Jezzine جزين
Jezzine Location in Lebanon
Coordinates: 33°32′N 35°35′E / 33.533°N 35.583°E / 33.533; 35.583
Country	Lebanon
Governorate	South Governorate
District	Jezzine District
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
- Summer (DST)	+3 (UTC)

Jezzine (also spelled Jizzin) is a town in Lebanon, located 22 km (14 miles) from Sidon and 73 km (45 miles) south of Beirut.^[1] Surrounded by mountain peaks, pine forests, and at an average altitude of 950 m (3,117 ft), it is the main summer resort and tourist destination of South Lebanon. The town is also famous in Lebanon for its production of handmade, traditional cutlery and daggers with decorative inlays as well as the shrine of Our Lady of the Waterfall.

Contents 1 Demography 2 Culture 3 Economy 4 History 5 Landmarks 6 References

[edit] Demography

The inhabitants of Jezzine are mainly followers of the Catholic Church (Maronite and Greek Melkite).

[edit] Culture

Festivals

• The Feast of the Assumption of the Virgin Mary is celebrated on August 15 of each year with grand religious and cultural festivities.
• The Jezzine Summer Festival where Lebanon's top pop artists perform attracts hundreds of people each summer.

Libraries

• The Jezzine Public Library was built in 1960 and underwent extensive refurbishment and reorganization in 2004.^[2]

Theatres

• Empire Jezzine, the local movie theatre plays the latest Hollywood and Lebanese film hits.

[edit] Economy

Agriculture

• The production of pine nuts is the main agriculture product of Jezzine alongside grapes.

Handcrafts

• Jezzine is internationally renowned for its handcrafted knives and other cutlery, made of inlaid mosaics and bone. The unique cutlery has been presented as gifts to dignitaries all over the world as a unique memento of Lebanon.^[3]

Tourism

• Jezzine is South Lebanon's primary summer resort. It is rich in natural beauty, featuring pine-forested valleys and mountain summits, ponds, and waterfalls. The town is known as the “City of Falls” because of its famous waterfalls, the Jezzine Falls.^[3]

[edit] History

The name, Jezzine, derives from the Aramaic (Syriac) word, meaning "depot" or "store". Many historians believe that Jezzine served as a storing location for traders because of its strategic location on the caravan route that connected the ancient port city of Sidon to the Chouf, the Beqaa Valley, and to Syria.^[3]

The town is rich in historic ruins, such as the Shakif Teron Fortress, the Marmaghieh Cemetery, the Ottoman Serail, which was built in 1898, as well as a number of old churches and monasteries, such as the Saint Antoine Convent, which was built in 1774.^[3]

The town is home to several historical residences, including the Farid Serhal Palace that houses an impressive collection of antiquities. Ancient Aramaic sarcophagi and Crusader remains were found in Jezzine. Another historic residence is the 400 year-old Kenaan Family Palace, located near the Serail.^[2]

In 1635, Lebanon's Renaissance Prince, Fakhreddin II, hid from the Ottoman authorities in one of Jezzine's caves where his father, Prince Qurqumaz had hidden and died.^[1] He abandoned the cave when the Ottomans poisoned its underground water supply. He fled over the dangerous mountain paths along the cliffside of Jezzine and hid at the foot of one of the waterfalls.^[4] The Ottomans eventually caught Fakhreddin II and took him to Istanbul where he was executed.^[1]

The first dinosaur remains found in Lebanon, teeth from a brachiosaur, were found in Jezzine.^[5]

[edit] Landmarks

• Jezzine's Waterfalls, some as high as 90 m (295 ft)
• Our Lady of the Waterfall, a Marian shrine
• The Chir cliff that offers panoramic views of the forested mountains and one of Jezzine's waterfalls that drops 90 m over the cliff.^[2]
• The Grotto of Fakhreddin II

[edit] References

1. ^ ^{a b c} Profile of Jezzine - Jezzine - Lebanon - jizzine.com
2. ^ ^{a b c} http://download.destinationlebanon.com/destleb/Itineraries/Itinerary%203/3-L%20Jezzine.pdf
3. ^ ^{a b c d} Jezzine Lebanon
4. ^ Places in Lebanon - Jezzine
5. ^ http://www.monstersandcritics.com/science/news/article_1162831.php/Fossil_hunters_uncover_Lebanons_first_dinosaur_remains

Coordinates: 33°32′N 35°35′E / 33.533°N 35.583°E / 33.533; 35.583