This article is about the demographic features of the population of Jordan, including population density, ethnicity, education level, health of the populace, economic status, religious affiliations and other aspects of the population.

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According to the OECD/World Bank population statistics population in Jordan increased from 1990 to 2008 with 2.7 million and 86 % growth in population compared to 39 % growth in Lebanon, 56 % growth in Israel, 67 % growth in Syria ^[1] and according to the U.S. Census 106 % growth in the Palestinian Territories.^[2]

The population of Jordan since 1952.

While native Jordanians are mostly descended from East Bank and West Bank Palestinians and Bedouin descent originating in the Arabian Peninsula,^[3] In addition, there's Jordanian minorities like the Circassians, Chechens, Arameans and Armenians. However, there are a number of other ethnicities present, including communities of Kurds, Assyrians and Mandeans which are refugees from the 2003 Iraqi war. According to UNRWA, there are 1,951,603 Palestinian refugees in Jordan as of June 2008, 31.5% of Jordan's population.^[4] There are also approximately one million Iraqis currently residing in the country. Also, hundreds of thousands of guest workers from Egypt, Syria, Indonesia, and South Asia work as domestic and construction employees. Also, there are a few thousand residents of Lebanese origin who came to Jordan when civil strife and war broke out in their native country. They primarily reside in Amman. The official language is Arabic, but English is used widely in commerce and government. About 70% of Jordan's population is urban; less than 6% of the rural population is nomadic or semi-nomadic. Most people live where the rainfall supports agriculture.

Definition[link]

The territory of Jordan can be defined by the history of its creation after the end of World War I, the League of Nations and redrawing of the borders of the Eastern Mediterranean littoral. The ensuing decisions, most notably the Sykes–Picot Agreement, which created the British Mandate of Palestine. In September 1922, Transjordan was formally identified as a subdivision of the Mandate Palestine after the League of Nations approved the British Transjordan memorandum which stated that the Mandate territories east of the River Jordan would be excluded from all the provisions dealing with Jewish settlement west of the Jordan River.^[5] Two other events in the history of Jordan affected its demographics, the outcomes of the 1948 and the 1967 conflicts with Israel.

Vital statistics[link]

[edit] UN estimates^[6]

Ethnic and religious groups[link]

Muslim (Sunni) 92%, Christian 6% (majority Greek Orthodox, with some Greek Catholic, Syriac Orthodox, Coptic Orthodox, Assyrian Church of the East, Chaldean Catholic, Armenian Apostolic, and Protestant denominations), other 2% (several small Shi'a Muslim and Druze populations) (2001 est.) Ethnically, The Circassians and Chechens form more than 3% of the population.

In the 2004 Census including: Assyrians and Syriacs 5%, Circassian 1%, Armenian 1%. non-Jordanians accounted for 349.933 (7%) of the population.

Arabs[link]

Most of the Arabic citizens in Jordan are villagers. There were some 56,000 Bedouin Jordanians at the turn of the 20th century on the plain east of Jordan, even after the First World War Amman was only a village of a few thousand residents,^[7] many recent immigrants from the coastal areas of the Ottoman Syria where most of the fighting took place. By 1956 of the 1.5 million population, 200,000 were residing in Amman.^[7] Following the 1948 war, and seizure of what later came to be known as the "West Bank" the citizens of Transjordan numbered about 1,185,000: 375,000 Transjordanians, 460,000 former residents of Mandate Palestine and 350,000 refugees from other former Mandate Palestine areas.^[8] Of the 100,000 estimated Transjordanians on the west bank about half had migrated elsewhere by early 1950s.^[9] In 2004 ethnic Arabs represented 93% of the population.

Assyrians[link]

There is an Assyrian population in Jordan. Many Assyrians have arrived in Jordan since the invasion of Iraq, making up a large part of the Iraqi refuguees.

Armenians[link]

Armenians in Jordan are ethnic Armenians living within the current Kingdom of Jordan. There were an estimated 5,000 Armenians living within the country in 2009.^[10] An estimated 4,500 of these are members of the Armenian Apostolic Church,^[10] and predominantly speak the Western dialect^[11] of the Armenian language. This population makes up the majority of non-Arab Christians in the country.^[12]

Circassians[link]

Adyghe horsemanship in Transjordan, April 1921

Circassians obtained Ottoman citizenships since 1887, immigrated to Jordan and they selected Amman despite it being a small village and a pile of ruins due to having been destroyed by several earthquakes.^[13] They settled in several villages such as Jerash and Zarqa, and established their own villages Wadi Al Seer, Naour, and Suweleh.

