Our Homeland - Kousba

HISTORY OF KOUSBA EL-KOURA, LEBANON

Documented by: Michael G. Farrow, Ph.D.
April 25, 2009




View of Kousba El-Koura, Lebanon with the bell tower of SS Sergius and Bacchus, the main Greek Orthodox Church, in the center and the olive orchards in the foreground.


Kousba was founded in the year 1540 AD with the site of the settlement chosen by two families of the Banu-Ghassan (Tribe of Ghassan), the Habeeb and the Moses (Moosa) families. This Arabic tribe originated in the Yeman and migrated northward into southern Syria about the time of the bursting of the Marib dam in Yeman around 300-400 AD. They settled in the Houran area in southern Syria and came to dominate the area, being a tribute kingdom of the Roman Emperor in Constantinople, until the time of the conquest of that part of Syria by the armies of Mohammed about 634 AD. They were the first Arabic tribe to adopt Christianity, adopting the Syrian Orthodox faith, and at one point, became monotheists as were most of the Orthodox population of Syria. They remained in this territory, with some of their tribe families adopting Islam. The Islamic conquest was followed by the Ottoman Turkish conquest of Syria in 1516.

For whatever reason, perhaps due to their exposure to the Sultan’s troops in the barren areas of Syria or as Alexander Maloof reports in his book The Ghassani Legacy, citing Ad Dwayhi, the year 1519 was one of inflation. Many of the tribe sold their flocks due to the the increased value of the livestock. These tribal families began to migrate, some to Lebanon and others to Syria, Jordan, and even Greece. The Habeeb family migrated to central Lebanon, to the mountains for safety. Lebanon derived its name from the Arabic word for yogurt, “Leban” because its mountain peaks were always covered with snow and it reminded the inhabitants of yogurt.


Here in Lebanon, the Habeeb family moved to an area known as the Keserwan (northeast of Beirut, in Mt. Lebanon area) and remained there for about 21 years. From there they moved to an uninhabited area in the county (in Arabic, county = Qadaa’) of Lebanon known as the “Koura”, a Greek word meaning “the place”. This area was north of Keserwan, about 10 miles southeast of the coastal city of Tripoli. Perhaps they migrated there because the Koura was being settled by Orthodox Christians exclusively. In fact, the persecutions of Sultan Sulieman after the Ottoman conquest of Crete in 1645, drove Greek Orthodox Christians to settle in the Koura. This may be how the county received its name. To this day, there are Orthodox customs in Kousba that are not found elsewhere in Lebanon but are, indeed, found in Greece. In addition, the genetic features of people from the Koura resemble those, in many cases, of Greece rather than the rest of Lebanon (particularly the facial features: eyes and rounded noses). Perhaps there was a significant Greek influx followed by intermarriage. Once in the Koura, however, the Habeebs settled at a vacant spot near the Roman ruins of Naous, and called it Kousba, an Aramaic word meaning silver and/or money (Other meanings say that Kousba is derived from the Aramaic word meaning hidden because of its wonderful location among the pine trees (which still grow on the ridge above Kousba); yet others say it is derived from the Arabic word meaning winner). The patron saint of the Ghassanid tribe, from whence these families came, was St. Sergius (“Sarkis” in Arabic and Greek). And so they built a church after their patron and his companion Roman Soldier, Bacchus which stands today in the center of the village, as the main church of the Village. Among the families of the Habeebs are the Azars, Ayoubs, Antonius, Deeb, Farah, Israel, Obeid, and Saba families.

About 100 years after the migration of the Habeeb family, another family, the Ghuson family, also from the Ghassanid tribe, settled in Kousba with their fellow tribesmen. These families can trace their ancestry through the chiefs of the Tribe of Ghassan back to Noah’s son Shem, and on back to Adam and Eve. The Saddic family entered Kousba at a later, undetermined, date. It is not documented, to the knowledge of this author, whether or not the Saddic family may also descend from a branch of the Ghassanid tribe.

Over the centuries, this area proved a safe haven for Christians, both Maronite and Orthodox, due to its rugged terrain with high mountains and very deep valleys, making it almost impossible for an invading army to attack without being first seen well in advance.