View source for Aleppo

{{Short description|City in Aleppo Governorate, Syria}}
{{about|the city}}
{{Redirect|Halab}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=July 2020}}
{{Infobox settlement
<!--See the Table at Infobox Settlement for all fields and descriptions of usage-->| name               = Aleppo
| native_name        = {{lang|ar|ﺣَﻠَﺐ}}
| settlement_type    = [[Metropolis]]
| image_skyline      = {{multiple image
  | total_width            = 280
  | border                 = infobox
  | perrow                 = 1/2/2/2/1
  | caption_align          = center
  | image1       = Aleppo old city image.jpg
  | caption1     = [[Ancient Aleppo|Ancient City of Aleppo]]
  | image2       = Aleppo Citadel entrance - seen from southeast 9933.jpg
  | caption2     = [[Citadel of Aleppo|Aleppo Citadel]]
  | image3       = Aleppo-suq-Alp.JPG
  | caption3     = [[al-Madina Souq]]
  | image4       = Baron hotel at night.jpg
  | caption4     = [[Baron Hotel]]
  | image5       =Mosquée des Omeyyades d'Alep.jpg
  | caption5     = [[Great Mosque of Aleppo]]
  | image6       = Saint Elijah Maronite Cathedral, Aleppo (4).jpg
  | caption6     = [[Cathedral of Saint Elijah, Aleppo|Saint Elijah Cathedral]]
  | image7       = Aleppo queik River.jpg
  | caption7     = [[Queiq|Queiq River]]
  | image8       = Aleppo at night11.jpg
  | caption8     = View at night
}}
| image_flag         = 
| flag_size          = 
| image_seal         = [[File:Seal of Aleppo.png|100px]]
| seal_size          = 
| image_shield       = 
| shield_size        = 
| nickname           = Al-Shahbaa ({{langx|ar|الشَّهْبَاء|ash-Shahbāʾ}}){{efn|Al-Shahbaa ({{langx|ar|الشهباء}}), is an adjective which means "white-colored mixed with black".<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.almaany.com/home.php?language=arabic&lang_name=%D8%B9%D8%B1%D8%A8%D9%8A&word=%D8%B4%D9%8E%D9%87%D9%92%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%A1%D9%8F |title=معنى كلمة شَهْباءُ في معجم المعاني الجامع والمعجم الوسيط – معجم عربي عربي – صفحة 1 |author=Almaany Team |work=almaany.com |access-date=22 June 2014 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20140622140420/http://www.almaany.com/home.php?language=arabic&lang_name=%D8%B9%D8%B1%D8%A8%D9%8A&word=%D8%B4%D9%8E%D9%87%D9%92%D8%A8%D8%A7%D8%A1%D9%8F |archive-date=22 June 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref>}}{{force singular}}
| motto              = 
| image_map          = 
| map_caption        = 
| pushpin_map        = Syria#Mediterranean east#Asia#Syria Aleppo
| pushpin_label_position = 
| pushpin_relief     = yes
| pushpin_mapsize    = 
| pushpin_map_caption = Location of Aleppo in Syria
| mapframe           = yes
| coordinates        = {{Coord|36.20|N|37.16|E|region:SY_type:city|display=inline,title}}
| subdivision_type   = Country
| subdivision_name   = {{flagicon image|Flag of the Syrian revolution.svg}} [[Syria]]
| subdivision_type1  = [[Governorates of Syria|Governorate]]
| subdivision_type2  = [[Districts of Syria|District]]
| subdivision_type3  = [[Nahiyah|Subdistrict]]
| subdivision_name1  = [[Aleppo Governorate|Aleppo]]
| subdivision_name2  = [[Mount Simeon District|Mount Simeon]] (Jabal Semaan)
| subdivision_name3  = Mount Simeon (Jabal Semaan)
| established_title  = First settled
| established_date   = {{circa|5000}} [[Anno Domini|BC]]
| established_title2 = First city council
| established_date2  = 1868
| established_title3 = 
| parts_type         = 
| parts_style        = 
| government_footnotes = 
| government_type    = [[Mayor–council government]]
| leader_title       = [[List of governors of Aleppo Governorate|Governor]]
| leader_name        = [[Azzam al-Gharib]]
| leader_title1      = Mayor
| leader_name1       = Mohammed Ali al-Aziz
| area_footnotes     = 
| area_total_km2     = 190
| area_land_km2      = 
| area_water_km2     = 
| elevation_footnotes = 
| elevation_m        = 379
| elevation_ft       = 1243
| population_total   = 2,098,210
| population_as_of   = 2021 est.
| population_density_km2 = auto
| population_metro   = 
| population_density_metro_km2 = auto
| population_rank    = [[List of cities in Syria|2nd in Syria]] <br/>[[List of largest cities in the Arab world|18th in the Arab World]]
| population_demonym = {{langx|ar|حلبي Ḥalabi}}<br />{{langx|en|Aleppine}}<ref>{{cite web |title=Aleppine |url=https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/aleppine |work=Lexico |publisher=[[Oxford University Press]] |access-date=12 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170213164149/https://en.oxforddictionaries.com/definition/aleppine |archive-date=13 February 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>
| population_note    = 
| postal_code_type   = 
| postal_code        = 
| area_codes         = Country code: 963 <br /> City code: 21
| geocode            = C1007
| unemployment_rate  = 
| blank_name_sec2    = [[International airport]]
| blank_info_sec2    = [[Aleppo International Airport]]
| footnotes          = Sources: Aleppo city area<ref name="Syr-news1"/> Sources: City population<ref name="Population facts">[[Central Bureau of Statistics (Syria)|Central Bureau of Statistics]] (CBS). [http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB02-1-2004.htm Aleppo Subdistrict Population] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120520173518/http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB02-1-2004.htm |date=20 May 2012}}.</ref><ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/09/warplanes-mount-strikes-rebel-held-aleppo-160924080435839.html |title='Ferocious' air strikes pummel Aleppo as ground gained |publisher=[[Al Jazeera]] |date=24 September 2016 |access-date=4 October 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161006003251/http://www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/09/warplanes-mount-strikes-rebel-held-aleppo-160924080435839.html |archive-date=6 October 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://reliefweb.int/report/syrian-arab-republic/syrian-arab-republic-aleppo-situation-report-no-14-20-january-2017-enar |title=Syrian Arab Republic: Aleppo Situation Report No. 14 (20 January 2017) – Highlights of the Report of the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs |date=21 January 2017 |access-date=4 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170205095457/http://reliefweb.int/report/syrian-arab-republic/syrian-arab-republic-aleppo-situation-report-no-14-20-january-2017-enar |archive-date=5 February 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="wrldrew">{{Cite web |url=https://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/aleppo-population |access-date=24 April 2022 |website=worldpopulationreview.com |title=Aleppo population 2021 |archive-date=12 June 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220612134323/https://worldpopulationreview.com/world-cities/aleppo-population |url-status=live }}</ref>
{{designation list
 |embed = yes
 |designation1 = WHS
 |designation1_offname = [[Ancient City of Aleppo]]
 |designation1_date = 1986 <small>(10th [[World Heritage Committee|session]])</small>
 |designation1_number = [https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/21 21]
 |designation1_criteria = iii, iv
 |designation1_type = Cultural
 |designation1_free1name = Region
 |designation1_free1value = [[List of World Heritage Sites in the Arab States|Arab States]]
 }}
| utc_offset         = +3
| blank_name         = [[Köppen climate classification|Climate]]
| blank_info         = [[Semi-arid climate#Cold semi-arid climates|BSk]]
}}