The Adyghes Circassians played a major role in the history of Transjordan era, and are famous for their loyalty to Abdullah I of Jordan and his family, obtaining the Transjordan citizenship before many other Jordanian tribes in the law of citizenship that was issued in 1928,^[14] while other tribes obtained their citizenship in 1930 or later^[15]

Over the years various Adyghes have served in distinguished roles in the Kingdom of Jordan, including a prime minister (Sa`id al-Mufti), ministers (commonly at least one minister should represent the Circassians in each cabinet), high ranking officers, etc. Due to their important role in the history of Jordan, Adyghe form the Hashemites Honor guard at the Royal palaces, and represented Jordan in the Royal Edinburgh Military Tattoo in 2010, joining other Honor guards such as the The Airborne Ceremonial Unit.^[16][17] The Circassians are Sunni Muslims estimated to number 120,000 persons, or 2% of Jordanian population, while accounting for 5% of Amman's residents.

Mandeans[link]

Until recently most Mandaeans were Iraqi, but this religious minority fled the country in the face of this violence, and the Mandaean community in Iraq faces extinction.^[18] Out of the over 60,000 Mandaeans in Iraq in the early 1990s, only about 5,000 to 7,000 remain there; as of early 2007, over 80% of Iraqi Mandaeans were refugees in Syria and Jordan as a result of the Iraq War.

Chechens[link]

There are about 10,000 Chechens estimated to reside in Jordan.

Education[link]

The era of King Hussein saw increased school enrollment rates, which resulted in a rapid rise in the literacy rate in Jordan. At the beginning of his reign in 1952 the literacy rate was 33% and grew to 85% in 1996; according to the 2009 estimate, it is now 92.8% of the total population.^[19]

Population demographic statistics[link]

The following demographic statistics are from the CIA World Factbook, unless otherwise indicated.

Total population

6,198,677 (July 2008 est.)

6,508,887 (July 2012 est.)

Gender ratio

at birth: 1.06 male(s)/female

under 15 years: 1.06 male(s)/female

15–64 years: 1.03 male(s)/female

65 years and over: 0.95 male(s)/female

total population: 1.03 male(s)/female (2012 est.)

Age Structure

0–14 years: 32.2% (male 1,017,233/female 976,284)

15–64 years: 62.4% (male 2,110,293/female 1,840,531)

65 years and over: 4.1% (male 122,975/female 131,361) (2008 est.)

0-14 years: 35.3% (male 1,180,595/female 1,114,533)

15-64 years: 59.9% (male 1,977,075/female 1,921,504)

65 years and over: 4.8% (male 153,918/female 160,646) (2011 est.)

Total Fertility Rate

3.36 children born/woman (2012 est.)

Population Growth Rate

2.338% (2008 est.)

-0.965% (2012 est.)

Birth Rate

26.52 births/1,000 population (2012 est.)

Death Rate

2.74 deaths/1,000 population (July 2012 est.)

Net migration rate

5.97 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2008 est.)

-33.42 migrant(s)/1,000 population (2012 est.)

Life expectancy at birth

total population: 80.18 years

male: 78.82 years

female: 81.61 years (2012 est.)

Languages[link]

Arabic is the official language of Jordan. English is widely understood among the educated and the upper and middle classes.

Literacy[link]

definition: age 15 and over can read and write
total population: 91.3%
male: 95.9%
female: 86.3% (2003 est.)

Jordanian demographic policy[link]

Initial integration of former residents of Mandate Palestine, and granting them citizenship, was revoked following violence against PLO in 1970. Most Iraqi refugees are not granted citizenship.

See also[link]

• Jordan
• Religion in Jordan
• Armenians in Jordan

References[link]

Hugh Hefner
Hugh Hefner attending Glamourcon #50, Long Beach, CA on November 13, 2010
Born	Hugh Marston Hefner (1926-04-09) April 9, 1926 (age 86) Chicago, Illinois
Residence	Playboy Mansion, Holmby Hills, Los Angeles, California
Nationality	American
Education	Steinmetz High School
Alma mater	University of Illinois (B.A.) Northwestern University
Known for	Editor-in-chief of Playboy magazine, Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises
Home town	Chicago, Illinois
Political party	Independent
Board member of	Playboy Enterprises
Spouse	Mildred Williams (m.1949–1959; divorced) Kimberley Conrad (m.1989–2010; divorced)
Partner	Barbi Benton (1969–1976) Brande Roderick (2000–2001) Tina Marie Jordan (2001–2002) Holly Madison (2003–2008) Crystal Harris (2009–2011)
Children	Christie Hefner (born 1952) David Hefner (born 1955) Marston Hefner (born 1990) Cooper Hefner (born 1991)
Website
Playboy.com

