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Syria Others
Small groups of Turkomans, Circassians, Assyrians, and Jews
retain ethnic identities in Syria. Although the last two are
primarily religious groups, they may also be considered ethnic
communities because of the cultural consciousness developed over
a period of many years.
The Turkomans are a Turkic-speaking people who moved into
Syria from Central Asia. Originally nomadic, they are now
seminomadic herdsmen in the Jazirah and along the lower reaches
of the Euphrates River and settled agriculturalists in the Aleppo
area. Although most Turkomans have assumed Arab dress and speak
some Arabic, others still speak Turkic and retain some ethnic
customs. Because they are Sunni Muslims, the Turkomans are likely
to become further assimilated and may eventually disappear as a
distinct group.
Approximately 100,000 Circassians, descendants of Muslim
nomads who emigrated to Syria from Caucasus after its nineteenthcentury conquest by the Russians, live in Syria. About half of
them are concentrated in the southwestern Hawran Province. Al
Qunaytirah, the provincial capital destroyed in the October 1973
War, was regarded as the Circassian capital; after 1973 many
Circassians moved to Damascus.
Circassian village dwellers, who are organized tribally,
primarily cultivate grain crops. In addition to farming, they
maintain herds of cattle, horses, sheep, and goats; some are
blacksmiths and masons, passing on their skills from father to
son.
Having resisted assimilation more successfully than the
Turkomans, the Circassians retain many customs quite different
from those of their Arab neighbors. Until recently they spoke
their own language exclusively, but most now speak Arabic as
well. At times some Circassians, especially those in Al
Qunaytirah, have demanded autonomy, but this is not an issue for
most of them. Syrian Arabs still somewhat distrust Circassians
because they served as troops for the French during the mandate
period
(see The French Mandate
, ch. 1). In spite of these
difficulties, the Circassians gradually are being assimilated
into the Arab population, a process facilitated by their being
Sunni Muslims.
The present-day Assyrians, of whom there are about 20,000 in
Syria, are Nestorian Christians and speak Syriac, a form of
Aramaic, the ancient language spoken throughout the region before
the widespread adoption of Arabic. Fleeing persecution in Iraq in
1933, those in Syria settled in the Jazirah near Tall Tamir on
the upper Khabur River. The French established this Assyrian
settlement with the assistance of the League of Nations, and in
1942 it became an integral part of Syria.
The Assyrian settlement on the Khabur consists of about 20
villages, primarily agricultural. Although they own irrigated
lands, the villagers barely make a living from their farming,
possibly because they are former shepherds, not cultivators, and
the lands granted to them are poor. Because of their difficult
situation, some Assyrians have emigrated.
Jews have been settled in Syria for centuries; at present
most are concentrated in Aleppo and Damascus, and some are
scattered in towns in the northern Jazirah. Of the estimated
29,000 Jews in Syria in 1943, fewer than 3,000 remained in 1986,
according to Israeli sources. Most had emigrated to Israel.
Because Syria currently restricts emigration of Jews, Israel has
had little success in negotiating with Syria through
intermediaries for the relocation of the entire Jewish community
to Israel.
The Jewish community of Aleppo was once fairly prosperous and
an important element in the city's commercial life. However, most
of the few Jews remaining in Aleppo live in the Bab al Faraj
section, a dilapidated area in the center of the city. The
Damascus Jewish community, always less prosperous than that of
Aleppo, lives in the Hayy al Yahud (Quarter of the Jews). Most
Damascus Jews are peddlers, shopkeepers, moneychangers, or
artisans; a few are important professional men, particularly
physicians. Although most Syrian Jews publicly dissociate
themselves from Zionism and Israel, most other Syrians distrust
them, considering them real or potential traitors.
Data as of April 1987
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