As-Suwayda
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- Suada redirects here. For the genus of grass skipper butterflies, see Suada (butterfly).
As Suwayda (also Sweida; Arabic: السويداء) is a mainly Druze town located in southwestern Syria, close to the border with Jordan.
It is the capital of Muhafazat as Suwayda, one of Syria's 14 governorates, bordering Jordan in the South and the governorates of Daraa in the West and Rif Dimashq in the North and East.
[edit] Demographics and population
The inhabitants of the town are mainly Druze with a prominent Greek orthodox minority, The population of the town was estimated in 2002 to be 87,000 [1].
[edit] History
The town was founded by the Nabataeans as Suada, afterwards it was called Dionysias during Hellenistic and Roman times, for Dionysus the god of wine - the town is situated in a famous ancient wine-producing region.
[edit] Archaeology
As Suwayda has some archeological excavations of the ancient Nabataean, Hellenistic, Roman and Byzantine times, most notably the town’s Hellenistic agora, and the remnants of a big Byzantine church from the 6th century most probably the Church of Saint Sergius. the town has also many Roman time old houses that are still inhabited by locals, a conical pond, and a Roman amphitheatre still to be uncovered.
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