Hugh Marston "Hef" Hefner (born April 9, 1926) is an American magazine publisher, founder and Chief Creative Officer of Playboy Enterprises.^[1]

Early life[link]

Hefner was born in Chicago, Illinois, being the elder of two sons born to Grace Caroline (née Swanson; 1895–1997) and Glenn Lucius Hefner (1896–1976), both teachers.^[2][3] Hefner's mother was of Swedish descent and his father had German and English ancestry.^[4][5] On his father's side, Hefner is a direct descendant of Plymouth governor William Bradford.^[6][7] He has described his family as "conservative, Midwest, Methodist."^[8] He went to Sayre Elementary School and Steinmetz High School, then served as a writer for a military newspaper in the U.S. Army from 1944 to 1946. He later graduated from the University of Illinois at Urbana Champaign with a B.A. in psychology with a double minor in creative writing and art in 1949, earning his degree in two and a half years. After graduation, he took a semester of graduate courses in sociology at Northwestern University but dropped out soon after.^[9]

Career[link]

Working as a copywriter for Esquire, he left in January 1952 after being denied a $5 raise. In 1953, he mortgaged his furniture, generating a bank loan of $600 (or $800 — he cannot recall which) and raised $8,000 from 45 investors — including $1,000 from his mother ("Not because she believed in the venture," he told E! in 2006, "but because she believed in her son.") — to launch Playboy, which was initially going to be called Stag Party. The undated first issue, published in December 1953, featured Marilyn Monroe from her 1949 nude calendar shoot and sold over 50,000 copies.^[10] (Hefner, who never met Monroe, bought the crypt next to hers at the Westwood Village Memorial Park Cemetery.^[11][12])

After it was rejected by Esquire magazine in 1955, Hefner agreed to publish in Playboy the Charles Beaumont science fiction short story, "The Crooked Man", about straight men being persecuted in a world where homosexuality was the norm. After receiving angry letters to the magazine, Hefner wrote a response to criticism where he said, "If it was wrong to persecute heterosexuals in a homosexual society then the reverse was wrong, too."

On June 4, 1963, Hefner was arrested for selling obscene literature after an issue of Playboy featuring nude shots of Jayne Mansfield was released.^{[citation needed]} A jury was unable to reach a verdict.^[13]

His former secretary, Bobbie Arnstein, was found dead in a Chicago hotel room after an overdose of drugs in January 1975. Hefner called a press conference to allege that she had been driven to suicide by narcotics agents and federal officers. Hefner further claimed the government was out to get him because of Playboy's philosophy and its advocacy of more liberal drug laws.^[14][15]

He has a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame for television and has made several movie appearances as himself. In 2009, he received a "worst supporting actor" nomination for a Razzie award for his performance in Miss March.

A documentary by Brigitte Berman, Hugh Hefner: Playboy, Activist and Rebel, was released on July 30, 2010. He had previously granted full access to documentary filmmaker and television producer Kevin Burns for the A&E Biography special Hugh Hefner: American Playboy in 1996.^[16]

Hefner and Burns later collaborated on numerous other television projects, most notably on The Girls Next Door, a reality series that ran for six seasons (2005–2009) and 90 episodes.

In 1999, Hefner financed the Clara Bow documentary, Discovering the It Girl. "Nobody has what Clara had. She defined an era and made her mark on the nation," he stated.^[17]

Personal life[link]

Hefner married Northwestern University student Mildred Williams (born March 10, 1926) in 1949. They had two children, Christie (born November 8, 1952) and David (born August 30, 1955).^[18] Before the wedding, Mildred confessed that she had had an affair while he was away in the Army. He called the admission "the most devastating moment of my life." A 2006 E! True Hollywood Story profile of Hefner revealed that Mildred allowed him to sleep with other women, out of guilt for her infidelity and in the hopes that it would preserve their marriage. They divorced in 1959.^{[citation needed]}

Hefner remade himself as a bon viveur and man about town, a lifestyle he promoted in his magazine and two TV shows he hosted, Playboy's Penthouse (1959–1960) and Playboy After Dark (1969–1970). He admitted to being "'involved' with maybe eleven out of twelve months' worth of Playmates" during some of these years.^[19] Donna Michelle, Marilyn Cole, Lillian Müller, Shannon Tweed, Brande Roderick, Barbi Benton, Karen Christy, Sondra Theodore, and Carrie Leigh — who filed a $35 million palimony suit against him — were a few of his many lovers. In 1971, he acknowledged that he experimented in bisexuality.^[20] He moved from Chicago to Los Angeles.

