The History of the Syrian City of Manbij From the Islamic Conquest To the Ottoman Conquest

Abstract

This study provides a comprehensive examination of the history of the city of Manbij, located in the northeastern part of Aleppo Governorate on the banks of the Euphrates River, which has served across the ages as a prominent cultural, religious, and economic center. The research traces the city's origins to the Hittite period in the second millennium BCE, highlighting the multiplicity of its names and their transformations under successive ruling powers, as well as its distinctive geographical position that rendered it a strategic hub for trade, agriculture, and military defense. The study further emphasizes Manbij's religious significance as a sacred city in antiquity, and its military role following the Islamic conquest, when it became one of the most important frontier fortresses of the Islamic state. It also explores the city's status under the rule of the Rightly Guided Caliphs, the Umayyads, and the Abbasids, with particular attention to the architectural and administrative flourishing of the early Abbasid era and the political instability of the later Abbasid period. Moreover, the research examines the incorporation of Manbij into the Ottoman Empire, which resulted in administrative reorganization and remarkable social diversity that fostered a model of coexistence among various ethnic groups. The study concludes that Manbij has historically represented a unique paradigm of cultural, religious, and economic interaction, despite the challenges and conflicts it has faced.