Maaloula

Maaloula
معلولا
ܡܥܠܘܠܐ - מעלולא
Overview of Maaloula, 2006
Maaloula
Location in Syria
Coordinates: 33°50′39″N 36°32′48″E / 33.84417°N 36.54667°E / 33.84417; 36.54667
Country Syria
GovernorateRif Dimashq
Districtal-Qutayfah
SubdistrictMaaloula
Elevation
1,500 m (4,900 ft)
Population
 (2004 census)
 • Total
2,762

Maaloula (Arabic: مَعلُولَا; Western Neo-Aramaic: ܡܥܠܘܠܐ ,מעלולא, romanized: Maʿlūlā) is a town in southwestern Syria. The town is located in the Rif Dimashq Governorate and is 56 km northeast of Damascus, and is built into the mountainside at an altitude of more than 1,500m. It is known as one of three remaining villages where Western Neo-Aramaic is spoken, the other two being the nearby smaller villages of Jubb'adin and Bakha