'''Aleppo'''{{efn|{{IPAc-en|ə|ˈ|l|ɛ|p|oʊ}} {{respell|ə|LEP|oh}}; {{langx|ar|ﺣَﻠَﺐ}}, <small>[[ALA-LC]]:</small> {{Transliteration|ar|ALA|Ḥalab}}, <!--north Levantine pronunciation-->{{IPA|ar|ˈħalab|IPA}}}} is the largest city in [[Syria]] <ref>{{Cite web |title=Syria Population (2025) |url=https://www.worldometers.info/world-population/syria-population/ |access-date=2025-11-16 |website=Worldometer |language=en}}</ref> and serves as the capital of the [[Aleppo Governorate]], the most populous [[Governorates of Syria|governorate of Syria]].<ref name="UNDATA">{{cite web |url=http://data.un.org/CountryProfile.aspx?crName=Syrian%20Arab%20Republic |title=Syrian Arab republic |publisher=UN Data |date=24 October 1945 |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120307172846/http://data.un.org/CountryProfile.aspx?crName=Syrian%20Arab%20Republic |archive-date=7 March 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> With an estimated population of 2,098,000 residents {{as of|2021|post=,|lc=y}}<ref>{{Cite web |title=Population of Aleppo from 1950-2022 |url=https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/22608/aleppo/population |access-date=August 21, 2022 |website=[[Macrotrends]] |archive-date=21 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220821145240/https://www.macrotrends.net/cities/22608/aleppo/population |url-status=live }}</ref> it is Syria's largest city by urban area, and was the primary economic centre until it was surpassed by [[Damascus]], the capital of Syria. Aleppo is also the largest city in Syria's [[Governorates of Syria|northern governorates]] and one of the [[List of largest cities in the Levant region by population|largest cities]] in the [[Levant]] region.<ref>[http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB02-1-2004.htm Aleppo city population] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120520173518/http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB02-1-2004.htm |date=2012-05-20 }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.aksalser.com/?page=view_news&id=dea2316c19d685faf12f9850768f87b7 |title=بـ 4.6 ملايين نسمة .. محافظة حلب الأعلى سكانياً في سورية &#124; عكس السير دوت كوم |access-date=28 June 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170917033118/http://www.aksalser.com/?page=view_news&id=dea2316c19d685faf12f9850768f87b7 |archive-date=17 September 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Syria Cities by Population 2025 |url=https://worldpopulationreview.com/cities/syria#:~:text=Syria%20Overview,-Syria%20has%202&text=The%20largest%20city%20in%20Syria,areas%20divided%20across%20several%20categories. |access-date=2025-04-04 |website=worldpopulationreview.com}}</ref>

Aleppo is one of [[List of cities by time of continuous habitation#West Asia|the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world]]; it may have been inhabited since the sixth millennium BC.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Versaci |first1=Antonella |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=-h1iEAAAQBAJ |title=Conservation of Architectural Heritage |last2=Bougdah |first2=Hocine |last3=Akagawa |first3=Natsuko |last4=Cavalagli |first4=Nicola |date=2022-03-01 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-030-74482-3 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Research |first=United Nations Institute for Training and |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=SbqbDwAAQBAJ |title=Five years of conflict: the state of cultural heritage in the Ancient City of Aleppo; A comprehensive multi-temporal satellite imagery-based damage analysis for the Ancient City of Aleppo |date=2019-05-30 |publisher=UNESCO Publishing |isbn=978-92-3-100284-7 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last1=Murakami |first1=Nancy J. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=BhyeEAAAQBAJ |title=Integrative Social Work Practice with Refugees, Asylum Seekers, and Other Forcibly Displaced Persons |last2=Akilova |first2=Mashura |date=2022-11-25 |publisher=Springer Nature |isbn=978-3-031-12600-0 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Alafandi |first=Rami |date=2013-01-01 |title=ARCHITECTURAL HERITAGE OF ALEPPO: PAST, PRESENT AND FUTURE |url=https://www.academia.edu/7278317 |journal=International Conference on Universal Design in the Built Environment}}</ref><ref>{{Cite journal |last=Ibrahim |first=S. |date=2020-07-24 |title=Decision-Making Methodology Between Revitalisation and Rehabilitation of World Heritage City Centers. Case Study: The Ancient City of Aleppo (Syria) |journal=The International Archives of the Photogrammetry, Remote Sensing and Spatial Information Sciences |language=en |volume=XLIV-M-1-2020 |pages=255–262 |doi=10.5194/isprs-archives-XLIV-M-1-2020-255-2020 |doi-access=free |bibcode=2020ISPAr44M1..255I |s2cid=221663582 |issn=2194-9034}}</ref> Excavations at Tell as-Sawda and Tell al-Ansari, just south of the [[old city of Aleppo]], show that the area was occupied by [[Amorites]] by the latter part of the third millennium BC.<ref>''The Oxford Encyclopedia of Archaeology in the Near East'' (1997)</ref> That is also the time at which Aleppo is first mentioned in [[cuneiform]] tablets unearthed in [[Ebla]] and [[Mesopotamia]], which speak of it as part of the Amorite state of [[Yamhad]], and note its commercial and military importance.<ref>''[[Britannica Concise Encyclopedia]]'' (2010){{full citation needed|date=July 2019}}</ref> Such a long history is attributed to its strategic location as a trading center between the [[Mediterranean Sea]] and Mesopotamia. For centuries, Aleppo was the largest city in the [[Syria (region)|Syrian region]], and the [[Ottoman Empire]]'s third-largest after [[Ottoman Constantinople|Constantinople]] (now [[Istanbul]]) and [[Cairo]].<ref name="Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire">{{cite book |author1=Gábor Ágoston |author2=Bruce Alan Masters |title=Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=QjzYdCxumFcC&pg=PA30 |year=2010 |publisher=[[Infobase Publishing]] |isbn=978-1-4381-1025-7 |page=30 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140704184455/http://books.google.com/books?id=QjzYdCxumFcC&pg=PA30 |archive-date=4 July 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="Russell, Alexander (1794) The natural history of Aleppo">[[Alexander Russell (naturalist)|Russell, Alexander]] (1794), ''[[The Natural History of Aleppo]]'', 2nd Edition, Vol. I, [https://books.google.com/books?id=7PfaAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA1 pp. 1–2] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010328/https://books.google.com/books?id=7PfaAAAAMAAJ&pg=PA1 |date=29 October 2019 }}</ref><ref name="Gaskin, James J. 1846 Geography and sacred history of Syria p.33">Gaskin, James J. (1846), [https://archive.org/details/geographyandsac00gaskgoog/page/n45 <!-- pg=33 --> ''Geography and sacred history of Syria''] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010339/https://books.google.com/books?id=9SoEAAAAQAAJ&pg=PA33 |date=29 October 2019 }}, pp. 33–34</ref> The city's significance in history has been its location at one end of the [[Silk Road]], which passed through [[Central Asia]] and [[Mesopotamia]]. When the [[Suez Canal]] was inaugurated in 1869, much trade was diverted to sea and Aleppo began its slow decline.

