The Orontes River in the life and heritage of Homs and Hama, a lecture by Dr. Abd al-Rahman al-Bitar

Homs-Sana

The Orontes River is the lifeblood of industrial, social and agricultural life for the societies that have settled around it throughout history. It had a role in all areas of life, according to what Dr. Abdul Rahman Al-Bitar explained during a lecture in the Homs branch of the Union of Arab Writers today.

In a statement to SANA reporter Ben Al-Bitar, the Orontes River is an essential river in Syria and the real population life in all fields is the life around the Orontes River because it passes through the middle of Syria and several cities in it, pointing out that the Orontes for the cities of Homs and Hama were an important river for life and around which civilizations were formed in the region .

He added: The main motive for talking about Al-Assi in the past is to recall what happened in it now. In the past, there were 25 mills starting from the exit of Lake Qatina to Al-Rastan, and all of them have disappeared, even though they are among the most important buildings and monuments.

Al-Bitar touched on several topics related to the Orontes, including the name of the river, its specifications, its source, its path and its tributaries, and the connection between the life of Homs and Hama with the river, and attempts to benefit from it “agricultural irrigation, waterways, dams, water wheels, bridges, drinking water, windmills, swimming, tourism.”

He talked about the Orontes in literature and poetry and its impact on social customs and its importance in fishing and the establishment of huge heritage baths and the mechanism of water delivery to them, which would not have arisen without the availability of water from the Orontes, pointing out that the presence of the Orontes and the windmills had a role in attracting migratory birds.

He explained that Al-Assi contributed to the defense of Homs, especially during the Frankish period, and was considered a trench and an obstacle to the entry of enemies. Scientific and urban civilization for our ancestors.

The storyteller Jamal Al-Salloumi, from the audience, explained that the lecture included valuable information about the river, which is one of the most important components of the city of Homs, indicating that the information that Al-Bitar had listed was absent from people's minds, and some of it was viewed for the first time.

Lara Ahmed

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