Ainbal () is a village and municipality in the
Chouf District
Chouf (also spelled Shouf, Shuf or Chuf; ) is a historic region of Lebanon, as well as an administrative district in the governorate ( muhafazat) of Mount Lebanon.
Geography
Located south-east of Beirut, the region comprises a narrow coastal stri ...
of the
Mount Lebanon Governorate
Mount Lebanon Governorate () is one of the nine governorates of Lebanon, of which it is the most populous. Its capital is Baabda. Other notable towns and cities include Aley, Bikfaya, and Beit Mery.
This governorate is named after the mount ...
in
Lebanon
Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...
. It is located 50 kilometers southeast of
Beirut
Beirut ( ; ) is the Capital city, capital and largest city of Lebanon. , Greater Beirut has a population of 2.5 million, just under half of Lebanon's population, which makes it the List of largest cities in the Levant region by populatio ...
. Its average elevation is 850 meters above sea level and its total land area is 360
hectare
The hectare (; SI symbol: ha) is a non-SI metric unit of area equal to a square with 100-metre sides (1 hm2), that is, square metres (), and is primarily used in the measurement of land. There are 100 hectares in one square kilometre. ...
s.
In 2010, Ainbal had 1,813 registered voters.
Ainbal's inhabitants are predominantly
Druze
The Druze ( ; , ' or ', , '), who Endonym and exonym, call themselves al-Muwaḥḥidūn (), are an Arabs, Arab Eastern esotericism, esoteric Religious denomination, religious group from West Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic ...
.
Among several theories regarding the village name's origin is that is derived from the
Aramaic
Aramaic (; ) is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written a ...
word for "divine eye".
In Ainbal's immediate vicinity are numerous caves and the ruins of Kouroum el-Qarya (Vineyard Village), which are situated on a hill above the village.
References
External links
Ainbal Localiban
Populated places in Chouf District
Druze communities in Lebanon
Melkite Christian communities in Lebanon
{{MelkiteGreekCatholic-church-stub