At the [[fall of the Ottoman Empire]] after [[World War I]], Aleppo lost its northern [[hinterland]] to modern [[Turkey]], as well as the important [[Baghdad Railway]] connecting it to [[Mosul]]. In 1939, it lost its main access to the sea, by [[Antakya]] and [[İskenderun]], also to Turkey. The growth in importance of Damascus in the past few decades further exacerbated the situation. This decline may have helped to preserve the old city of Aleppo, its medieval architecture and traditional heritage. It won the title of the Islamic Capital of Culture 2006 and has had a wave of successful restorations of its historic landmarks. The [[Battle of Aleppo (2012–2016)|battle of Aleppo]] occurred in the city during the [[Syrian civil war]], and many parts of the city suffered massive destruction.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://archnet.org/collections/54/sites/6414 |title=Collections – Aga Khan Collection – Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme – Aleppo Citadel Restoration |work=[[Archnet]] |access-date=13 July 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140523070541/http://archnet.org/collections/54/sites/6414 |archive-date=23 May 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":2">{{Cite web |date=2022-09-20 |title=The Destruction of Aleppo: The Impact of the Syrian War on a World Heritage City |url=https://www.getty.edu/part-2/10-bandarin/ |access-date=2022-10-12 |website=[[Getty Museum]] |language=en }}{{Dead link|date=July 2023 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Affected parts of the city are currently undergoing reconstruction.<ref name=":0">{{cite news |url=https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/middle-east/aleppo-rebuilds-itself-from-destruction-of-war-1.3267526 |title=Aleppo rebuilds itself from destruction of war |last=Jansen |first=Michael |newspaper=[[The Irish Times]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171205093121/https://www.irishtimes.com/news/world/middle-east/aleppo-rebuilds-itself-from-destruction-of-war-1.3267526 |archive-date=5 December 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.trtworld.com/mea/aleppo-looks-to-rebuild-after-years-of-war-417651 |title=Aleppo looks to rebuild after years of war |last=Al Burai |first=Ahmed |website=[[TRT World]] |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171205143602/https://www.trtworld.com/mea/aleppo-looks-to-rebuild-after-years-of-war-417651 |archive-date=5 December 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> An estimated 31,000 people were killed in Aleppo during the conflict.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.vdc-sy.info/index.php/en/martyrs/1/c29ydGJ5PWEua2lsbGVkX2RhdGV8c29ydGRpcj1ERVNDfGFwcHJvdmVkPXZpc2libGV8ZXh0cmFkaXNwbGF5PTB8cHJvdmluY2U9NnxzdGFydERhdGU9MjAxMi0wNy0xOXxlbmREYXRlPTIwMTYtMTItMjJ8 |title=Aleppo: Latest Killed |website=[[Center for Documentation of Violations in Syria]] |access-date=17 August 2020 |archive-date=5 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181205141059/http://www.vdc-sy.info/index.php/en/martyrs/1/c29ydGJ5PWEua2lsbGVkX2RhdGV8c29ydGRpcj1ERVNDfGFwcHJvdmVkPXZpc2libGV8ZXh0cmFkaXNwbGF5PTB8cHJvdmluY2U9NnxzdGFydERhdGU9MjAxMi0wNy0xOXxlbmREYXRlPTIwMTYtMTItMjJ8 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Etymology==

{{Hiero|1=ḫrb3 |2=<hiero>Aa1:D21-Z3-D58-G29-N25</hiero>|era=nk|align=left}}

=== Proto-Semitic Origins ===
The etymology of the name '''Aleppo''' (Arabic: '''Ḥalab''', حلب) is ancient and rooted in the long history of the region.

The name ''Ḥalab'' is believed to originate from a [[Semitic languages|Semitic]] root, possibly the [[Proto-Semitic language|Proto-Semitic]] root '''ḥlb''', meaning “to milk” or “milk.” This connection might have arisen due to the area's association with pastoralism and the production of milk. Another possibility is that the name refers to the color “white,” as the root '''ḥlb''' could metaphorically describe the pale or white hue of certain local soils or materials.<ref>{{Cite book |title=The semitic languages: an international handbook |date=2011 |publisher=De Gruyter Mouton |isbn=978-3-11-018613-0 |editor-last=Weninger |editor-first=Stefan |series=Handbücher zur Sprach- und Kommunikationswissenschaft; Handbooks of linguistics and communication science |location=Berlin; Boston |editor-last2=Khan |editor-first2=Geoffrey |editor-last3=Streck |editor-first3=Michael P. |editor-last4=Watson |editor-first4=Janet C. E.}}</ref> Similarly, the modern-day nickname '''al-Shahbāʾ''' ({{langx|ar|الشهباء}}), meaning "the white-colored mixed with black", is said to be derived from its famed [[white marble]].<ref>{{cite web |script-title=ar:حلب الشهباء..معناها وأهميتها عند النبي العربي إبراهيم الخليل |url=http://www.hadhramautnews.net/news-4451.htm |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180706022148/http://www.hadhramautnews.net/news-4451.htm |archive-date=6 July 2018 |access-date=19 January 2019 |work=hadhramautnews.net |language=ar}}</ref>

=== Amorite Origins and Hittite Influence ===

During the [[second millennium BCE]], it became a key city of the [[Amorites|Amorite]] state, who referred to it as Ḥalab. The [[Hittites]], a contemporary [[Anatolia]]n Empire within the region, referred to the city as '''Ḥalpa''' or '''Ḥalpu''' in their inscriptions. This indicates the name was already well-established by this time.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Bryce |first=Trevor |title=The kingdom of the Hittites |date=2010 |publisher=Oxford Univ. Press |isbn=978-0-19-928132-9 |edition=New. |location=Oxford}}</ref>

=== Aramaic and Akkadian Adaptations ===

In [[Aramaic]], the city retained a similar name, with forms like '''Ḥalba'''. [[Akkadian language|Akkadian]] sources also refer to the city as '''Ḥalab'''.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Archi |first=Alfonso |title=Ebla and its Archives: Texts, History, and Society |date=2015 |publisher=[[De Gruyter]] |isbn=9781614517887 |series=Studies in ancient Near Eastern records |location=Boston |pages=123–145 |ol=OL30397923M}}</ref>

=== Greek and Roman Periods ===

During the [[Hellenistic period|Hellenistic]] and [[Roman period|Roman]] periods, Aleppo was known as '''Beroea''' ([[Veria|Βέροια]] in [[Greek language|Greek]]), a name likely assigned by the [[Seleucid Empire|Seleucid]] rulers after the [[Macedonia (ancient kingdom)|Macedonian]] city of the same name. Despite this, the local population continued to use the original Semitic name.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Gordon |first=Milton Myron |title=Assimilation in American Life: the role of race, religion, and national origins |date=1966 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-536547-4 |edition=Sixth printing |location=New York}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/aleppo.html |title=Aleppo |publisher=[[World Heritage Site]] |access-date=11 March 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304011949/http://www.worldheritagesite.org/sites/aleppo.html |archive-date=4 March 2012}}</ref>

=== Islamic Period ===

With the advent of [[Islam]] and the [[Arabization]] of the region, the name '''Ḥalab''' ([[Arabic]]: '''حلب''') remained in use, reflecting its deep historical continuity. The Arabic form also preserved its earlier meanings, with folklore often associating the name with the prophet [[Abraham]], who is said to have “milked” his livestock in the area to provide for travelers.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Muqaddasī |first1=Muḥammad Ibn-Aḥmad al- |title=The best divisions for knowledge of the regions: Ạhsan al-Taqāsīm fī Ma'rifat al-Aqālīm |last2=Collins |first2=Basil Anthony |last3=Alta'i |first3=Mohammad Hamid |last4=Muqaddasī |first4=Muḥammad Ibn-Aḥmad al- |date=2001 |publisher=Garnet |others=Centre for Muslim Contribution to Civilization |isbn=978-1-85964-136-1 |series=The great books of Islamic civilization |location=Reading}}</ref>

