Zouk Mikael

Zouk Mikael (Arabic: ذوق مكايل, also spelled Zuq Mikha'il or Zouk Mkayel) is a town and municipality in the Keserwan District of the Keserwan-Jbeil Governorate in Lebanon. Its inhabitants are predominantly Melkite and Maronite Catholics.^[1]

Zouk Mikael ذوق مكايل Zuq Mikha'il
Municipality
Zouk Mikael and Beirut from Adma
Zouk Mikael Location within Lebanon
Coordinates: 33°58′18″N 35°36′58″E
Country	Lebanon
Governorate	Keserwan-Jbeil
District	Keserwan
Government
• Head of Municipality	Elias Ayoub Beainou
Area
• Total	3.08 km2 (1.19 sq mi)
Elevation	70 m (230 ft)
Time zone	UTC+2 (EET)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+3 (EEST)
Dialing code	+961

The town is well known for its Ottoman-era souk (open-air market), a pedestrian market with arcades and shops cafés. It is also home to several monasteries and historic churches, such as the Saint George Church, the open-air Roman-era amphitheatre, which hosts live summer concerts.^[2] In 1999, the UNESCO declared Zouk Mikael a "City of Peace".^[3]

History

In 1838, Eli Smith noted Zuk Mekayil as a village located in Aklim el-Kesrawan, Northeast of Beirut; the chief seat of the Maronites.^[4]

On 27 February 1994 an IED exploded inside the Maronite Notre Dame de La Deliverance Church killing ten worshippers and wounding 60.^[5]

Sports

Zouk Mikael is known as the Lebanese city of basketball, as it has the Stade Nouhad Naufal which was completed in 2015.^[6] It hosted the 2017 FIBA Asia Cup where the Lebanon national team reached the quarter-finals.^[7]

See also

• Saydet al-Najat Church Explosion (Lebanon, 1994)

Twin towns

• Eu, France (2003)
• Rueil-Malmaison, France (2009)