THE BULLETIN OF MIDDLE EAST MEDIEVALISTS

Islamic Settlements in

the Plain of

AkkarlNorthern Lebanon

.In This Issue

f Islamic Settlements in 29. Northern Lebanon

Preliminar~' Results "The Islamic Cult of, Saints

34

by Karin Bartl

(in cooperation with Anis Chaaya)

. Annual Meetings 40

Northern Lebanon represents a

region which is divided by itstopography into several units:the rathernarrow coastal strip,

bordered by a hilly region and the highmountains to the east, the highest peakbeing Qornet es Saouda. Like the adjacentregions to the south and north the coastaland hilly regions offer very favourablesettlement conditions which led to the as­sumption ofaratherdense occupationsincethe earliest times.

However, systematic archaeo­logical research focused only recently onnorthern Lebanon, beginning during theearly seventies with archaeological field­work at Tripoli, Tell Arde and Tell 'Arqa.Archaeological surface investigations ofthe entire area were also carried out duringthat period, but had to be discontinuedbecause of the political situation and couldnot be continued for a long time. Theresults of this research, which already had

shown the rich archaeological potential ofthe regIOn, led to the systematic survey ofone of the most favourable settlement ar­eas 0 f northern Lebanon, the plainofAkkar,which was carried out in 1997 as a jointproject of the Direction Generale desAntiquites du Liban and the Free Univer­sity Berlin.

The plain of Akkar is a very fer­tile landscape which is nowadays dividedinto two parts: the northern region in Syriaand the southern part in northern Lebanon(fig. I). The Lebanese part of the Akkarplain is a nearly triangular area betweenthe villages of Camp de Nahr el Bared,•Arida and'Abbiidiya with an extent ofca.15 (N/S) x 20 (SIW-NIE) x 17 (EfW) km.The most important village to the south­east is the rural center ofHalba. The Akkarregion descends gently from West to East

SEE AKKAR, PAGE 30.

~ Obituary:Albrecht Noth

NewsofMEM

: Pioneers:Michele Amari

Conferences

: Village Architecture: from Antiquity to, Islam

Book Reviews

Contributors &Credits

36

42

45

47

49

53

54

30 AI- 'Usur al-Wusta 11.2 • October 1999

concerns mainly the Hellenistic to LateRomanJEarly Byzantine time, the potteryof which, the main surface material, israther easy to recognize. Much more prob­lematic is the recognition of the differentIslamic periods. It is especially the timespan between the 11th and the 14th centuryfor which excavated sites offer compari­sons. Still extremely difficult, ifnotimpos­sible, is the identification of the early Is­lamic period (7th-10th century) throughthe pottery, because little comparative ma­terial is available. One of the most impor­tantearly Islamic sites in theLevant, 'Anjar,located in the central Beqa'a valley, wasexcavated intensivelybyM. Chehab (1963),but unfortunately, no information aboutthe pottery of the site has yet been pub­lished. Therefore, the find of an EarlyIslamic coin at the site of Dahr el-Biara isof special importance as it is the onlyarchaeological surface evidence for occu­pation during that period until now (see theappendix by S. Heidemann). However, amore detailed analysis ofthe material mightchange these initial impressions,

Among the surface sherds it isabove all the glazed material which is ofdiagnostic value. Besides a large quantityof monochrome glazed pottery, which isdifficult to date, several kinds of sgraffitowares (fig.2-3) and slip-painted wares(figA) were found. These types are wellknown from stratified contexts of the 13thto the 14th century in the region of Tripoli(groups AL3, AL5 and A 11.1 of the classi­fication of H. Salame-Sarkis) (Salame­Sarkis 1980: pI.LXXII) and Tell 'Arqa(Hakimian, Salame-Sarkis 1988). Compa­rable types are found at 'Atlit, al Mina andApameia. Stratified pottery types of the11th century are known mainly from thesiiq area at Beirut. Almost completelymissing are luxury pottery types like lustrewares which are frequent atmedieval aama,for example.

According to the preliminary pot­tery analysis only four sites show traces ofthe Fatimid period of the 11th century. Anincrease of settlements is reported for the12/13th century (10 sites), and a ratherdense occupation is testified for the 14thcentury as well (11 sites).Due to the lackofcomparative material, a differentiation oflater periods, i.e. Late Mamluk and EarlyOttoman times is not yet possible. Diag­nostics of the Late Ottoman period (19thcentury) are mainly specific kinds of clay

AKKAR, FROM PAGE 29.

