Qadisha Valley

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Place Category: Attractions

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    Quadisha Valley, also romanized as the kadisha Valley and also known as the Quadisha Gorge or Wadi Kadisha, is a gorge that lies within the Becharre and Zgharta Districts of the North Governorate of Lebanon. The valley was carved by the Quadisha River, also known as the Nahr Abu Ali when it reaches Tripoli. Quadisha means “Holy” in Aramaic, and the valley, sometimes called the Holy Valley. It has sheltered Christian monastic communities for many centuries. The valley is located at the foot of Mount al-Makmal in northern Lebanon.

    Early Christian communities fleeing persecution found refuge in the Kadisha. Among these groups were the Jacobites (Syrian Orthodox), Melchites (Byzantine Catholic), Nestorians, Armenians, and even Ethiopians. The Maronites, however, are the dominant Christian group in the valley. From the late 7th century, Maronites fled to the valley from their original areas of settlement in the Levante. At that time, they feared persecution from the Jacobites, who were non-Chalcedonian, and who persecuted Chalcedonian Maronites, and from Islamic attacks. Maronite settlement intensified in the 10th century following the destruction of the Monastery of St Maron. The Maronite monks established their new center at Qannubin, in the heart of the Qadisha, and monasteries quickly spread over the surrounding hills.[1] Early Maronite settlement in the valley combined both community and eremitic life.

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