Keserwan District

Etymology

According to the medieval historian Gabriel ibn al-Qilai, the name “Kesrwan” derives from the Maronite muqadam Kisra of Baskinta. During the time of the Crusades, Keserwan was the northern frontier of the Kingdom of Jerusalem.

Demographics

According to registered voters in 2014:

Electoral constituency

The district is part of the Keserwan-Byblos electoral district, with the district of Keserwan being allocated 5 Maronite seats (and the overall constituency having 7 Maronites and 1 Shi'ia).

Cities, towns, and villages

• Aazra
• Adma
• Adonis
• Ain-bzil
• Ain El Delbeh
• Ain el-Rihaneh
• Aintoura
• Ajaltoun
• Akaybeh
• Aramoun
• Ashqout
• Attine
• Azra & Ozor
• Ballouneh
• Batha
• Bekaata Ashqout
• Bekaata Kenaan
• Bezhel
• Bezhel & Mradyeh
• Bkerké
• Bouar
• Bqaatouta (Bkaatouta)
• Bzoummar
• Chahtoul
• Chnaniir
• Dafne
• Daher Sarba
• Daraoun
• Daraya
• Dlebta
• Faitroun
• Faqra
• Faraya
• Fatqa
• Ghadir
• Ghbaleh
• Ghidras
• Ghineh
• Ghosta
• Harissa
• Harharaya
• Hiyata
• Hosein
• Hrajel
• Jdaidet Ghazir
• Jeita
• Jounieh
• Jouret Bedran
• Jouret Mhad
• Jouret el-Termos
• Jwar El Hous
• Kaslik
• Kattine
• Kfardebian
• Kfaryassine
• Kfour
• Kleiat
• Maarab
• Maaysra
• Mayrouba
• Nammoura
• Okaibe
• Raachine
• Rayfoun
• Safra
• Sahel Alma
• Sarba
• Sehaileh
• Tabarja
• Wata El Jawz
• Yahchouch
• Zaaytre
• Zeytoun
• Zouk Mikael
• Zouk Mosbeh

Notable families

• Assaf dynasty Sultan Selim I assigned the Assafs as his chief agents in the region between Beirut and Tripoli, confirming their control of Keserwan, and awarding them tax farms in the nawahi of Byblos and Beirut. While Emir Assaf had lived in Aintoura in the winter and elsewhere along the Nahr al-Kalb ridge prior to the Ottoman conquest, in 1517, he moved his headquarters to Ghazir.
• Khazen family
• Sfeir The clan legend is that a Crusader King, most likely Godfrey of Bouillon, granted to the Sfeir clan a portion of what is today the Keserwan District of Mount Lebanon, which was the northern frontier of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, as a reward for their loyalty to his reign and bravery in battle.

Gallery

File:Our Lady of Lebanon church, Harissa, Jounieh, Lebanon.jpg|Our Lady of Lebanon church, Keserwan District File:Harissa Cathedral From Bat'ha.jpg|Cathedral of Our Lady of Lebanon, Harissa

Bibliography

• Antoine Khoury Harb, The Maronites: History and Constants (ASIN B000B0F6NU)
• Matti Moosa, The Maronites in History ()
• Richard Van Leeuwen, Notables and Clergy in Mount Lebanon: The Khāzin Sheikhs and the Maronite Church (1736-1840) ()
• Farid el-Khazen, The Breakdown of the State in Lebanon, 1967-1976 ()
• Catholic-Hierarchy
• The sword of the Maronite Prince
• Origins of the "Prince of Maronite" Title
• National Geographic Magazine DNA sample from Khazen member
• An Interview with Cheikh Malek el-Khazen

References

References

2. "التوزيع حسب المذاهب للناخبين/ناخبات في قضاء كسروان، محافظة جبل لبنان في لبنان".
3. Antoine Khoury Harb, ''The Maronites: History and Constants'', p. 116. Quote: "When Prince Ahmad Maan died, the Shehabs, relatives of the Maan, took over. When the regent Prince Bashir I passed away in 1706, Prince Haidar reigned, and moved the seat of the emirate from Hasbaya to Deir el-Qamar. The Ottoman Wali of Sidon deposed the Shehabi Prince and replaced him by the leader of the Yamani party, Prince Yussef Alam - Eddin. Haidar fled with his two sons and some of his followers to Ghazir in Kisrawan where his allies, the Khazen and Hobeish families from the Qaysi party, were in control. When the army of Prince Yussef Alam-Eddin conquered and burnt Ghazir, Haidar left his sons in Kisrawan and took refuge in Hermel. The sheikhs of the Khazen family offered hiding-places to the prince's family."
4. Matti Moosa, ''The Maronites in History'', p. 283. Quote: "We have also seen earlier that the Maronite community had been placed under the protection of France and that the French kings began to choose their consuls from among the Maronite dignitaries. Through the power and prestige of France the consuls then exercised authority over the Maronite Church and its clergy. The Maronites were so proud to be under the protection of France that some Maronites called themselves, 'the French of the East.' Thus, through France, the Shihabi amirs, who will be discussed shortly, realized the importance of Maronite rule and power, and they and the Maronites became united in a common interest. In 1697, Amir Ahmad died without an heir, and the Druze notables chose his nephew Bashir al-Shihabi as their new ruler. He was succeeded in 1707 by the young Amir Haydar al-Shihabi, grandson of Amir Ahmad al-Ma'ni. Haydar recognized the authority of the Maronite al-Khazins and the Hubayshis of Kisrawan and Ghazir and treated these two families as equal to the feudalistic Druze families." [https://books.google.com/books?id=8Ogp94y8CJgC&pg=PA283]
5. Fahd, Butros. (1974). "Arcivescovo Pietro Sfair grande orientalista e predicatore, vita e opere". Matabi al-Karim al-Hadithath.
6. Roberts, Sam. (May 15, 2019). "Cardinal Nasrallah Sfeir, 98, a Voice for Lebanese Christians, Dies". The New York Times.