Hefner had a minor stroke in 1985 at age 59. After re-evaluating his lifestyle, he made several changes. The wild, all-night parties were toned down significantly and in 1988, daughter Christie began to run the Playboy empire. The following year, he married Playmate of the Year Kimberley Conrad. The couple had two sons, Marston Glenn (born April 9, 1990) and Cooper Bradford (born September 4, 1991).^[21] The E! True Hollywood Story profile noted that the notorious Playboy Mansion had been transformed into a family-friendly homestead. After he and Conrad separated in 1998, Conrad moved into a house next door to the mansion.

Hefner then began to move an ever-changing coterie of young women into the mansion, even dating up to seven girls at once, among them, Brande Roderick, Izabella St. James, Tina Marie Jordan, Holly Madison, Bridget Marquardt, and Kendra Wilkinson. The reality television series The Girls Next Door depicted the lives of Madison, Wilkinson and Marquardt at the Playboy Mansion.^[22] In October 2008, all three girls made the choice to leave the mansion. Hefner was quick to rebound and soon began dating his new "Number One" girlfriend, Crystal Harris,^[23] along with 20-year-old identical twin and models Kristina and Karissa Shannon.^[24] The relationship with the twins ended in January 2010.^[25] After an 11-year separation, Hefner filed for divorce from Conrad stating irreconcilable differences.^[26] Hefner has said that he only remained married to her for the sake of his children,^[27] and his youngest child had just turned 18.^[21] The divorce was finalized in March 2010.^[28] On December 24, 2010, Hefner presented an engagement ring to Crystal Harris, publicly announcing the proposal the following day.^[11] Hefner and Harris had planned to marry June 18, 2011.^[29][30] Harris called off the wedding just 5 days before they were due to be wed.^[31]

Politics and philanthropy[link]

The Hugh Hefner First Amendment Award was created by Christie Hefner "to honor individuals who have made significant contributions in the vital effort to protect and enhance First Amendment rights for Americans."^[32]

He has donated and raised money for the Democratic Party.^[33] However, he has more recently referred to himself as an Independent due to disillusionment with both the Democratic and Republican Parties.^[34]

In 1978, Hefner helped organize fund-raising efforts that led to the restoration of the Hollywood Sign. He hosted a gala fundraiser at the Playboy Mansion and personally contributed $27,000 (or 1/9 of the total restoration costs) by purchasing the letter Y in a ceremonial auction.^[35][36]

Hefner donated $100,000 to the University of Southern California's School of Cinematic Arts to create a course called "Censorship in Cinema," and $2 million to endow a chair for the study of American film.^[37]

Both through his charitable foundation and individually, Hefner also contributes to charities outside the sphere of politics and publishing, throwing fundraiser events for Much Love Animal Rescue as well as Generation Rescue,^[38] a controversial autism campaign organization supported by Jenny McCarthy.

On April 26, 2010, Hefner donated the last $900,000 sought by a conservation group for a land purchase needed to stop the development of the famed vista of the Hollywood Sign.^[35]

Sylvilagus palustris hefneri, an endangered species of Marsh rabbit, is named after him in honor of financial support that he provided.^[39][40]

References[link]

Further reading[link]

• Watts, Steven (2008). Mr. Playboy: Hugh Hefner and the American Dream. Hoboken: John Wiley & Sons. ISBN 0-471-69059-7.
• Miller, Russell (1985). Bunny: The Real Story of Playboy. London: Corgi. ISBN 0-03-063748-1.
• St. James, Izabella (2006). Bunny Tales: Behind Closed Doors at the Playboy Mansion. Philadelphia: Running Press. ISBN 0-7624-2739-6
• Hefner, Veronika and Jurij Toplak (2009). Hefner, Hugh. In: Vile, John R., Hudson, David L., and Schultz, David Andrew (Eds.). Encyclopedia of the First Amendment. Washington, D.C.: CQ Press, p. 564.