=== Modern-day English ===

The adoption of '''“Aleppo”''' into English likely coincided with the [[Crusades]] (11th–13th centuries) and subsequent increased trade and travel between Europe and the Middle East. By the late 14th to early 15th centuries, the term '''Aleppo''' was well-established in English literature and travel accounts.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Riley-Smith |first=Jonathan Simon Christopher |title=The crusades: a history |date=2005 |publisher=Yale University Press |isbn=978-0-300-10128-7 |edition=2nd |location=Yale}}</ref>

The earliest documented use of “Aleppo” in English occurs in translations of medieval texts and chronicles, such as the travel writings of [[Marco Polo]], where the city is mentioned as a key trading hub. Additionally, it was featured in maps and documents produced during the [[European Renaissance]] as a center of commerce on the [[Silk Road]].<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Polo |first1=Marco |title=The travels of Marco Polo: the complete Yule-Cordier edition; in 2 vol. Vol. 1: Containing the first volume of the 1903 edition |last2=Yule |first2=Henry |last3=Cordier |first3=Henri |date=1993 |publisher=Dover Publications |isbn=978-0-486-27586-4 |edition=[Repr. of the 3. ed.,] London 1903 |volume=1 |location=New York}}</ref>

==History==
{{main|Ancient City of Aleppo|Timeline of Aleppo|List of rulers of Aleppo}}

===Pre-history and pre-classical era===
{{main|Armi (Syria)|Yamhad|Yamhad dynasty}}

[[File:Mosques and minarets of Aleppo, Syria.jpg|thumb|left|[[Ancient City of Aleppo|The old town of Aleppo]]]]
Aleppo has scarcely been touched by archaeologists, since the modern city occupies its ancient site. The earliest occupation of the site was around 8,000 BC, as shown by excavations in Tallet Alsauda.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dailysabah.com/history/2015/12/07/meet-some-of-the-worlds-oldest-continually-inhabited-cities |title=Meet some of the world's oldest continually inhabited cities |website=[[Daily Sabah]] |date=7 December 2015 |access-date=9 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160820032133/http://www.dailysabah.com/history/2015/12/07/meet-some-of-the-worlds-oldest-continually-inhabited-cities |archive-date=20 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Aleppo appears in historical records as an important city much earlier than [[Damascus]]. The first record of Aleppo comes from the third millennium BC, in the [[Ebla tablets]] when Aleppo was referred to as '''Ha-lam''' (𒄩𒇴).<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=hFRwonqqNCUC&pg=PA250 |title=Orientalia: Vol. 63 |author=Alfonso Archi |publisher=Gregorian Biblical BookShop |page=250 |year=1945 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214635/https://books.google.com/books?id=hFRwonqqNCUC&pg=PA250 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> This has been identified as an early form of Ḥalab due to an interchange of /m/ and /b/ that has been attested in Sumerian texts, including with the cuneiform sign Lam.<ref>{{cite journal
 |last=Steinkeller
 |first=Piotr
 |title=More on Ḫa‑LAM = Ḫa‑labₓ
 |journal=N.A.B.U.
 |date=1993-02-09
 |issue=1
 |pages=8
 |url=https://sepoa.fr/wp/wp-content/uploads/2023/04/NABU-1993-1.pdf
}}</ref> Some historians, such as [[Wayne Horowitz]], identify Aleppo with the capital of an independent kingdom closely related to [[Ebla]], known as [[Armi (Syria)|Armi]],<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9bbgJzacoJYC&pg=PA482 |title=6 ICAANE |author1=Paolo Matthiae |author2=Licia Romano |year=2010 |publisher=Otto Harrassowitz Verlag |isbn=978-3-447-06175-9 |page=482 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214635/https://books.google.com/books?id=9bbgJzacoJYC&pg=PA482 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> although this identification is contested. The main temple of the storm god [[Hadad]] was located on the citadel hill in the center of the city,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Xno9AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA111 |title=Ancient Syria: A Three Thousand Year History |author=Trevor Bryce |page=111 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-964667-8 |date=2014 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160610161033/https://books.google.com/books?id=Xno9AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA111 |archive-date=10 June 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> when the city was known as the city of '''Hadad'''.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=AaZg0ypYrnQC&pg=PA264 |title=Ebla and its Landscape: Early State Formation in the Ancient Near East |author1=Paolo Matthiae |author2=Nicoló Marchetti |page=250 |publisher=Left Coast Press |isbn=978-1-61132-228-6 |date=2013-05-31 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214636/https://books.google.com/books?id=AaZg0ypYrnQC&pg=PA264 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Udgravning (Citadellet Aleppo).jpg|thumb|Hadad Temple inside [[Aleppo Citadel]]]]
[[Naram-Sin of Akkad]] mentioned his destruction of [[Ebla]] and [[Armanum]],<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=P8fl8BXpR0MC&pg=PA82 |first=Wayne |last=Horowitz |title=Mesopotamian Cosmic Geography |publisher=Eisenbrauns |year=1998 |isbn=978-0-931464-99-7 |page=82 |access-date=19 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160424075219/https://books.google.com/books?id=P8fl8BXpR0MC&pg=PA82 |archive-date=24 April 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> in the 23rd century BC.<ref>Pettinato, Giovanni (Johns Hopkins University Press, 1991) ''Ebla, a new look at history'' p.135</ref><ref name="Hawkins, John David 2000 p.388">Hawkins, John David (2000) ''Inscriptions of the iron age'' p.388</ref> However, the identification of Armani in the inscription of Naram-Sim as Armi in the Eblaite tablets is heavily debated,<ref name=Herzl>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rwals-oh6kC&pg=PA63 |title=Eblaitica: Essays on the Ebla Archives and Eblaite Language, Volume 4 |author1=Cyrus Herzl Gordon |author2=Gary Rendsburg |author3=Nathan H. Winter |page=63,64,65,66 |isbn=978-1-57506-060-6 |year=1990 |publisher=Eisenbrauns |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214635/https://books.google.com/books?id=0Rwals-oh6kC&pg=PA63 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> as there was no Akkadian annexation of Ebla or northern Syria.<ref name=Herzl/>

In the [[First Babylonian dynasty|Old Babylonian]] and [[Old Assyrian Empire]] period, Aleppo's name appears in its original form as Ḥalab (Ḥalba) for the first time.<ref name="Hawkins, John David 2000 p.388"/> Aleppo was the capital of the important [[Amorite]] dynasty of [[Yamhad|Yamḥad]]. The kingdom of Yamḥad (c. 1800–1525 BC), alternatively known as the 'land of Ḥalab,' was one of the most powerful in the Near East during the reign of [[Yarim-Lim I]], who formed an alliance with [[Hammurabi]] of [[Babylonia]] against [[Shamshi-Adad I]] of [[Assyria]].<ref>Kuhrt, Amélie (1998) ''The ancient Near East'' p.100</ref>

====Hittite period====
Yamḥad was devastated by the [[Hittites]] under [[Mursili I]] in the 16th century BC. However, it soon resumed its leading role in the Levant when the Hittite power in the region waned due to internal strife.<ref name="Hawkins, John David 2000 p.388"/>

