Salqin
{{Infobox settlement
| official_name = Salqin
| native_name = سَلْقِين
| image_skyline = Salquin,minaret.jpg
| imagesize = 250px
| image_caption = Street scene in Salqin, 2009
| pushpin_map = Syria
| pushpin_mapsize = 250
| subdivision_type = Country
| subdivision_name = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Syrian revolution.svg}} Syria
| subdivision_type1 = Governorate
| subdivision_name1 = Idlib
| subdivision_type2 = District
| subdivision_name2 = Harem
| subdivision_type3 = Subdistrict
| subdivision_name3 = Salqin
| subdivision_type4 = Control
| subdivision_name4 = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Syrian revolution.svg}} Syrian opposition
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| settlement_type = Town
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| population_as_of = 2004
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| population_total = 23,700
| timezone = EET
| utc_offset = +2
| timezone_DST = EEST
| utc_offset_DST = +3
| coordinates = {{coord|36|8|18|N|36|27|13|E|region:SY|display=inline}}
| elevation_footnotes =
| elevation_m = 846
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Salqin ({{langx|ar|سَلْقِين|Salqīn}}) is a town in northwestern Syria, administratively part of Idlib Governorate. Nearby localities include Kafr Takharim to the southeast, Abu Talha to the south, Delbiya to the southwest, al-Alani to the northwest and Isqat to the northeast. Salqin is the center of its nahiya (subdistrict). It had a population of 23,700 in 2004.[http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB07-16-2004.htm General Census of Population and Housing 2004]. Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS). Idlib Governorate. Archived at [https://archive.today/20121220154642/http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB07-16-2004.htm]. {{in lang|ar}} Its inhabitants are predominantly Sunni Muslim.Atassi, Basma. [http://www.aljazeera.com/indepth/features/2013/01/201312071131838196.html Syrian town takes strife in stride]. Al Jazeera English. 2013-01-20.Boulanger, 1966, p. 479.
The town is situated in the southern Orontes River valley and has an altitude of 460 meters above sea level. Olive and other fruit trees surround Salqin. It exports produce from these orchards as well as vegetables. Agriculture is sustained by the large number of springs in Salqin.
History
According to legends, the city was the summer residence of Seleucus I, hence the naming. An inscription, found on a stone between two cypress trees in the village, dates its foundation to 98 BC.{{cite journal |url=http://www.persee.fr/doc/syria_0039-7946_1930_num_11_3_3490#syria_0039-7946_1930_num_11_3_T1_0288_0000|author=Lieutenant Froment|year= 1930|title= Carte touristique et archéologique du Caza de Hārem |journal=Syria: Revue d'art oriental et d'archéologie|volume=11| issue = 3|pages= 288}}
Salqin was mentioned by medieval Muslim historian Izz al-Din ibn Shaddad al-Halabi as the site of one of 22 abandoned or ruined fortresses in the Aleppo region, likely disbanded or destroyed during the Mongol invasions of Syria in the mid to late 13th century. The Mamluks who gained power in the region at that time did not rebuild the fortress in Salqin.Raphael, 2010, pp. 89-90.
A former education minister and two former governors of Homs and Raqqah were from Salqin. {{anchor|civilwar}}In November 2012, during the Syrian civil war, Syrian rebels captured the town from government forces. According to anti-government activists, around 70% of Salqin's residents still supported the government of Bashar al-Assad in January 2013. This led to tensions, and the killing of a number of pro-Assad activists. On 30 August 2015, 13 people were killed and a number of others wounded when an attacker wearing a suicide belt targeted a judgement house of Jabhat al-Nusra.{{Cite web |last=amar |date=2015-08-30 |title=Suicide attack kills 13 and leaves injuries in Salqin city - The Syrian Observatory For Human Rights |url=https://www.syriahr.com/en/30582/ |access-date=2025-03-16 |language=en-CA}}
Climate
{{Weather box
|metric first=yes
|single line=yes
|location=Salqin
|Jan high C=7.9
|Feb high C=9.6
|Mar high C=13.8
|Apr high C=19.1
|May high C=24.5
|Jun high C=28.5
|Jul high C=30.1
|Aug high C=30.9
|Sep high C=28.3
|Oct high C=23.4
|Nov high C=16.8
|Dec high C=10.4
|Jan low C=1.4
|Feb low C=1.9
|Mar low C=4.5
|Apr low C=7.8
|May low C=12.0
|Jun low C=16.4
|Jul low C=19.2
|Aug low C=19.4
|Sep low C=15.8
|Oct low C=11.7
|Nov low C=6.8
|Dec low C=2.9
|precipitation colour=green
|Jan precipitation mm=157
|Feb precipitation mm=147
|Mar precipitation mm=124
|Apr precipitation mm=71
|May precipitation mm=33
|Jun precipitation mm=13
|Jul precipitation mm=1
|Aug precipitation mm=2
|Sep precipitation mm=15
|Oct precipitation mm=40
|Nov precipitation mm=67
|Dec precipitation mm=177
| Jan snow days = 4
| Feb snow days = 3
| Mar snow days = 0
| Apr snow days = 0
| May snow days = 0
| Jun snow days = 0
| Jul snow days = 0
| Aug snow days = 0
| Sep snow days = 0
| Oct snow days = 0
| Nov snow days = 0
| Dec snow days = 2
|source = Climate-Data.org
}}
Notable people
- Dima Aktaa – activist and parathlete
References
{{reflist}}
Bibliography
{{refbegin}}
- {{cite book|editor=Boulanger, Robert|title=The Middle East, Lebanon, Syria, Jordan, Iraq, Iran|publisher=Hachette|year=1966|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=2a8LAQAAIAAJ&q=%22Crusaders%3B+the+local+inhabitants+%22}}
- {{cite book|author=Kate Raphael|title=Muslim Fortresses in the Levant: Between Crusaders and Mongols|publisher=Taylor & Francis|year=2010|isbn=9780203845165|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=dfJN1UicpRoC&q=Armanaz&pg=PA89}}
{{refend}}
{{Idlib Governorate|harem}}
{{coord|36|08|N|36|27|E|display=title|region:SY_type:city_source:GNS-enwiki}}