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Hugh Hefner

• Hugh M. Hefner Foundation
• Hugh Hefner at the Internet Movie Database
• Hugh Hefner on Twitter
• Hugh Hefner: The Ultimate Lifestyle Entrepreneur (About.com Entrepreneurs)
• "Hugh Hefner". Salon.com. December 28, 1999.
• Hugh Hefner interview from 1966

v t e Playboy Enterprises Key people Christie Hefner (former Chairman and CEO) · Hugh Hefner (Editor-in-Chief, CCO and Founder) Business groups Playboy Publishing Playboy Magazine · Playboy Special Edition Playboy Entertainment Playboy TV · My Ex-Girlfriends · Playboy Radio · Spice Networks · Playboy Online · Playboy Cyber Club · ClubJenna · Indigo Entertainment Playboy Licensing   Miscellaneous Playboy Clubs · Playboy Mansion · Victor Lownes · The Playboy Club (TV series) Annual Revenue: $215 million USD (FY 2010) · Employees: 547 (full time) · Stock Symbol: NYSE: PLA, PLAA · Website: PlayboyEnterprises.com

Syrian people
الشعب السوري
Sūriyyīn

Julia Domna Philip the Arab Posidonius Simeon Stylites John of Damascus Elagabalus Zenobia Francis Marrash Abd al-Rahman al-Kawakibi Qestaki al-Homsi Hashim al-Atassi Faris al-Khoury Jamil al-Ulshi Yusuf al-Azma Sultan Pasha al-Atrash Sami al-Hinnawi Zaki al-Arsuzi Akram El-Hourani Asmahan Riad Ismat Abdallah Dardari George Mourad Asalah Nasri George Wassouf Ghassan Massoud
Total population
Syria: 22,530,746 (July 2012 est.)[1] Diaspora: 17,000,000[2]
Languages
Contemporary Arabic Ancient languages Eblaite, Amorite, Ugaritic, Aramaic
Religion
Islam, mostly Sunni, and a minority of Alawites and Druze Christianity, mostly Greek Orthodox and Greek Catholic
Related ethnic groups
Other Semitic peoples: (due to Arameans and Canaanite Ancestors): Arabs · Assyrians · Lebanese · Palestinians Jordanians · Iraqis · Bahranis · Maltese · Mizrahi Jews Various Iranian peoples: Kurds · Persians · Ossetians Various Aryan peoples: Albanians · Armenians Bosniaks · Greeks Various Caucasians: Georgians · Adyghe Abkhazians · Chechens Various Turkic peoples: Azeris · Turks Various Afro-Asiatic peoples: Egyptians · Berbers

The Syrian people (Arabic: الشعب السوري‎ / ALA-LC: al-sha‘ab al-Sūrī) are the inhabitants and citizens of Syria and are, overall an indigenous Eastern Mediterranean people. While modern-day Syrians are commonly described as Arabs by virtue of their modern-day language and bonds to Arab culture and history, they are, in fact, largely a blend of the various Aramaic speaking groups indigenous to the region who were Arabized when Muslim Arabs from the Arabian Peninsula arrived and settled following the Arab expansion. Syrians are tied together by geography, linguistic heritage, religion, and similar Eastern Mediterranean ethnicities. Most Syrians reside primarily in Syria; however 17 million Syrians^[2] live outside of Syria and they stay connected to their cultural roots by watching Syrian satellite television, listening to Syrian music and preparing Syrian cuisine.

Damascus, the capital of Syria, is one of the most continuously inhabited cities^[3][4] in the world (for 8000 years straight, Syrians inhabited Damascus), and a large percentage of Damascenes are the descendents of the early inhabitants of Damascus.

Language[link]

Arabic is the mother tongue of some 90%^[1] of Syrians as well as the official state language. The Syrian dialect, which belongs to the same Eastern Mediterranean-Levantine family tree of dialects, varies little from Modern Standard Arabic; however it is uniquely different from the other Arabic vernaculars in that it is saturated with Aramaic, Syriac, Greek, Persian, and Phoenician words. However, the standardized form of Arabic, used in formal settings throughout the Arab world, contains the same vocabulary and grammar for all Arab countries. Kurdish, Turkish, and Circassian are also spoken in Syria by their respective minority communities. A direct decendent of the Aramaic of Jesus Christ, is still spoken in ancient Christian village of Ma'loula as well as widely understood within many other Syrian-Christian communities -- all of whom use Syriac as a liturgical language. English, and to a lesser extent French, is widely understood and used in interactions with tourists and other foreigners.