Taking advantage of the power vacuum in the region, [[Baratarna]], king of the [[Hurrian]] kingdom of [[Mitanni]] instigated a rebellion that ended the life of Yamhad's last king [[Ilim-Ilimma I]] in c. 1525 BC,<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=41-MAgAAQBAJ&pg=PA34 |title=Ancient Syria: A Three Thousand Year History |author=Trevor Bryce |page=34 |year=2014 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-100293-9}}</ref> Subsequently, Parshatatar conquered Aleppo and the city found itself on the frontline in the struggle between the Mitanni, the Hittites and [[ancient Egypt|Egypt]].<ref name="Hawkins, John David 2000 p.388"/> [[Niqmepa, King of Alalakh|Niqmepa]] of [[Alalakh]] who descends from the old Yamhadite kings controlled the city as a vassal to Mitanni and was attacked by [[Tudhaliya I]] of the Hittites as a retaliation for his alliance to Mitanni.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Agg5-lpVI2MC&pg=PA152 |year=1999 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-924010-4 |title=The Kingdom of the Hittites |author=Trevor Bryce |page=152 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214635/https://books.google.com/books?id=Agg5-lpVI2MC&pg=PA152 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> Later the Hittite king [[Suppiluliumas I]] permanently defeated Mitanni, and conquered Aleppo in the 14th century BC. Suppiluliumas installed his son [[List of rulers of Aleppo#The Hittite Dynasty|Telepinus]] as king and a dynasty of Suppiluliumas descendants ruled Aleppo until the [[Late Bronze Age collapse]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6TwiY96cunQC&pg=PA388 |year=2000 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter |isbn=978-3-11-080420-1 |title=Inscriptions of the Iron Age: Part 1 |author=John David Hawkins |page=388 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160623161755/https://books.google.com/books?id=6TwiY96cunQC&pg=PA388 |archive-date=23 June 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref> However, Talmi-Šarruma, grandson of Suppiluliumas I, who was the king of Aleppo, had fought on the Hittite side, along with king [[Muwatalli II]] during the [[Battle of Kadesh]] against the Egyptian army led by [[Ramesses II]].{{efn|Rimisharrinaa was also reported to be the king of Aleppo at that time.{{sfn|Elliott|2020|p=117}}}}
 
[[File:Al_Qaiqan-Moschee3.JPG|thumb|[[Al-Qaiqan Mosque]] was originally a Hittite pagan temple during ancient times; in addition, a stone block with [[Anatolian hieroglyphs]] can be found on the southern wall.]]
Aleppo had [[cult]]ic importance to the Hittites as the center of worship of the [[Teshub|Storm-God]].<ref name="Hawkins, John David 2000 p.388"/> This religious importance continued after the collapse of the Hittite empire at the hands of the [[Assyria]]ns and [[Phrygians]] in the 12th century BC, when Aleppo became part of the [[Middle Assyrian Empire]],<ref name="bryce3">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q8Z7AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA111 |year=2014 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-100292-2 |title=Ancient Syria: A Three Thousand Year History |author=Trevor Bryce |page=111 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214636/https://books.google.com/books?id=q8Z7AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA111 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> whose king renovated the temple of Hadad which was discovered in 2003.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YMxY_hfXkCQC&pg=PA130 |year=2006 |publisher=Peeters Publishers |isbn=978-90-429-1817-7 |title=A New Luwian Stele and the Cult of the Storm-god at Til Barsib-Masuwari |author=Guy Bunnens |page=130 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214636/https://books.google.com/books?id=YMxY_hfXkCQC&pg=PA130 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

In 2003, a statue of a king named Taita bearing inscriptions in [[Luwian language|Luwian]] was discovered during excavations conducted by German archeologist Kay Kohlmeyer in the [[Citadel of Aleppo]].<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=YMxY_hfXkCQC&pg=PA130 |title=A New Luwian Stele and the Cult of the Storm-god at Til Barsib-Masuwari |author=Guy Bunnens |page=130 |isbn=9789042918177 |year=2006 |publisher=Peeters Publishers |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214636/https://books.google.com/books?id=YMxY_hfXkCQC&pg=PA130 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> The new readings of Anatolian hieroglyphic signs proposed by the Hittitologists Elisabeth Rieken and Ilya Yakubovich were conducive to the conclusion that the country ruled by Taita was called [[Palistin]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Rieken |first1=Elisabeth |last2=Yakubovich |first2=Ilya |year=2010 |editor-last=Singer |editor-first=I. |title=The New Values of Luwian Signs L 319 and L 172 |url=https://www.academia.edu/617478 |journal=Ipamati Kistamati Pari Tumatimis: Luwian and Hittite Studies Presented to J. David Hawkins on the Occasion of His 70th Birthday |publisher=Institute of Archaeology |location=Tel-Aviv |access-date=1 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010330/https://www.academia.edu/617478/The_New_Values_of_Luwian_Signs_L_319_and_L_172 |archive-date=29 October 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> This country extended in the 11th-10th centuries BC from the [[Amik Valley|Amouq Valley]] in the west to Aleppo in the east down to [[Maharda]] and [[Shaizar]] in the south.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q8Z7AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA111 |title=Ancient Syria: A Three Thousand Year History |author=Trevor Bryce |page=111 |isbn=9780191002922 |date=2014-03-06 |publisher=OUP Oxford |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214636/https://books.google.com/books?id=q8Z7AgAAQBAJ&pg=PA111 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> Due to the similarity between Palistin and Philistines, [[Hittitologist]] John David Hawkins (who translated the Aleppo inscriptions) hypothesizes a connection between the [[Neo-Hittite states|Syro-Hittite states]] Palistin and the Philistines, as do archaeologists Benjamin Sass and Kay Kohlmeyer.<ref>{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=gBCl2IQfNioC&pg=PA662 |title=The Philistines and Other "Sea Peoples" in Text and Archaeology |author=Ann E. Killebrew |page=662 |isbn=9781589837218 |date=2013-04-21 |publisher=Society of Biblical Lit |access-date=1 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190520075325/https://books.google.com/books?id=gBCl2IQfNioC&pg=PA662 |archive-date=20 May 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> [[Gershon Galil]] suggests that King David halted the Arameans' expansion into the Land of Israel on account of his alliance with the southern Philistine kings, as well as with Toi, king of Ḥamath, who is identified with Tai(ta) II, king of Palistin (the northern Sea Peoples).<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.haifa.ac.il/index.php/en/2012-12-16-11-30-12/new-media/900-the-history-of-king-david-in-light-of-new-epigraphic-and-archeological-data |title=The History of King David in Light of New Epigraphic and Archeological Data |access-date=1 October 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181001070407/https://www.haifa.ac.il/index.php/en/2012-12-16-11-30-12/new-media/900-the-history-of-king-david-in-light-of-new-epigraphic-and-archeological-data |archive-date=1 October 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

====State of Bit Agusi====
During the early years of the 1st millennium BC, Aleppo was incorporated into the [[Arameans|Aramean]] realm of [[Bit Agusi]], which held its capital at [[Arpad, Syria|Arpad]].<ref name="Lipinsky, Edward 2000. p. 195">Lipinsky, Edward, 2000.'' The Aramaeans: Their Ancient History, Culture, Religion'' (Peeters), p. 195.</ref> Bit Agusi along with Aleppo and the entirety of the Levant was conquered by the [[Assyrian people|Assyrians]] in the 8th century BC and became part of the [[Neo-Assyrian Empire]] during the reign of [[Tiglath-Pileser III]] until the late 7th century BC,<ref name="Healy, Mark 1992 p. 25">Healy, Mark (1992). ''The Ancient Assyrians'' (Osprey) p. 25.</ref> before passing through the hands of the [[Neo-Babylonian]]s and the [[Achaemenid|Achaemenid Persians]].<ref name="Kipfer, Barbara Ann 2000 p. 626">Kipfer, Barbara Ann (2000). ''Encyclopedic Dictionary of Archaeology''. p. 626.</ref> The region remained known as [[Aramea]] and [[Eber Nari]] throughout these periods.

