Ammatour (عمّاطور) is a mountain resort in the Shouf (Al-Shouf) District in Mount Lebanon Province of Lebanon. Its name is derived from the words 'Ain Maa Tour', meaning the spring of the mountain. It is Lebanon's richest village in water sources, as its territory contains more than 365 springs, fountains, and a river. It lies 57 km from Beirut, at an elevation of between 800 and 1,050 meters above sea level.
The village, or rather little town, is inhabited by around 5,000 registered residents made up of a Druze majority and a Christian minority consisting of Greek Melkite Catholics and Maronites, all living together in harmony for centuries. The largest and best known Druze families in Ammatour are Abou Chakra (also written Abu/Abi Chacra/Shackra/Shakra) and Abdel Samad (also written Abdul/Abdel Samad), both of which have played major political, economical and religious roles in Lebanon's history, especially during the 19th century. The largest Christian families are Salem, Jebara, Lutaif and Bu Raad.
Ammatour enjoys one of the highest literacy and university education rates in Lebanon; its sons and daughters occupy prominent political, educational, cultural, financial and military positions both in Lebanon and abroad. Its state school, founded in 1929, is one of the oldest state schools in Lebanon, and the second to have its students sit for the intermediate certificate examinations. It also enjoys a significant religious position as the birthplace of five Sheikh Aqls (Grand Muftis), i.e. religious leaders of the Druze community, in addition to the fact that the first Patriarch of the Melkite Greek Catholic Church in the Middle East was anointed and appointed in Ammatour in 1724.
Ammatour's first Municipal Council was created as early as 1927, and documented records show that it had Mayors as early as 1870. The village's cultural activities are undertaken by its social and sporting clubs and associations, including: The Social Sporting Club of Ammatour - Amigos Ammatour sports association, The Ammatour Women's Association, and The Cultural Meeting Association (Jami'yyat Al-Liqaa Al-Thaqafi). The Amigos are one of the best sport clubs in the region, and has had a great era during the 1970s and 1980s, winning a lot of trophies in several sports, including: volleyball, basketball, swimming, chess, table tennis and shooting.
In mid-September Ammatour celebrates its annual festival Eid Az-Zaitoun (The Olives Festival), which usually has rich musical and singing programmes marking the end of summer and welcoming the approaching olive season.
Furthermore, Ammatour is now home of one the world’s largest tree nurseries. It’s only half-finished at the moment, but when it is complete it will be a place where a million trees can be grown at a time and then transported to areas at risk of desertification and other threats to the environment.
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