Religion[link]

Religious differences in Syria have historically been tolerated, and religious minorities tend to retain distinct cultural, and religious identities. Sunni Islam is the religion of 74% of Syrians. The Alawites, an ancient off-shoot of Shia Islam that is distinct from Sunni Islam, make up 12% of the population and mostly live in and around Latakia. Christians make up 10% of the country. Most Syrian Christians adhere to the Byzantine liturgical rites, the two largest are the Greek Orthodox and the Greek Catholic churches^[5][6]. The Druze, are a mountainous people who reside in Jebel Druze. The Druze, who helped spark the Great Syrian Revolt, are known as fierce soldiers. The Ismailis are an even smaller sect, that originated in Asia. A small number of Armenian Christians fled Turkey during the Armenian Genocide and settled in Syria. The Kurds, although Sunni Muslim, are very secular and have a distinct language. The Circassians, are of North Caucasus origin and are mostly Sunni Muslim, following the Hanafi school of thought. The Circassians number about 100 000 and mostly live in northern Syria. The nomadic Beduoin lead a lifestyle that keeps them largely separated from the rest of society, herding sheep and moving through the desert, although some have settled in towns and villages. One group that remains on the outside of society both politically and socially, is the roughly 100,000 Palestinian refugees, who were expelled from their homeland in 1948 after the creation of Israel.

Beliefs[link]

As a Mediterranean people, the Syrian people are a mosaic of West and East. Conservative and liberally minded people will live right next each other, and hold debates with each other. Like the other countries in the region, religion permeates life; the government registers every Syrian's religious affiliation.

Cuisine[link]

Syrian cuisine is dominated by Mediterranean ingredients. Olive oil, garlic, olives, peppermint, and sesame oil are some of the ingredients that are used in many traditional meals. Traditional Syrian dishes enjoyed by Syrians include, tabouleh, labaneh, shanklish, wara enab, makdous, kebab, sfiha, moutabal, hummus, maneesh, bameh, and fatoush. Before the main courses, Syrians eat maza, which is basically an appetizer. Syrian Muslim men are more likely to drink tea with their maza; whereas Syrian Christian men prefer to drink Arak with their maza.

Ancient Syrians[link]

100 Syrian pound note with Philip the Arab.

Ancient Syria has stood as a testament to the many cultural and artistic achievements in ancient human civilization. Modern archaeological discoveries have produced extensive writings, which illustrate a brilliant culture rivaling those of Egypt and Mesopotamia in and around the ancient city of Ebla, Syria. Later Syrian artists and scholars contributed to Hellenistic and Roman thought and culture. Shortly after becoming a province of the Byzantine Empire, an indigenous Syrian^[7], Philip the Arab became emperor in 244 AD and quickly signed a peace deal with the Persian Empire. According to the historian Eusebius, Philip the Arab is the first Christian emperor of the eastern part of the Roman Empire. Even though he was from the equestrian order, Philip the Arab rose through the Roman rank and file by merit. After Decius's victory over the Goth invasions, Decius's army declared him Emperor and he went on to defeat Philip the Arab's forces in the battle of Verona^[8].

Zenobia or Zainab in Arabic, was a "warrior queen" who ruled Syria from 267 AD to 272 AD and built the Palmyrene Empire that included the conquest of Egypt. After realizing Zenobia's threat to the Roman Empire, the Roman emperor Aurelian decided to turn his attention away from fighting the Gauls to stopping Zenobia's quest for more Roman territory. In the ancient capital of Syria, Antioch, Aurelian's army defeated Zenobia's forces and put an end to Zenobia's conquests.^[9]

Zeno of Sidon helped found the Epicurean school of philosophy; Cicero was a student of Antiochus of Ascalon at Athens. Posidonius's chronicles of Apamea influenced Livy and Plutarch. Syrians have made many contributions to Arabic literature and music and have an impressive tradition of written poetry and Oral literature.

Famous people from Syrian ancestry[link]

• Rosemary Barkett (born 1939), was the first woman to serve on the Florida Supreme Court, and the first woman Chief Justice of that court. She currently serves as a federal judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.
• Hala Gorani (born March 1, 1970), is a news anchor and correspondent for CNN International.^[10]
• Steve Jobs (February 24, 1955 – October 5, 2011), was the co-founder and former CEO of Apple, the largest Disney shareholder,^[11] and a member of Disney's Board of Directors. Jobs was considered a leading figure in both the computer and entertainment industries.^[12]
• Teri Hatcher, is an actress most famous for her role in Desperate Housewives. Her mother is part Syrian.

See also[link]

Ottoman Syria

References[link]

v t e Syrian people and diaspora By country Brazil Canada Chile Colombia Israel Mexico Pakistan Turkey United States

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