Anıtlı (Syriac: ܚܐܚ, romanized: Ḥāḥ)[2] is a neighbourhood in the municipality and district of Midyat, Mardin Province in Turkey.[3] It is located in the historical region of Tur Abdin, and remains populated by Syriacs to this day.[4]

In the village, there are churches of Mor Sobo and of Yoldath Aloho.[5]

History

Ḥāḥ (Anıtlı), a key Syriac Christian village in Tur Abdin, southeastern Turkey, lies near the Tigris River, bordered by Habsnas, Hatlib, and Zaz, within a region historically two-thirds Christian.[6][7] Located 30 km southwest of Dayro da'Slibo and northeast of Midyat, amid settlements like Boqusyono and Estrako, Ḥāḥ may trace to the Assyrian Khabkhi, linked to Tigris trade.[8]

In the fourth century, Roman-Persian conflicts shaped Tur Abdin, with Ḥāḥ in a salient beyond the Nymphios River after the 363 CE treaty, while Hesno d-Kifo, capital of Arzanene under Constantius II, lost territory post-363, its bishop at Chalcedon in 451.[9] Ḥāḥ’s Church of Mor Sobo, possibly fifth-century, defied Persian Zoroastrianism.[10] By the fifth century, Ḥāḥ, potentially Tur Abdin’s first bishopric, saw Bishop Ammi martyred in Tanezin, its eight churches peaking with the Church of the Mother of God and a Mor Samuel chapel from Samuel of Nyohto’s visit, while Thomas the Ascetic (d. 486) exemplified its monasticism.[10]

In the sixth century, Ḥāḥ’s Yoldath Aloho church, among Tur Abdin’s oldest, served as a bishopric seat until 613 CE, shifting to Qartmin Abbey (614–1088) from 615.[10][11][12] Ezekiel I of Ḥāḥ (818–824) attended a meeting in al-Raqqa, followed by Ezekiel II (892–904).[13] In 1088/9, a Persian raid led to a diocesan split, restoring Ḥāḥ as a cathedral village, with the Monastery of the Cross as its episcopal see from 1089 to 1873.[14][15] Ḥāḥ was a bishopric again from the eleventh to thirteenth centuries, its Great Church of Mor Sobo the cathedral.[16] In 1124, priest Abu Sahl was murdered by Muslims; by 1136, Mor Sobo’s oratory bore inscriptions (1135–1295).[17][18]

In 1915’s Sayfo, Ḥāḥ’s “King Yuhanon’s palace” sheltered 2,000, resisting a 45-day siege with aid from Hajo and a ceasefire by Shaykh Fathullah; survivors like Isa Polos and Lahdo fled there.[19] Dayro da'Slibo repelled 15,000 attackers for three months, though seven died in a later ambush.[20] Today, Ḥāḥ’s churches and ruins, reflect its enduring Syriac legacy.[21]

Today, Ḥāḥ, and greater Tur Abdin is home to a dwindling community of Aramean villagers and monks who continue to perform the Syriac liturgy in ancient churches.[22]

The mayor of Ḥāḥ was assassinated by Islamic extremists on 29 November 1993.[23]

Demography

Syriac-Aramean children at a local school in Hah

The village had a population of 148 in 2021.[1] It is populated by Syriacs who belong to the Syriac Orthodox Church.[24][25] They traditionally spoke Kurdish but Turoyo language has since become more prominent amongst young people.[26] A number of villagers emigrated abroad to Germany and France in the late 20th century.[26] It is home to a dwindling community of Syriac-Aramean villagers and monks who continue to perform the Syriac liturgy in ancient churches.[27]

The following is a list of the number of Syriac families that have inhabited Ḥāḥ per year stated. Unless otherwise stated, all figures are from the list provided in Eastern Christianity, Theological Reflection on Religion, Culture, and Politics in the Holy Land and Christian Encounter with Islam and the Muslim World, as noted in the bibliography below.[28][nb 1]

  • 1966: 73
  • 1978: 67
  • 1979: 55
  • 1981: 52
  • 1987: 42
  • 1995: 19
  • 1997: 18
  • 2013: 17–18[26]
The Church of the Virgin located in the village is likely from the 7th century.[29]

The Yoldath Aloho Church

Local legend ties the church's origins not to the mid-5th century, as historians suggest, but to the very birth of Christ. According to the story, twelve wise men, also known as the Magi, gathered in Hah on their journey to find the newborn Christ, guided by the star. Three of them continued on to Bethlehem, while the other nine remained in Hah. In gratitude for the gifts they brought—gold, frankincense, and myrrh—the Virgin Mary, the mother of God, gave the three wise men a piece of the swaddling cloth that had wrapped the infant Jesus.

