Beirut

I

Introduction

Beirut or Bayrūt (ancient Beyrtus), capital and largest city of Lebanon, located on the Mediterranean Sea. Once a famous port and as recently as the 1970s a banking and cultural centre for the Middle East, Beirut was devastated by civil war and successive Syrian and Israeli occupation between 1975 and 1991. Traditional Beirut exists on a peninsula which projects slightly west into the Mediterranean, and is contained by the Anti-Lebanon Mountains that rise to the east. Around the historic core of the city areas of poverty have spread, particularly to the south, linking the city with adjacent suburbs. The area of the city is roughly 42 sq km (26 sq mi), though some sites located outside the municipal boundary are commonly associated with Beirut. A fundamental division in the city corresponds to east and west. Two hills for the division, with East Beirut, or Ashrafiyah, associated with Christian Lebanese, and West Beirut, or Musaytibah, associated with Sunni Muslims. The southern portion of the city is now linked with Lebanese Shi'ites and Palestinians. It is this combination of ethnic groups, and their spatial distribution, that has contributed to the violence in Lebanon in general, and Beirut in particular. Population 1,171,000 (2003 estimate).

II

Economy

Beirut is linked by railway and road to Damascus, Syria, and other cities in the Middle East. Principal goods manufactured here are silk, cotton fabrics, gold, and silver articles. The city’s major exports include silk and cotton textiles, fruit, hides, livestock, wool, and silk cocoons. Imports include building materials, clothing, and foodstuffs.

III

Places of Interest

A

Urban Landscape

Beirut is a cosmopolitan mix of European and Arab styles, showing also the blight of urban poverty and warfare. In terms of architecture and planning the city is a jumble, with residential and commercial areas intermingled. On its northern edge the port area dominates East Beirut, while the Avenue de Paris hugs the shore in West Beirut. While the port is central to the economy of Lebanon, important tourist facilities and institutions dominate the Avenue de Paris, including many of the city's most famous hotels, the United States Embassy, and the American University of Beirut. During the war years most services in the city collapsed, and rubbish was dumped on a landfill in the Mediterranean, opposite the heart of the hotel district. A wide boulevard continues south along the Mediterranean, and encircles much of the city. A major thoroughfare is the Avenue De l'Aéroport, which runs from the port area south, out of Beirut and to the airport, 8 km (5 mi) south of the city centre. Other major roads cut north-south and east-west, though the latter were blocked by the creation of the Green Line. This line (depicted on maps in green) was the unofficial boundary dividing Beirut into Muslim and Christian sides during the violent period from 1975 to 1990. In the fighting many of the structures adjacent to the Green Line, including parts of Beirut's central area, were destroyed. The southern portion of the city is, in many ways, also the product of warfare. It is dominated by Shi'ite Muslims, Lebanon's poorest community. Overcrowding in this district has come from the high birth rate, lack of resources to improve housing, and the regular influx of Shi'ites fleeing the instability and violence of southern Lebanon. The situation in this area is compounded by the presence of Palestinian refugee camps, most notorious among them Sabra and Shatilla, the site of a 1982 massacre by Lebanese Christian militia members.

B

Education and Culture

Beirut became a centre of intellectual ferment in the late 19th century, and a cosmopolitan playground in the 20th century. With its Christian population and western orientation, it was known as the most open and freewheeling of the Arab capitals. At the same time, it was a port of entry for the rest of the world, particularly those who sought to influence the region while promoting the interests of local Christians. To this end the Syrian Protestant University, later called the American University of Beirut, was founded in 1866 by American missionaries. Fifteen years later St Joseph's University was established by French Jesuits. These institutions served as a bridgehead for the philosophies of Europe. (Other educational institutions include the Lebanese University (1953) and the Bayrūt Arab University (1960).) At roughly the same time Beirut was awakening to the concepts of Arab nationalism, and the city became a meeting place for those from around the region who wanted to promote Arab rule for Arab lands. The introduction of printing presses by foreign missionaries facilitated the dissemination of such ideas through books, journals, and newspapers, and the importance of Beirut grew with their circulation. In the 20th century the base of Arab nationalism shifted to other capitals, though Beirut maintained its voice, with many critics of Arab regimes finding refuge in the city. In place of intellectual ferment came economic activity, and, with the wealth this brought, a rich and wide-ranging social scene. Businessmen and journalists used the city as a regional base, finding it stimulating and congenial in comparison with other Arab cities. The residents took pride in calling their town the “Paris of the Middle East”.