknown Crusader Castles. Continuum International Publishing Group. ISBN 9781852852610.
  • Barker, John. Syria and Egypt under the Last Five Sultans of Turkey: Being Experiences, during Fifty Years, of Mr. Consul-General Barker. Chiefly from His Letters and Journals. Volume 1. Elibron.com. ISBN 9781402187858.
  • Royal Geographic Society (1886). Proceedings of the Royal Geographical Society and monthly record of geography, Volume 8. Edward Stanford.
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