=== Classical antiquity (Beroea) ===
[[File:TabulaPeutingeriana-berya.jpg|thumb|Beroea as it is shown in [[Tabula Peutingeriana]]]]
[[File:Brad Northern Basilica.jpg|thumb|The ruins of the [[Maronite]] basilica in [[Barad, Syria|Barad]]]]
[[Alexander the Great]] took over the city in 333 BC. [[Seleucus Nicator]] established a [[Hellenic Republic|Hellenic]] settlement in the site between 301 and 286 BC. He called it ''Beroea'' (Βέροια), after [[Veria|Beroea]] in [[Macedon]]; it is sometimes spelled as Beroia. Beroea is mentioned in [[1 Maccabees|1 Macc.]] 9:4.

Northern Syria was the center of gravity of the Hellenistic world and Greek culture in the [[Seleucid Empire]]. As did other Greek cities of the Seleucid kingdom, Beroea probably enjoyed a measure of local autonomy, with a local civic assembly or ''[[Boule (ancient Greece)|boulē]]'' composed of free Hellenes.<ref name="Phenix, Robert R. 2008">Phenix, Robert R. (2008) ''The sermons on Joseph of [[Balai of Qenneshrin]]''</ref>

Beroea remained under Seleucid rule until 88 BC when Syria was conquered by the [[Armenian people|Armenian]] king [[Tigranes the Great]] and Beroea became part of the [[Kingdom of Armenia (antiquity)|Kingdom of Armenia]].<ref>{{Citation |last=Savory |first=R. M. |title=Safavid Persia |date=1977 |url=https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/cambridge-history-of-islam/safavid-persia/E475A272F197D060EC9C4696C5E99CEF |work=The Cambridge History of Islam: Volume undefined: The Central Islamic Lands from Pre-Islamic Times to the First World War |pages=394–429 |editor-last=Lambton |editor-first=Ann K. S. |series=The Cambridge History of Islam |place=Cambridge |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-0-521-29135-4 |access-date=2021-11-26 |editor2-last=Lewis |editor2-first=Bernard |editor3-last=Holt |editor3-first=P. M. |archive-date=19 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180619103559/https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/cambridge-history-of-islam/safavid-persia/E475A272F197D060EC9C4696C5E99CEF |url-status=live }}</ref> After the [[Roman Republic|Roman]] victory over Tigranes, Syria was handed over to [[Pompey]] in 64 BC, at which time they became a [[Roman Syria|Roman province]]. Rome's presence afforded relative stability in northern Syria for over three centuries. Although the province was administered by a [[legatus|legate]] from Rome, Rome did not impose its administrative organization on the Greek-speaking ruling class or [[Aramaic language|Aramaic]] speaking populace.<ref name="Phenix, Robert R. 2008"/>

The Roman era saw an increase in the population of northern Syria that accelerated under the [[Byzantine Empire|Byzantines]] well into the 5th century. In [[Late Antiquity]], Beroea was the second largest Syrian city after [[Antioch]], the capital of [[Roman Syria]] and the third largest city in the Roman world. Archaeological evidence indicates a high population density for settlements between Antioch and Beroea right up to the 6th century. This agrarian landscape still holds the remains of large estate houses and churches such as the [[Church of Saint Simeon Stylites]].<ref name="Phenix, Robert R. 2008"/>

===Ecclesiastical history===
[[File:Aleppo Citadel 10 - Mosque of Abraham.jpg|thumb|The Mosque of Abraham in the Citadel of Aleppo, originally built by the Byzantines as a church]]
The names of several bishops of the [[episcopal see]] of Beroea, which was in the [[Roman province]] of [[Syria Prima]], are recorded in extant documents. The first whose name survives is that of Saint [[Eustathius of Antioch]], who, after being bishop of Beroea, was transferred to the important [[metropolitan see]] of [[Patriarch of Antioch|Antioch]] shortly before the 325 [[First Council of Nicaea]]. His successor in Beroea Cyrus was for his fidelity to the Nicene faith sent into exile by the [[Roman Emperor]] [[Constantius II]]. After the [[Council of Seleucia]] of 359, called by Constantius, [[Meletius of Antioch]] was transferred from [[Sivas|Sebastea]] to Beroea but in the following year was promoted to Antioch. His successor in Beroea, Anatolius, was at a council in Antioch in 363. Under the persecuting Emperor [[Valens]], the bishop of Beroea was Theodotus, a friend of [[Basil the Great]]. He was succeeded by [[Acacius of Beroea]], who governed the see for over 50 years and was at the [[First Council of Constantinople]] in 381 and the [[Council of Ephesus]] in 431. In 438, he was succeeded by Theoctistus, who participated in the [[Council of Chalcedon]] in 451 and was a signatory of the joint letter that the bishops of the province of Syria Prima sent in 458 to Emperor [[Leo I the Thracian]] about the murder of [[Proterius of Alexandria]]. In 518, Emperor [[Justin I]] exiled the bishop of Beroea Antoninus for rejecting the Council of Chalcedon. The last known bishop of the see is Megas, who was at a synod called by [[Patriarch Menas of Constantinople]] in 536.<ref>Michel Lequien, [https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_86weAemI-e4C ''Oriens christianus in quatuor Patriarchatus digestus''] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010052512/https://books.google.com/books?id=86weAemI-e4C |date=10 October 2017 }}, Paris 1740, Vol. II, coll. 781–786</ref><ref>Raymond Janin, v. ''2. Berrhée'' in [http://booksnow.scholarsportal.info/ebooks/oca2/4/dictionnairedhis08bauduoft/dictionnairedhis08bauduoft.pdf ''Dictionnaire d'Histoire et de Géographie ecclésiastiques''] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010330/http://booksnow.scholarsportal.info/ebooks/oca2/4/dictionnairedhis08bauduoft/dictionnairedhis08bauduoft.pdf |date=29 October 2019 }}, vol. VIII, 1935, coll. 887–888</ref> After the Arab conquest, Beroea ceased to be a residential bishopric, and is today listed by the [[Catholic Church|Roman Catholic Church]] as a [[titular see]].<ref>''Annuario Pontificio 2013'' (Libreria Editrice Vaticana 2013 {{ISBN|978-88-209-9070-1}}), p. 848</ref>

Very few physical remains have been found from the Roman and Byzantine periods in the Citadel of Aleppo. The two mosques inside the Citadel are known to have been converted by the [[Mirdasid dynasty|Mirdasids]] during the 11th century from churches originally built by the Byzantines.<ref name="Julia1">Gonnela, 2008, pp. 12–13</ref>

===Medieval period===
[[File:Bab Qinnasrin2010.jpg|thumb|The old walls of Aleppo and the [[Bab Qinnasrin|Gate of Qinnasrin]] restored in 1256 by [[An-Nasir Yusuf]]]]

