Al Qamishli
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Qamishli (Arabic: القامشلي, Kurdish: Qamişlo, Syriac: ܩܡܫܠܝ Turkish: Kamışlı) is a city in northeast Syria on the border with Turkey and close to Iraq. It is part of the Al Hasakah governorate and the center of an administrative district. The city was founded in 1926 as a railway station on the Taurus railway.[1] It has an international airport with IATA code KAC.
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[edit] Etymology
The word 'Qamishli' is thought to have many different origins. It could be traced to Akkadian roots, which highly influenced more recent languages in the Fertile Crescent. 'Qamishli' probably means "with reed", referring to the reed growing in the region. Words in Syriac, Kurdish, Turkish have similar meanings.
[edit] People
Qamishli has a population of 90,000. Being right on the border with Turkey, it grew quickly with the arrival of Assyrians fleeing from the Assyrian genocide in Turkey. Armenian and Kurdish refugees also came to settle in Qamishli.[1] Today Kurds (who form the majority[2]), Assyrians, Arabs, and Armenians live side by side in the city. The city, however, was the site of Kurdish riots in 2004 that left 30 people dead.[2]The Kurds consider it as the capital of the Syrian-Kurdish community.
[edit] See also
[edit] Notes
- ^ a b "Al-Qamishli" - Encyclopædia Britannica, 2006.
- ^ a b "Mourners of Stampede Victims Riot in Syria" - FOX News, March 13, 2004
[edit] References
[edit] External links
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