Byblos District

Byblos District
District
قضاء جبيل
Country Lebanon
GovernorateKeserwan-Jbeil
CapitalByblos
Area
 • Total
430 km2 (170 sq mi)
Highest elevation
2,150 m (7,050 ft)
Lowest elevation
0 m (0 ft)
Population
 • Estimate 
(31 December 2017)
99,388
Time zoneUTC+2 (EET)
 • Summer (DST)UTC+3 (EEST)

Byblos District (Arabic: قضاء جبيل; transliteration: Qadaa' Jbeil), also called the Jbeil District (Jbeil is Lebanese Arabic for "Byblos"; standard Arabic Jubail), is a district (qadaa) of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate of Lebanon. It is located to the northeast of Lebanon's capital Beirut. The capital is Byblos. The rivers of al-Madfoun and Nahr Ibrahim form the district's natural northern and southern borders respectively, with the Mediterranean Sea bordering it from the west and Mount Lebanon from the east, separating it from the adjacent district of Baalbek in the Beqaa Valley.

Demographics

The district's population is predominantly Maronite Catholic, followed by a Shia Muslim minority community.[1] The largest towns of the district are predominantly inhabited by Maronites; notably Byblos, Qartaba, Aqoura and Amsheet.[1] Most Shia Muslims live in the villages of Almat, Ras Osta, Hjoula and Bichtlida, and in the jurd highlands of Lassa, Afqa and Mazraat es-Siyad. A Greek Orthodox minority forms part of the population and is spread among several villages know locally as qornet el-roum (the corner of the Greek Orthodox). The villages that make up qournet el-roum are Mounsef, Jeddayel, Bekhaaz, Berbara, Gharzouz, Rihanneh and Chikhane.

According to registered voters in 2014:

Year Christians Muslims Druze
Total Maronites Greek Orthodox Greek Catholics Armenian Orthodox Other Christians Total Shias Sunnis Druze
2014[2]
76.39%
67.46%
4.56%
1.88%
1.31%
1.18%
23.12%
19.78%
3.34%
0.01%
2018[3]
76.33%
67.03%
4.54%
1.89%
1.22%
1.65%
23.64%
20.25%
3.39%
0.01%
2022[4]
76.31%
67.27%
4.65%
1.63%
0.96%
1.80%
23.69%
20.97%
2.72%
0.00%
2026[5]
74.76%
70.13%
3.02%
 N/a N/a
1.61%
25.24%
22.47%
2.77%
0.00%

Number of registered voters (21+ years old) over the years.

Years Men Women Total Growth (%)
2009 38,708 36,877 75,585 N/a
2010 39,032 37,115 76,147 +0.74%
2011 38,898 37,106 76,004 -0.19%
2012 39,348 37,545 76,893 +1.16%
2013 39,932 37,968 77,900 +1.29%
2014 40,393 38,430 78,823 +1.17%
2015 40,816 38,839 79,655 +1.04%
2016 41,205 39,429 80,634 +1.21%
2017 41,630 39,864 81,494 +1.06%
2018 42,211 40,289 82,500 +1.22%
2019 42,619 40,658 83,277 +0.93%
2020 43,059 41,043 84,102 +0.98%
2021 43,423 41,327 84,750 +0.76%
2022 43,965 41,719 85,684 +1.09%
2023 44,114 41,889 86,003 +0.37%
2024 44,490 42,159 86,649 +0.75%
2025 44,676 42,447 87,123 +0.54%
2026 N/a N/a 87,820 +0.79%
Source: DGCS [1]

Electoral constituency

Byblos District has three seats allocated to it in the Lebanese Parliament. Two of these seats are allocated to Maronite Catholics, while the other seat is allocated to Shia Muslims.

Landmarks and sights

The Byblos District rises from 0 to 2,300 meters above sea level in the north. "Jabal el-Mnaitra" is also in the district, and said to have an altitude of 2,911/2,807 meters above sea level, but this isn't confirmed. Moreover, The District hosts a number of significant sites. The capital Byblos is an important historical and archaeological site boasting Phoenician, Roman, and Crusader ruins. The mountain village of Aannaya hosts the Saint Maroun-Aannaya monastery and the Catholic shrine of Saint Charbel (1828-1898), the first Lebanese saint (officially canonized by Pope Paul VI in 1977), both significant religious Maronite Christian holy sites. The village of Laqlouq, which has an altitude of 1,750 meters to 2,000 meters, is a ski resort. The village of Afqa contains the Afqa grotto, which is the source of the Nahr Ibrahim, also known as the Adonis River. The village of Bentaël (also spelled Bintaael) contains the first protected area in Lebanon, established in 1981. The village of Jaj hosts surviving cedar trees from the ancient cedar forests from which cedar wood was exported to Egypt and later to Jerusalem. The village Chikhane is considered the birthplace of the first Russian school in the Middle East, believed to have been established during World War I. The village of Hjoula is among the very rare villages in Lebanon to contain fossilized sea animals in it, along the village of Haqel. Byblos District also has a notable beach life with many public and private resorts existing along the seaside.

Towns and villages

List and location of the 98 towns and villages in the Byblos district:

References

  1. ^ a b "Districts in Depth: Jbeil". NOW News. 2009-05-28. Archived from the original on 2017-07-28. Retrieved 2016-02-12.
  2. ^ https://lub-anan.com/المحافظات/جبل-لبنان/جبيل/المذاهب/
  3. ^ "Critical study in proportional election law". Lebanonfiles.com (in Arabic). 2018. Retrieved 2018-06-15.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  4. ^ "Mapping Lebanon: Data and statistics". today.lorientlejour.com (in English). 2022. Retrieved 2022-10-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)
  5. ^ "Statify Lebanon". statisticslebanon.lb (in English). 2022. Retrieved 2022-10-05.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: url-status (link)

34°07′25″N 35°39′04″E / 34.12361°N 35.65111°E / 34.12361; 35.65111

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