Amuda

Amuda عامودا Amûdê
Town
Location in Syria
Coordinates: 37°06′15″N 40°55′48″E{{#coordinates:37|06|15|N|40|55|48|E|type:city(26821)_region:SY | |name= }}
Country	Syria
Governorate	Al Hasakah Governorate
District	Al Qamishli District
Nahiyah	Amuda
Elevation	Template:Infobox settlement/lengthdisp
Population (2004 census)
• Total	26,821
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
• Summer (DST)	+3 (UTC)

Amuda or Amouda (Arabic: عامودا‎ 'Āmūdā, Kurdish: Amûdê) is a town in Al Hasakah Governorate in northeastern Syria. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Amuda had a population of 26,821 in the 2004 census. It is the administrative center of a nahiyah ("subdistrict") consisting of 103 localities with a combined population of 56,101 in 2004. Amuda has a mostly Kurdish population with also a significant Assyrian presence. As of 20 July 2012, the area came under the control of the Popular Protection Units (commonly known as YPG), according to Syrian intelligence. According to Fawzi Shangal, the leader of the Kurdish Accord Party in Syria, the city fell without any major clashes as the forces of the Syrian government withdrew from the area.

History

The demographics of this area saw a huge shift in the early part of the 20th century. Kurds cooperated with Ottoman authorities in the massacres against Armenian and Assyrian Christians in Upper Mesopotamia and were in return granted their land as a reward.

Assyrians began to emigrate from the town after the Amuda massacre of 9 August 1937. This massacre, carried out by the Kurd Saeed Agha, emptied the town of its Assyrian population. In 1941, the Assyrian community of al-Malikiyah was subjected to a vicious assault. Even though the assault failed, Assyrians were terrorized and left in large numbers, and the immigration of Kurds from Turkey to the area have resulted in a Kurdish majority in Amuda, al-Malikiyah, and al-Darbasiyah.

As of 2004, Amuda is the fourth largest town in Al-Hasakah governorate.

Important Events

• (1936) The Bombardment of Amuda (Tusha Amudi). On 13 August 1937, in a revenge attack, about 500 Kurds from the Dakkuri, Milan, and Kikie tribes attacked the then predominantly Christian Amuda. The town was destroyed and the Christian population, about 300 families, fled to the towns of Qamishli and Hassake.
• (1960) Amouda cinema fire. On 13 November 1960 more than 200 children died in a fire at a movie theatre.
• (2004) Uprising of 12 March
• (2013) The Bloody Thursday in Amuda.

Demographics

In 2004 the population was 26,821. The inhabitants of the town are predominantly Kurds in addition to a significant number of Syriacs/Assyrians.

The Cultural Influence of Amuda

Amuda is considered the center of Kurdish culture in Syria. Most of nationalist ideas came from its people and it has a large number of educated people and teachers in the area.

Historical Landmarks

• Park of Amuda cinema
• Sharmola hill
• cemetery of Amuda
• The Grand Mosque
• Alarasa Market
• Fatura Souq

Notable people

• Said Yitzhak, politician.
• Abdulbaset Sieda, politician.
• Abdulhakim Bashar, politician.
• Koma Barkhwadan, Musical Band.
• Koma Lat, Musical Band.

Poets and writers:

• Haitham Hussein
• Hasan Draei
• Salim Barakat
• Jamil Dari
• Halim Yousif
• Ahmed Alhusseyni

References

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