When the three reunited with the others in Hah, they decided to burn it and share the ashes, but instead, the cloth transformed into twelve medallions. In awe of this miracle, the twelve Wise Men built a monument to the Virgin Mary, later becoming the Church of the Mother of God (Yoldath Aloho). Each man contributed a layer of stone, and the monument was later converted into a church with the arrival of Christianity.[30][31]

References

Notes

  1. ^ The size of a single family varies between five and ten persons.[28]

Citations

  1. ^ a b "31 ARALIK 2021 TARİHLİ ADRESE DAYALI NÜFUS KAYIT SİSTEMİ (ADNKS) SONUÇLARI" (XLS). TÜİK (in Turkish). Retrieved 16 December 2022.
  2. ^ Carlson, Thomas A. (9 December 2016). "Ḥaḥ". The Syriac Gazetteer. Retrieved 30 December 2022.
  3. ^ "Türkiye Mülki İdare Bölümleri Envanteri". T.C. İçişleri Bakanlığı (in Turkish). Retrieved 19 December 2022.
  4. ^ Kayaalp, Elif Keser (January 2022). Syriac Architectural Heritage at Risk in TurʿAbdin. p. 29.{{cite book}}: CS1 maint: date and year (link)
  5. ^ Barsoum (2008b), pp. 17, 19.
  6. ^ Aphrem Barsoum (2008). The History of Tur Abdin.
  7. ^ Palmer Monk And Mason On The Tigris Frontier.
  8. ^ Palmer Monk And Mason On The Tigris Frontier. p. 29.
  9. ^ Palmer Monk And Mason On The Tigris Frontier. pp. XXII.
  10. ^ a b c Palmer Monk And Mason On The Tigris Frontier. p. 31.
  11. ^ Palmer Monk And Mason On The Tigris Frontier. p. 153.
  12. ^ Aphrem Barsoum (2008). The History of Tur Abdin. p. 101.
  13. ^ Aphrem Barsoum (2008). The History of Tur Abdin. p. 32.
  14. ^ Palmer Monk And Mason On The Tigris Frontier. p. 224.
  15. ^ Ephrem Barsoum, Matti Moosa The Scattered Pearls A History Of Syriac Literature And Sciences. p. 562.
  16. ^ David Gaunt (2006). Massacres, Resistance, Protectors: Muslim-Christian Relations in Eastern Anatolia during World War I. p. 223.
  17. ^ Aphrem Barsoum (2008). The History of Tur Abdin. p. 93.
  18. ^ Palmer Monk And Mason On The Tigris Frontier. p. 195.
  19. ^ David Gaunt (2006). Massacres, Resistance, Protectors: Muslim-Christian Relations in Eastern Anatolia during World War I. p. 223.
  20. ^ David Gaunt (2006). Massacres, Resistance, Protectors: Muslim-Christian Relations in Eastern Anatolia during World War I. p. 215.
  21. ^ "BTS 49". www.orient-institut.org. p. 195. Retrieved 25 March 2025.
  22. ^ Palmer Monk And Mason On The Tigris Frontier. p. preface.
  23. ^ Brock (2021), p. 165.
  24. ^ Jongerden & Verheij (2012), p. 322.
  25. ^ Tan (2018), p. 128.
  26. ^ a b c Courtois (2013), p. 149.
  27. ^ Palmer Monk And Mason On The Tigris Frontier.
  28. ^ a b Brock (2021), p. 167.
  29. ^ Sinclair (1989), p. 241.
  30. ^ "Yoldath Aloho Church and the Village of Anıtlı (Hah)". The Art of Wayfaring. 27 June 2022. Retrieved 18 March 2025.
  31. ^ "Were there more than Three Kings?". 22 December 2018. Retrieved 18 March 2025.

Bibliography

Allikas: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/An%C4%B1tl%C4%B1,_Midyat
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