Anjar, Lebanon

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Administration
Anjar عنجر
Ruins in Anjar
Country	Lebanon
Governorate	Beqaa Governorate
District	Zahle District
Mayor	Sebouh Sekayan
Geography
Anjar Location of Anjar, Lebanon
Elevation	950 m (3,117 ft)

Anjar*
UNESCO World Heritage Site
State Party	Lebanon
Type	Cultural
Criteria	iii, iv
Reference	293
Region†	Arab States
Inscription history
Inscription	1984 (8th Session)
* Name as inscribed on World Heritage List. † Region as classified by UNESCO.

Anjar (Arabic: عنجر‎, Armenian: Անճար), also known as Haoush Mousa (Arabic: حوش موسى‎), is a town of Lebanon located in the Bekaa Valley. The population is about 2,400^[1], consisting almost entirely of Armenians. The total area of its territory is about twenty square kilometers (7.7 square miles). In the summer, the population swells to 3,500, as members of the Armenian Diaspora return to visit there.

Anjar is home to the Armenian Apostolic Saint Paul Church which is the second largest Armenian church in Lebanon. ^[2]

Formerly known as Gerrha, a stronghold built by Umayyad Caliph Al-Walid ibn Abdel Malek in the 8th century, the site was later abandoned, leaving a number of well-preserved ruins. (The present-day name derives from Arabic Ayn Gerrha, or "source of Gerrha".) The famous Umayyad ruins are now a World Heritage Site.

The area adjacent to the ruins was resettled in 1939 with several thousand Armenian refugees from the Musa Dagh area of Turkey. Its six neighborhoods are named after the six villages of Musa Dagh. The refugees were aided by the French government.

The Syrian Army chose it as one of its main military bases in the Beqaa Valley and more disturbingly in the eyes of most Lebanese as the headquarters of its feared intelligence services. The Syrians have since then withdrawn from the town. With the Syrian occupation gone, the people of Anjar are eager to make their town a major Lebanese tourist attraction once again.