Ghazir
|
Ghazir غزير |
|
|---|---|
| Municipality | |
 Ghazir
|
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| Coordinates: 34°1′4″N 35°39′50″E / 34.01778°N 35.66389°ECoordinates: 34°1′4″N 35°39′50″E / 34.01778°N 35.66389°E | |
| Country |
 Lebanon
|
| Governorate | Mount Lebanon |
| District | Keserwan |
| Area | |
| • Total | 5.42 km2 (2.09 sq mi) |
| Elevation | 380 m (1,250 ft) |
| Time zone | EET (UTC+2) |
| • Summer (DST) | +3 (UTC) |
Ghazir (Arabic: غزير) is a town and municipality in the Keserwan District of the Mount Lebanon Governorate of Lebanon. It is located 27 kilometres (17 mi) north of Beirut. It has an average elevation of 380 meters above sea level and a total land area of 542 hectares (2.09 sq mi). The town has four schools, two public and two private, with a total of 3,253 students as of 2008. Ghazir's name is derived from Arabic root words for "heavy rains", and the town is known for its numerous groundwater reserves. Ghazir is divided into three major parts: Ghazir el-Fawka, Central Ghazir, and Kfarhbab. The inhabitants of Ghazir are predominantly Maronite Catholics.
In the 13th century, when Ghazir was a small village, the Mamluk army invaded Keserwan and destroyed Ghazir among other villages of the district. However, at the time, the local Maronite militias were able to repel the Mamluks. The latter returned in 1305, launching a third surprise offensive against the Keserwani Maronites, massacring or exiling many of them. According to Lebanese historian Kamal Salibi, the Mamluks' target in the Keserwan campaigns were the Alawite and Shia Muslims who dominated the region. Afterward, the Mamluks garrisoned troops in Ghazir under the command of Suleiman Ibn 'Arab to guard the sea route between Tabarja and the Nahr al-Kalb river. The garrisoned force consisted of Sunni Muslim Turkmen tribesmen, who made Ghazir their headquarters in their ensuing feudal rivalry with the Druze Tanukh tribe that dominated southern Mount Lebanon.
Following its integration into the Mamluk Sultanate, Ghazir came under the jurisdiction of Wilayat Bayrut (Beirut District), part of the Safaqa al-Shamaliya (Northern Region) centered in Baalbek, which was part of the larger Mamlakat Dimashq (Damascus Province). The Turkmen emirs of Keserwan, like their Buhturid counterparts in southern Mount Lebanon, were able to hold onto their iqta'at (fiefs) in Keserwan and pass ownership to their descendants, which was atypical of iqta-holders under the Mamluks, who had to be frequently appointed by the authorities. The names of only four Turkmen emirs of Keserwan are known, a certain Sa'id, who was emir in 1361, his brother and successor 'Isa, and Ali ibn al-A'ma and his brother Umar ibn al-A'ma. The latter two were involved in the Mamluk rebellion led by Yalbugha an-Nasiri of Aleppo against the new sultan Barquq in 1389. Ali was killed when Barquq returned to power and sent an expedition against the Turkmens of Keserwan, while Umar was imprisoned and later released. Afterward, little information is known about the Turkmen, who continued to hold the Keserwan through the end of the Mamluk era in 1516.
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