Sahnaya ( ar, صحنايا, also spelled Sihnaya or Sehnaya) is a town in southern Syria, administratively part of the

Rif Dimashq Governorate Rif Dimashq Governorate ( ar, محافظة ريف دمشق, ', literally, the "Governorate of the Countryside of Damascus", Damascus Suburb) is one of the fourteen governorates (provinces) of Syria. It is situated in the southwestern part of the ...

, located southwest of Damascus in the western

Ghouta Ghouta ( ar, غُوطَةُ دِمَشْقَ / ALA-LC: ''Ḡūṭat Dimašq'') is a countryside and suburban area in southwestern Syria that surrounds the city of Damascus along its eastern and southern rim. Name Ghouta is the Arabic term (' ...

. Nearby localities include

Ashrafiyat Sahnaya Ashrafiyat Sahnaya ( ar, أشرفية صحنايا, ʾAshrafīyat Ṣahnāyā, also spelled Ashrafiah Sahnaya) is a city in southern Syria, administratively part of the Rif Dimashq Governorate, located southwest of Damascus. Nearby localities in ...

Darayya Darayya ( ar, دَارَيَّا, Dārayyā) is a suburb of Damascus in Syria, the centre of Darayya lying south-west of the centre of Damascus. Administratively it belongs to Rif Dimashq. History and population Darayya is one of the oldest c ...

Muadamiyat al-Sham Muadamiyat al-Sham ( ar, المعضمية الشام, al-Muʿaḍḍamīyah ash-Shām; also spelled Moadamiyet al-Sham, Moadamiya or Moadamiyah) is a town in southern Syria, administratively a part of the Darayya District in the Rif Dimashq Gover ...

Jdeidat Artouz Jdeidat Artouz ( ar, جديدة عرطوز, also spelled Jdeidet Artouz) is a town in southern Syria, administratively part of the Rif Dimashq Governorate, located southwest of Damascus. Nearby localities include Qatana to the west, Artouz to t ...

, Khan Danun and

Al-Kiswah Al-Kiswah ( ar, الكسوة ' also spelled Kissoué/Kiswe) is a city in the Rif Dimashq Governorate, Syria. It is located approximately south of Damascus. It was the location of the 1303 Battle of Marj al-Saffar, and the childhood home of A ...

. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics, Sahnaya had a population of 13,993 in the 2004 census.General Census of Population and Housing 2004
Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Rif Dimashq Governorate. The town is also the administrative center of the Sahnaya ''

nahiyah A nāḥiyah ( ar, , plural ''nawāḥī'' ), also nahiya or nahia, is a regional or local type of administrative division that usually consists of a number of villages or sometimes smaller towns. In Tajikistan, it is a second-level division w ...

'' consisting of two towns with a combined population of 44,512. Sahnaya is one of the few towns in the

with a majority Druze community, along with

Jaramana Jaramana ( ar, جرمانا) is a city in southern Syria, administratively part of the Rif Dimashq Governorate in the Ghouta plain. Its location, 3 kilometers southeast of the Syrian capital, makes it a bustling town in the greater Damascus metr ...

, Ashrafiyat Sahnaya and Deir Ali.

History

Sahnaya's residents are predominantly

Druze The Druze (; ar, دَرْزِيٌّ, ' or ', , ') are an Arabic-speaking esoteric ethnoreligious group from Western Asia who adhere to the Druze faith, an Abrahamic, monotheistic, syncretic, and ethnic religion based on the teachings o ...

and

Greek Orthodox The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the entire body of Orthodox (Chalcedonian) Christianity, sometimes also call ...

. The cavern of St. Paul near the town was supposedly the hiding place of Paul the Apostle when he was pursued in Damascus. In 1838, Eli Smith noted ''Sahnaya'' as being located in the ''Wady el-'Ajam'', and being populated with

and "Greek"

Christians Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...

.Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol 3, 2nd appendix, p
148
/ref> A former

Metropolitan of Argentina, Malatios Alsweti, comes from Sahnaya. The town is also known for its old olive trees, some of which are around 500 years old.

Geography and population

Sahnaya has a rural population and a hot climate. Most houses are simple; they are mostly made of cement because it is located in Damascus, one of the oldest cities in the world. Recently, due to the Syrian civil war, Sahnaya has hosted tens of thousands of the inhabitants of neighbouring

and

Al-Sabinah Al-Sabinah ( ar, السبينة) is a town in southern Syria, administratively part of the Rif Dimashq Governorate, located southwest of Damascus in the western Ghouta. Nearby localities include Ashrafiyat Sahnaya, Darayya, Muadamiyat al-Sham, ...

, who are mainly

Sunni Muslims Sunni Islam () is the largest branch of Islam, followed by 85–90% of the world's Muslims. Its name comes from the word ''Sunnah'', referring to the tradition of Muhammad. The differences between Sunni and Shia Muslims arose from a disagr ...

. The town has a church named after

Saint Elijah Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My God is Yahweh/ YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) was, according to the Boo ...

and a

majlis (religious council).

Climate

In Sahnaya, there is a local steppe climate. Rainfall is higher in winter than in summer. The Köppen-Geiger climate classification is BSk. The average annual temperature in Sahnaya is . About of precipitation falls annually.

References

Bibliography

* * Populated places in Darayya District Towns in Syria Druze communities in Syria {{RifDimashqSY-geo-stub