الفصل الخامس في ربوع الشمال السوري ١_a .. كتاب في ربوع سورية

Chapter V

in the north of Syria

North Syria represents the part located to the north of latitude 35 degrees and 20 minutes, generally defined by the governorates of Aleppo and Idlib. This region occupies the upper part of the Euphrates basin and its valley, and extends from north to south for a distance of about 180 km and from west to east for a distance of 250 km. And the Syrian north adjoins the Turkish territory from the north, and thus it occupies an area of ​​approximately 22242 square kilometers, or about 123% of the area of ​​the Syrian Arab region. The southwestern part of northern Syria is Idlib Governorate, which served as a district (district) until 1960.

General geographical characteristics of northern Syria:

North Syria is distinguished by its low altitude, as its average height above sea level is about 400 meters, and its highest point does not exceed 1270 meters in its far northwest (Damer summit 1269 meters overlooking the village of Bulbul from the north). While south of it is the plain of Mutkh to about 250 m. And in general; The elevation in this region is gradual from the south and southeast towards the north and northwest. It can be divided into two terrain regions - Figure (22): The mountains region in the west, represented by its mountains in Jabal al-Kurd, sandwiched between the valley of the Afrin River in the east and the Qara Soh River in the west, which is the highest in the region. And Mount Semaan to the east of the Afrin River, which overlooks the Afrin River with steep, steep slopes, but its eastern slopes are gentle to gradually end with the Aleppo plateau in the east to the west of the Queiq River valley. Its height is less than Jabal al-Kurd. Its average height is about 600 m, and the highest elevation falls in M

It is represented by the summit of Sheikh Barakat in its far north, near the village of Deir Azza (870 m). To the southwest of Mount Semaan, three mountain ranges extend longitudinally and parallel. Middle 550-600 m (657 m, its highest peak) To the west of the Sardin Depression, Jabal al-Ala extends - where the Sardine Depression separates it from Mount Barisha - with an average height of about 625 m, the highest peak of which is 819 m), and it extends from the town of Harem in the north to the village of Hafsarga in the south . As for the third mountain range, it is the Al-Wastani mountain range located to the west of Jabal Al-Ala, between Al-Rouj basin in the east and Wadi Al-Asi in the west, and extends for a length of about 40 km from Salqin in the north to the village of Al-Farika in the south) and its width is about 3-4 km, and its average height is about 575 m. And the highest peak is 847 m in Jabal Al-Hanash. in

To the south and southeast of the Al-Rouj Plain, the Jabal Al-Zawiya massif rises, with a steep and barren western slope overlooking the forest, and a low-slope eastern slope rich in potholes and closed basins. The southern part of Jabal Al-Zawiya overlooking the forest is known as Jabal Shashabo. Its maximum length in its western part is about 45 km, and its greatest breadth in its middle part is about 25 km. Its average height is about 750 m, and its highest point is 939 m.

towards from either the second terrain territory; It is the region of plateaus and plains that occupies the area of ​​northern Syria spread in its central and eastern sectors. To the east of the former region, the land takes the form of a plateau, which is bisected by some river and Al-Sailiya valleys - such as the valleys of the Queiq River and the Gold River - that end
In basins and depressions, as in the Jabbul Basin, which ends with the Valley of Gold, and the Mutkh Plain (the Mutkh Plain, in which the Queiq River ends. The lowest part of the Jabbul Basin forms a salty sea known as Sabkhat al-Jabul. Several sabkhas are also spread in the lower parts of the Mutkh Plain, including Sabkha Al-Kharaij, Sabkhat Umm al-Kadash, Sabkhat al-Maragha, and Sabkhat Shabit.. Some mountain masses stand out above the plateau, as in Jabal al-Hoss (its average height is about 450 m), located southwest of Sabkhat al-Jabul, to the south of which lies Sabkhat Shabit. The Upper Euphrates is a part of the Aleppo plateau, which is characterized by its indentation, its average height above sea level, which is approximately 500 m, and the protrusion of some mountain masses over its northern parts.

The climate in northern Syria is warm in summer, the average temperature of July in Aleppo is 28°C and in Idlib 27°C, moderate in autumn and spring, and cold in winter (the average temperature of January in Aleppo is 5.7°C and in Idlib 6.3°C). And through observational data for the second half In the current century, the temperature did not rise in summer to more than 44 C. However, it decreased in winter in some areas to much less than freezing, as temperatures were recorded below -10 C several times, and the lowest temperature recorded was -21 C in the Idlib basin in December. The second year is 1951. The atmospheric humidity is high in winter (above 75% in January) and low in summer between 35-55%.The annual amount of precipitation in northern Syria varies markedly, ranging between 200 mm in its southeastern parts of Khanaser and Abu al-Duhur, and about 500 mm in its parts. Northwest (Azaz Afrin, while in Aleppo it is about 325 mm, and in Idlib it is about 450 mm. The only region whose annual rainfall exceeds
0500 m is the area of ​​Jisr al-Shughur because it is located within the terrain opening crossed by the moist winds coming from the sea. As a result of the moderate summer temperature of the high northwestern parts and the relative decrease in its relative humidity and the purity of its air, summer is one of its ingredients that attention should be directed towards.

The two most important rivers that cross the Syrian north are the Euphrates River coming from the Turkish lands, which it crosses in the eastern part of it, and which receives in its upper section the waters of its tributary, the Sajur River, and the Orontes River coming from the south, which penetrates the western part of the region and runs in part with the borders of Alexandretta. Likewise, the Afrin River, which generally ends with the Orontes River after it forms with the Qara Sou River a lake of depth, whose waters drain into the Orontes River through a watercourse of no more than 7 km in length known as the Black River. The city of Aleppo is in the middle of it - and most of its course inside the city has been covered - and the gold and Abu Jabbar rivers that end in Sabkhat al-Jabul, along with many other temporary rivers in which water flows in winter and is absent in summer. With the exception of Lake al-Assad, which is overlooked by the lands of Aleppo Governorate from the west, the Syrian north is devoid of natural lakes - with the large number of artificial lakes formed behind surface dams built on the Sailiya valleys. Sabkhat al-Jabul salt (its area is 228 km2), Sabkhat al-Kharaij, Sabkhat Umm al-Kadash, Sabkhat Shabit, Maragheh...etc.

We do not find natural tree and woodland forests except in the northern parts of Jabal Al-Kurd and separate western parts of Jabal Semaan and Jabal Al-Arbaeen in the region of