Middle East Medievalists

Al- <Usur al-WustaThe Bulletin of Middle East MedievalistsVolume 11, Number 2· October, 1999

The Board of Directors of MEM is elected annually at the generalbusiness meeting, normally held in the fall at the annual meeting of theMiddle East Studies Association. (For information, see "AnnualMeetings" section inside this issue.) The next business meeting willtake place in Washington, DC in conjunction with the 33m annualmeeting of MESA (19-22 November, 1999). The Board of Directorsfor 1999 consists of the following members:

Regular membership in MEM is open to scholars and students of allnationalities interested in any aspect of the history and civilization ofthe Middle East in the medieval period. (See the membership applica­tion form on the last page of this issue.) Annual membership dues formembers with addresses in Canada, Mexico. or the United States areUS $15.00. Members with addresses outside Canada, Mexico, or theUnited States are required to pay a postal surcharge of $2.50 in additionto theirdues, for a basic annual rate of US $17.50. See the membershipapplication form on the last page of this issue for multi-year member­ships and payment options. Payment should be made by check ormoney order in the appropriate amount. in U.S. dollars payable on aU.S. bank or in British pounds only, and made out to "Middle EastMedievalists." Send membership applications and dues payments toJames E. Lindsay, Secretary-Treasurer of MEM, Department of His·tory, Colorado State University. Fort Collins, CO 80523-1776, U.S.A.

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ISSN 1068-1051. Copyright @ 1999 Middle East Medievalists. Allrights reserved.

Editor: Fred M. DonnerAssociate Editors: James E. Lindsay (Mem­ber News), Michael G. Morony (Book Re­views), Donald Whitcomb (Archaeology)

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Manuscripts. news, reviews of Middle Eastern books, and other itemsfor inclusion inAl· 'Usur al·Wusta should be sent to Fred M, Donner,TheOrientallnstitute, 1155 East 58th St, Chicago, IL 60637, U.S.A.Deadline for receipt of items for inclusion in April issues is thepreceding March 1; for October issues. the preceding September 1.

Subscription to Al-'Usur al-Wusta is automatically included withmembership in Middle East Medievalists (see below). Membershipinquiries or changes of address should be sent to James E. Lindsay,Secretary.Treasurer of MEM, Department of History, Colorado StateUniversity, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1776, U.S.A.

AI·'Usur al·Wusta is published twice yearly (April, October) byMiddle East Medievalists, and is produced at The Orientallnstitute ofthe University of Chicago. 1155 East 58th Street, Chicago, IL 60637,U.S.A. The views and opinions expressed are those of the authors anddo not necessarily reflect those of Middle East Medievalists, its offic­ers, the editor of AI· 'Usur al-Wusta, or The Oriental Institute.

and is bordered by a chain of flat hillswhich forms the northern spur ofthe Leba­nese mountains. The permanent water sup­ply of the region is mainly guaranteed bylarge springs and several rivers whichtraverse the plain in a southeast-northwest­ern direction. The most important of theperennial watercourses is the Nahr el Kebir,today the border line between Lebanon andSyria. Together with the adjacent Buqaiaplain, the Akkar region forms one of themost importantroutes connecting the Medi­terranean coast and inland Syria.

From the 2nd millenium BC on­wards, the area is mentioned repeatedly inwritten sources which show the involve­ment ofthe region in international politicalaffairs. At various periods the plain ofAkkar became a border region betweendifferent spheres ofinfluence or was incor­porated into larger political units. It seemsthat for only a few centuries it was politi­cally autonomous and independent. Con­cerning the written evidence, periods ofspecial interest are the second half of the2nd mill. BC when the area was involved inthe Egyptian-Hittite struggle for domina­tion in Syria and later became part of thenewly established kingdom of Amurru ,the period of Assyrian presence since theend of the 8th century BC and the laterperiods since the formation of the Romanprovince Syria. The last period of supra­regional importance was the Crusader pe­riod, when the plain of Akkar became partof the county of Tripoli.