====Early Islamic period====
The [[Sasanian Persia]]ns led by King [[Khosrow I]] pillaged and burned Aleppo in 540,<ref>{{cite web |url=https://en.unesco.org/silkroad/content/aleppo |title=Aleppo |website=UNESCO |access-date=3 August 2020 |archive-date=10 October 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20201010212416/https://en.unesco.org/silkroad/content/aleppo |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://www.britannica.com/place/Aleppo |title=Aleppo |website=Britannica |date=9 May 2023 |access-date=3 August 2020 |archive-date=29 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200729085943/https://www.britannica.com/place/Aleppo |url-status=live }}</ref> then they [[Byzantine–Sasanian War of 602–628|invaded and controlled]] Syria briefly in the early 7th century. Soon after Aleppo was [[Siege of Aleppo (637)|taken]] by the [[Rashidun Caliphate|Rashidun]] [[Early Muslim conquests|Muslims]] under [[Abu Ubaidah ibn al-Jarrah]] in 637. It later became part of [[Jund Qinnasrin]] under the [[Umayyad Caliphate]]. In 944, it became the seat of an independent Emirate under the [[Hamdanid]] prince [[Sayf al-Dawla]], and enjoyed a period of great prosperity, being home to the great poet [[al-Mutanabbi]] and the philosopher and [[polymath]] [[al-Farabi]].{{sfn|Burns|2016|pp=90–92}} In 962, the city was [[Sack of Aleppo (962)|sacked]] by the Byzantine general [[Nikephoros II Phokas|Nikephoros Phokas]].{{sfn|Burns|2016|pp=92–93}} Subsequently, the city and its emirate [[Treaty of Safar|became a temporary vassal]] of the Byzantine Empire. For the next few decades, the city was disputed by the [[Fatimid Caliphate]] and [[Byzantine Empire]], with the nominally independent Hamdanids in between, eventually falling to the Fatimids in 1017.{{sfn|Burns|2016|pp=96–99}} In 1024, [[Salih ibn Mirdas]] launched an attack on Fatimid Aleppo, and after a few months was invited into the city by its population.{{sfn|Burns|2016|p=99}} The [[Mirdasid dynasty]] then ruled the city until 1080, interrupted only in 1038–1042, when it was in the hands of the Fatimid commander-in-chief in Syria, [[Anushtakin al-Dizbari]], and in 1057–1060, when it was ruled by a Fatimid governor, [[Ibn Mulhim]]. Mirdasid rule was marked by internal squabbles between different Mirdasid chieftains that sapped the emirate's power and made it susceptible to external intervention by the Byzantines, Fatimids, [[Uqaylids]], and [[Turkoman (ethnonym)|Turkoman]] warrior bands.{{sfn|Bianquis|1993|pp=116–122}}

====Seljuq and Ayyubid periods====
In late 1077, Seljuk emir [[Tutush I]] launched a campaign to capture Aleppo during the reign of [[Sabiq ibn Mahmud]] of the [[Mirdasid dynasty]], which lasted until 1080, when his reinforcements were ambushed and routed by a coalition of Arab tribesmen led by [[Banu Kilab|Kilabi]] chief Abu Za'ida at [[Wadi Butnan]].{{sfn|Zakkar|1969|p=202}} After the death of [[Muslim ibn Quraysh|Sharaf al-Dawla]] of the [[Uqaylid dynasty]] in June 1085, the headman in Aleppo [[Sharif]] Hassan ibn Hibat Allah Al-Hutayti promised to surrender the city to Sultan [[Malik-Shah I]]. When the latter delayed his arrival, Hassan contacted the Sultan's brother Tutush. However, after Tutush defeated [[Suleiman ibn Qutalmish|Suleiman ibn Qutulmish]], who had intended to take Aleppo for himself, in the [[battle of Ain Salm]], Hassan went back on his commitment. In response, Tutush attacked the city and managed to get hold of parts of the walls and towers in July 1086, but he left in September, either due to the advance of Malik-Shah or because the Fatimids were besieging Damascus.{{sfn|Basan|2010|p=91}}{{sfn|Beihammer|2017|p=247}} In 1087, [[Aq Sunqur al-Hajib]] became the Seljuk governor of Aleppo under Sultan Malik Shah I.<ref name="Kamāl">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ZV-6AAAAIAAJ |title=Zubdat al-ḥalab min tārīkh Ḥalab |author=Kamāl al-Dīn ʻUmar ibn Aḥmad Ibn al-ʻAdīm |year=1996 |access-date=15 February 2021 |archive-date=23 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923074247/https://books.google.com/books?id=ZV-6AAAAIAAJ |url-status=live }}</ref> During his bid for the Seljuk throne, Tutush had Aq Sunqur executed and after Tutush died in battle, the town was ruled by his son [[Fakhr al-Mulk Ridwan|Ridwan]].{{sfn|Basan|2010|p=99, 101}}{{sfn|Beihammer|2017|p=252,254}}

The [[Siege of Aleppo (1124)|city was besieged]] by [[Crusades|Crusaders]] led by the King of Jerusalem [[Baldwin II of Jerusalem|Baldwin II]] in 1124–1125, but was not conquered after receiving protection by forces of [[Aqsunqur al-Bursuqi|Aqsunqur al Bursuqi]] arriving from Mosul in January 1125.{{sfn|Burns|2016|pp=121–122}}

In 1128, Aleppo became capital of the expanding [[Zengid dynasty]], which ultimately conquered Damascus in 1154. In 1138, Byzantine emperor [[John II Komnenos]] led a campaign, which main objective was to capture the city of Aleppo. On 20 April 1138, the Christian army including Crusaders from [[Principality of Antioch|Antioch]] and [[County of Edessa|Edessa]] launched an [[Siege of Aleppo (1138)|attack on the city]] but found it too strongly defended, hence John II moved the army southward to take nearby fortresses.{{sfn|Runciman|1952|p=215}} On 11 October 1138, [[1138 Aleppo earthquake|a deadly earthquake]] ravaged the city and the surrounding area. Although estimates from this time are very unreliable, it is believed that 230,000 people died, making it the [[Lists of earthquakes#Deadliest earthquakes|seventh deadliest]] earthquake in recorded history.

In 1183, Aleppo came under the control of [[Saladin]] and then the [[Ayyubid dynasty]]. When the Ayyubids were toppled in Egypt by the [[Mamluk Sultanate (Cairo)|Mamluks]], the Ayyubid emir of Aleppo [[An-Nasir Yusuf]] became sultan of the remaining part of the Ayyubid Empire. He ruled Syria from his seat in Aleppo until, on 24 January 1260,<ref>{{cite journal |author=Jackson, Peter |title=The Crisis in the Holy Land in 1260 |journal=[[The English Historical Review]] |volume=95 |date=July 1980 |pages=481–513 |issue=376 |doi=10.1093/ehr/XCV.CCCLXXVI.481}}</ref> the [[Siege of Aleppo (1260)|city was taken]] by the [[Mongols]] under [[Hulagu]] in alliance with their vassals the [[Franks|Frankish]] knights of the ruler of Antioch [[Bohemond VI]] and his father-in-law the [[Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia|Armenian]] ruler [[Hethum I, King of Armenia|Hethum I]].<ref>''Histoire des Croisades'', René Grousset, p. 581, {{ISBN|2-262-02569-X}}.</ref> The city was poorly defended by Turanshah, and as a result the walls fell after six days of siege, and the [[citadel]] fell four weeks later. The Muslim population was massacred and many Jews were also killed.<ref name="Shelemay1998">{{cite book |author=Kay Kaufman Shelemay |title=Let jasmine rain down: song and remembrance among Syrian Jews |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=pgoFDZeHhF4C&pg=PA70 |year=1998 |publisher=University of Chicago Press |isbn=978-0-226-75211-2 |page=70 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151016214635/https://books.google.com/books?id=pgoFDZeHhF4C&pg=PA70 |archive-date=16 October 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref> The Christian population was spared. Turanshah was shown unusual respect by the Mongols, and was allowed to live because of his age and bravery. The city was then given to the former Emir of [[Homs]], [[Al-Ashraf Musa, Emir of Homs|al-Ashraf]], and a Mongol garrison was established in the city. Some of the spoils were also given to Hethum I for his assistance in the attack. The Mongol Army then continued on to [[Damascus]], which surrendered, and the Mongols entered the city on 1 March 1260.{{sfn|Runciman|1987|p=307}}

