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The
word “El-Marj” is a true Arabic word meaning lush green
land.
The
El-marj has been there for many, many years.
It dates back to 500 years ago, including the time of the
Ottoman Empire in the Arab world.
There are graves that are dated back to Umayyad period of
the 700’s. Some
historians say it is back to the time of the Great Khalifas at
even an earlier date. Either
way, the El-marj is an ancient and established area of the Bekaa
Valley.
In
1952, El-marj elected its first town council, on December 7th
of that year and the first mayor was Mohammed Harb.
The first Mukhtar was Ali Ahmad Chaaban.
El-marj
has been an interesting political arena, with many positive and
negative events.
Of the latter, the one most remembered was in 1963 the
election of the town council was delayed because of local
politics.
It was delayed until 1966, when Mohammed Harb was
re-elected, but no town council was elected.
In 1998 after 30 years of no council, an election took
place.
Samir Kassim Jarrah was elected as Mayor, and continues in
that position until 2004 a new council has been elected. |
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Location |
| The
El-marj is situated in the middle of the West Bekka Valley,
judicial district of Zahle. It
has a very good relationship with the surrounding neighbors in
district. You can get to the El-marj in all directions.
The town is an open door to all visitors and people just
passing through. To
the north you will find the town of Bar
Elias, and to the south, Houch Al-Harimah, while west of
El-marj is Al Rowda (Istabble) and Kab Elias to the west (see
map1). The town is approximately 12 square kilometers, with 65
Dunums still owned by the town. |
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town is situated about 876m above sea level and is located 51km
from Beirut, Lebanon’s capital.
It is also 12km from the major city of Zahle, and 18km from
Jib Janine the province’s capital. |
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Location of El-Marj in the World: |
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Metric |
Imperial (DMS) |
| Latitude: |
33.7619 |
33o 45' 43N |
| Longitude: |
35.8803 |
35o 53' 49E |
| Altitude: |
876m |
2877 Feet |
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Demographics |
| The
population of the El-Marj is approximately 15,000, divided into
58
families.
There is approximately 1700 residential housing in El-Marj. |
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| According
to the 1998 elections, we have approximately 4,500 eligible
voters. |
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Schools |
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| Elementary and Junior
High School |
The
Makassed Islamic Elementary and Junior High School |
| High School |
The
Bait al Maamour School |
| The
School of Bekka AlHadeetha School |
Jarrahiah Elementary
School |
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Social Associations |
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Sport Clubs |
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| Al
Salaam Sports Club |
Al
Wahdi Sports Club |
| The
Scouts |
Al
Makassed Scouts |
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Agriculture |
| El-marj
has got a great deal of flat land making ideal for various
agricultural activities. There
is about 14000 dunums available to farm in the area.
There are two rivers that go through the town, on the west
is the famous Litani river and on the east, the Ghazayel River.
This makes the land very fertile and well irrigated. |
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Health
and Wellness |
| Unfortunately,
there is one medical clinic in El-marj, and it is one that is too
small to meet the needs of the town.
Though there are a number of doctors practicing in and
around El-marj. The
following is some of the names of the Doctors: |
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| Ahmad Al-Maafer |
Jamal Ibrahim |
Fayez Saleh |
| Emad Khaldiah |
Ali Al-Khatib |
Abeer Jarrah |
| Mazhar Abou-Othman |
Fawaz Harb |
Fadi El-Jaji |
| Mazhar Al-Qaq |
Jamal darwish |
Imad Khaldiah |
| Fadi Eljaji |
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There
are two pharmacies, El-marj Pharmacy and Ghotme Pharmacy. |
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Business
and Commerce |
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There
are a large variety of businesses in El-marj, which make it an
attractive place to live.
From large supermarket to small neighborhood grocery
stores, everything is available right in town. Elmarj boasts one
of the largest furniture stores in Lebanon, Gallery Jarrah, and is
home to the only ceramic manufacturing plant in the country.
Perhaps
El-marj is most famous for the
Monday Souk (Market).
This Souk is held one day a week every week, rain or shine.
It survived the war and natural disasters.
There you can find everything from food to clothing to live
animals, all which can be purchased and/or traded. This Souk has
attracted vendors from across Lebanon, who come and sell their
wares.
It also attracts about 10,000 people per week. |
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Environment |
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The
town is in desperate need to clean the Litani river. Years of
neglect and war have done a great deal of damage to the river and
its surrounding area.
The
town is also in need of natural parks and safe playground areas
for the children. |
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