During the 1997 survey campaign41 archaeological sites, i.e. settlements,single houses, tombs, necropoleis andworked rocks were investigated. Due tothe fact that almost the entire plain is anintensively cultivated area with dense plantcover and many fenced plantations a com­plete investigation of the region is almost

President: JereL. Bacharach. JacksonSchooloflnternational Studies, impossible. Very small sites like singleUniversity of Washington, Box 353650, Seattle, WA 98195, U.S.A. houses, farmsteads or one-phase villages(tenn expires December 31. 2(00)Vice.President: Margaret Larkin, DepartmentofNearEastern Studies, canhardly befound. The investigated settle­University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, U.S.A. (tenns expires ments are mostly larger sites, quite oftenDec. 31, 2(00) db d I h h hSecretary-Treasurer: James E. Lindsay. DepartmentofHistory, Colo. covere y mo ern villages. A t oug t isrado State University, Fort Collins, CO 80523-1776, U.S.A. (tenn limits the follOWing assertions to a certainexpires December 31, 1999)Member. Michael Chamberlain. Department ofHistory, Univesity of degree, specific trends of occupation areWisconsin. Madison, WI 53706, U.S.A. (term expires December 31, nevertheless discemable. One of those is2(01)

Member. Ethel Sara Wolper, Department of History, University of the distinct increase ofsettlement intensityNew Hampshire. Durham, NH 03824, U.S.A. (term expires December during the post-Iron age periods when all31.2(01)

10.- ... of the larger sites were inhabited. This9876 l 4 3 2 I

Al- 'Usur al-Wusta 11.2 • October 1999 31

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32 Al-'Usural-Wusta 11.2· October 1999

remained an independent political unit fornearly 200 years. During the Crusader pe­riod estates of 'Arqa as well as severalother sites in the Akkarplain were given ascasale to the Hospitallers. The most impor­tant was Coliath/Qulei'at which is to beidentified with Qlaiaftt, today a huge ruinon top of a rock. Others were Manacusine,Merjernin, CastrumRubrum and Somaquie,probably all of them located north of theNahr el-KebiT. Difficult to localize are theforts of Babiya, Loutouros, and I:Ii!?n el­Hamam mentioned by Idrisi. It was sug­gested they might be at Tell Blbi, Tell Kirland Qlai"aat (Dussaud 1927:90), an assump­tion which could not be verified until now.However, with the Mamluk reconquest in1266 the most important sites of the regionlike'Arqa, AlbelHalba and Qulei'at cameunder their dominion.

To conclude, it can be stated thatduring 12th to 14th centuries the plain ofAkkar was a rather densely settled areadominated on a local level by 'ArqaJ'Irqaand on the regional level by Tripoli. Prob­ably, the ancient settlement pattern mighthave been similar to the recent occupation,characterized by only a few larger villagesin the plain and a chain of villages at thehilly fringes of the east and south. How­ever, it might well be that further researchwill modify these preliminary results.

1997). The ancient site of Halba is com­pletely covered by the modem village, sothat archaeological traces are hardly to befound on the surface.

The political history of the plainof Akkar during the Islamic period isstrongly connected to the history ofTripolisince, in a broader sense, it was part of itshinterland. During the Early Islamic pe­riod the region formed the northwesternpart of the Jund Dimashq and came underFatimid rule at the beginning of the lIthcentury. A short period ofautonomy beganwith the reign of the Banu 'Ammiir in1070. In 1099 thecrusaders underRaymondde St. Gilles started a substantial attempt toconquer Tripoli, which succeeded in 1108.In both years 'Arqa was besieged as well.After the fall of Tripoli the plain of Akkarbecame partof the county ofTripoli, which

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Figure 2. Sgraffito ware, yellow glaze with brown decoration, green splashes.

pipes (fig.S). To sum up, 18 settlementsshow traces of Islamic and Late Ottomanperiod occupation, 12 of which could beroughly dated (fig. 1).

With regard to the type of settle­ments it can be stated that only a few sitesof the Middle Islamic period are new foun­dations. Most of them seem to have beeninhabited periodically orcontinously sincethe HellenisticlRoman period or even ear­lier. The sizes of the sites are mostly diffi­cult to determine. Since there are few large(2-3 ha) settlements in the area at all, al­most all of the places might have beensmall to medium-size villages or singlefarmsteads. The most important placesduring the Islamic era were 'Arqa ('Irqaaccording to Islamic sources) and Halba(Albe of the Crusaders), both situated atthe southern fringe of the Akkar plain. Thesite of 'Arqa seems to have dominated theplain since the first urbanization during theEarly Bronze Age and was inhabited al­most continously since then (Thalmann

Figure 3. Sgraffito ware, yellow glazewith brown decoration.

Figure 4. Slip-painted ware, yellowglaze, brown paint. Figure 5. Clay pipe.