El Mina, Lebanon

El-Mina or El Mina (Arabic: الميناء / ALA-LC: al-Mīnā’, which means "harbour"), is a coastal city in Northern Lebanon. El-Mina occupies the location of the old Phoenician city of Tripoli, Lebanon's second largest city. It acts as the harbour city for modern neighbouring Tripoli, situated 5 km to the east.

History

El Mina is the site of the ancient city of Tripolis that dates back to the Phoenician era, and is one of Lebanon's oldest cities, alongside Byblos, Tyre and Sidon. The site of Tripolis moved inland after the Islamic reconquest from the crusaders, and today's El-Mina became the harbour district of Tripoli, eventually having its own municipal board in the beginning of the twentieth century, separate from that of Tripoli, but within the context of Greater Tripoli.

Geography

El-Mina is the city with the largest number of islands surrounding it, along the Levantine coastline. It has nine islands, the closest, the Abdul Wahab Island can be visited by crossing a bridge over the sea. The farthest island, 'Ramkin', is 10 kilometers away from the coast, and has a lighthouse. Four of the islands have been declared as natural reservations, to help breed fish, and preserve their natural habitat. The city's seashore extends 3 to 4 kilometers, and its famous seashore sidewalk, the "corniche", is a popular site frequented by people from all around Lebanon, who come to enjoy the fresh air. The city is mostly flat, and has a diameter of only one km, that extends from the seashore to the border of the city of Tripoli. Due to large expansion, El-Mina and Tripoli are almost attached, except for a roundabout that indicate the separation between the two cities, close to 100 meters distance.

Lebanon

Coordinates: 33°50′N 35°50′E / 33.833°N 35.833°E / 33.833; 35.833

Lebanon (ⁱ/ˈlɛbənɒn/ or /ˈlɛbənən/; Arabic: لبنان‎ Libnān or Lubnān; Lebanese Arabic: [lɪbˈneːn]; Aramaic: לבנאן‎; French: Liban), officially the Lebanese Republic (Arabic: الجمهورية اللبنانية‎ al-Jumhūrīyah al-Lubnānīyah; Lebanese Arabic: [elˈʒʊmhuːɾɪjje l.ˈlɪbneːnɪjje]; French: République libanaise), is a country in Western Asia. It is bordered by Syria to the north and east and Israel to the south. Lebanon's location at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian hinterland facilitated its rich history and shaped a cultural identity of religious and ethnic diversity.

The earliest evidence of civilization in Lebanon dates back more than seven thousand years, predating recorded history. Lebanon was the home of the Canaanites/Phoenicians and their kingdom, a maritime culture that flourished for over a thousand years (c. 1550–539 BC). In 64 BC, the region came under the rule of the Roman Empire, and eventually became one of the Empire's leading centers of Christianity. In the Mount Lebanon range a monastic tradition known as the Maronite Church was established. As the Arab Muslims conquered the region, the Maronites held onto their religion and identity. However, a new religious group, the Druze, established themselves in Mount Lebanon as well, generating a religious divide that has lasted for centuries. During the Crusades, the Maronites re-established contact with the Roman Catholic Church and asserted their communion with Rome. The ties they established with the Latins have influenced the region into the modern era.

Lebanon (painting)

Lebanon is a mural size painting by Nabil Kanso depicting the Lebanese Civil War in a scene invoking the spirit and character of the people in the midst of horror and violence gripping the country. Amid the scene of chaos and devastation, two central figures reach across toward each other symbolically to represent the appeal for unity in defiance of the forces of division, destruction, and terror.

Description

Painted in oil on linen and completed in 1983, the painting Lebanon measures 28 feet (8.5 meters) long by 10 feet (3meters) tall. Its composition delineates three sections. At the center, two leaping female figures reach toward each other, almost touching. They are within grasp of a tiny pearl of white green light at the center of the canvas. In the foreground plane forming the base of the two converging figures, an appealing mother carrying a child appears bursting out from a torched pyramidal structure serving to balance and heighten the overall impact of the central scene.

Lebanon (Dunn, North Carolina)

Lebanon is a historic plantation house located near Dunn, Harnett County, North Carolina. It was built about 1824, and is a two-story, three bay, Greek Revival style frame dwelling with a one-story wing. It is sheathed in weatherboard and rests on a brick foundation. The front facade features a three bay, two-tier porch. During the American Civil War, the Battle of Averasboro (March 16, 1865) occurred in the immediate vicinity of plantation house and it was used as a hospital.

It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1973.

References