====Mamluk period====
[[File:Souk Al Zirb Aleppo.jpg|thumb|Souq az-Zirb, where coins were struck during the Mamluk period]]
In September 1260, the Egyptian Mamluks negotiated for a treaty with the Franks of Acre which allowed them to pass through Crusader territory unmolested, and engaged the Mongols at the [[Battle of Ain Jalut]] on 3 September 1260. The Mamluks won a decisive victory, killing the Mongols' Nestorian Christian general [[Kitbuqa]], and five days later they had retaken Damascus. Aleppo was recovered by the Muslims within a month, and a Mamluk governor placed to govern the city. Hulagu sent troops to try to recover Aleppo in December. They were able to massacre a large number of Muslims in retaliation for the death of Kitbuqa, but after a fortnight could make no other progress and had to retreat.{{sfn|Runciman|1987|p=314}}

[[File:Al-Atroush Mosque, Aleppo.jpg|thumb|[[Al-Otrush Mosque]] of the Mamluk period]]
The Mamluk governor of the city became insubordinate to the central Mamluk authority in Cairo, and in Autumn 1261 the Mamluk leader [[Baibars]] sent an army to reclaim the city. In October 1271, the Mongols led by general [[Samagar]] took the city again, attacking with 10,000 horsemen from [[Anatolia]], and defeating the [[Turkoman (ethnonym)|Turcoman]] troops who were defending Aleppo. The Mamluk garrisons fled to [[Hama]], until Baibars came north again with his main army, and the Mongols retreated.{{sfn|Runciman|1987|pp=336–337}}

On 20 October 1280, the Mongols took the city again, pillaging the markets and burning the mosques.{{sfn|Burns|2016|p=179}} The Muslim inhabitants fled for Damascus, where the Mamluk leader [[Qalawun]] assembled his forces. When his army advanced following the [[Second Battle of Homs]] in October 1281, the Mongols again retreated, back across the [[Euphrates]]. In October 1299, [[Ghazan]] captured the city, joined by his vassal Armenian King [[Hethum II, King of Armenia|Hethum II]], whose forces included some [[Knights Templar|Templars]] and [[Knights Hospitaller|Hospitallers]].{{sfn|Demurger|2007|p=142}}

In 1400, the Mongol-Turkic leader [[Timur|Tamerlane]] [[Sack of Aleppo (1400)|captured the city]] again from the Mamluks.{{sfn|Runciman|1987|p=463}} He massacred many of the inhabitants, ordering the building of a tower of 20,000 skulls outside the city.<ref>[http://everything2.com/index.pl?node=Battle%20of%20Aleppo Battle of Aleppo@Everything2.com<!-- Bot generated title -->] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180117131348/https://everything2.com/index.pl?node=Battle%20of%20Aleppo |date=17 January 2018 }}.</ref> After the withdrawal of the Mongols, all the Muslim population returned to Aleppo. On the other hand, Christians who left the city during the Mongol invasion, were unable to resettle back in their own quarter in the old town, a fact that led them to establish a new neighbourhood in 1420, built at the northern suburbs of Aleppo outside the city walls, to become known as ''[[Al-Jdayde|al-Jdeydeh]]'' quarter ("new district" {{langx|ar|جديدة|link=no}}).

===Ottoman era===
{{See also|Aleppo Eyalet}}
[[File:Khusruwiyah mosque and Aleppo view2.jpg|thumb|[[Khusruwiyah Mosque]] of the early Ottoman period]]
[[File:Alep. Prise de Bab Antakieh (publiée) MET DP-1757-027.jpg|thumb|right|1842 [[daguerreotype]] by [[Joseph-Philibert Girault de Prangey]] (the earliest photograph of the city)]]
Aleppo became part of the [[Ottoman Empire]] in 1516 as part of the vast expansion of the Ottoman borders during the reign of [[Selim I]]. The city then had around 50,000 inhabitants, or 11,224 households according to an Ottoman census.<ref>"Population and Revenue in the Towns of Palestine in the Sixteenth Century"</ref> In 1517, Selim I obtained a fatwa from Sunnite religious leaders and unleashed violence on the [[Alawites]], killing 9,400 men, which is known as the [[Massacre of the Telal]].<ref>{{cite web |date=9 May 2017 |title=Ottoman Empire massacre against Alawites |url=http://sy-center.net/?p=1512 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190423182731/http://sy-center.net/?p=1512 |archive-date=23 April 2019 |access-date=28 May 2018 |work=Syrian Center for Studies}}</ref> It was the centre of the [[Aleppo Eyalet]]; the rest of what later became Syria was part of either the eyalets of Damascus, Tripoli, Sidon or [[Rakka Eyalet|Raqqa]]. Following the Ottoman provincial reform of 1864 Aleppo became the centre of the newly constituted Vilayet of Aleppo in 1866.

Aleppo's agriculture was well-developed in the [[Ottoman Syria|Ottoman]] period. Archaeological excavations revealed water mills in its river basin.<ref>{{Cite web |last=Wilkinson |first=Tony J. |title=The Archaeological Landscape of the Balikh Valley, Syria |url=https://oi.uchicago.edu/sites/oi.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/shared/docs/ar/91-00/95-96/95-96_BalikhValley.pdf |access-date=24 March 2022 |archive-date=24 March 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220324183438/https://oi.uchicago.edu/sites/oi.uchicago.edu/files/uploads/shared/docs/ar/91-00/95-96/95-96_BalikhValley.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite journal |last=Chen |first=Yuan Julian |date=2021-10-11 |title=Between the Islamic and Chinese Universal Empires: The Ottoman Empire, Ming Dynasty, and Global Age of Explorations |url=https://www.academia.edu/59068575 |journal=Journal of Early Modern History |volume=25 |issue=5 |pages=422–456 |doi=10.1163/15700658-bja10030 |s2cid=244587800 |issn=1385-3783 |access-date=24 March 2022 |archive-date=17 April 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220417192653/https://www.academia.edu/59068575 |url-status=live }}</ref> Contemporary Chinese source also suggests Aleppo in the Ottoman period had well-developed animal husbandry.<ref name=":1" />

During his travels to the Levant in the 17th century, French traveler Jacques Goujon recounted how the [[Maronites|Maronite]] community in Aleppo, facing financial difficulties and considering conversion to Islam due to their inability to pay the [[Jizya|jizya tax]], was aided by the [[Franciscans]] who bought their church, enabling them to meet their tax obligations.<ref name=":22">{{Cite book |last=Tramontana |first=Felicita |url=https://www.jstor.org/stable/j.ctvc16s06 |title=Passages of Faith: Conversion in Palestinian villages (17th century) |date=2014 |publisher=Harrassowitz Verlag |isbn=978-3-447-10135-6 |edition=1 |pages=69–70 |chapter=III. Conversion to Islam in the villages of Dayr Abān and Ṣūbā |doi=10.2307/j.ctvc16s06.8|jstor=j.ctvc16s06 }}</ref>

Moreover, thanks to its strategic geographic location on the trade route between [[Anatolia]] and the east, Aleppo rose to high prominence in the Ottoman era, at one point being second only to [[Constantinople]] in the empire. By the middle of the 16th century, Aleppo had displaced [[Damascus]] as the principal market for goods coming to the Mediterranean region from the east. This is reflected by the fact that the [[Levant Company of London]], a joint-trading company founded in 1581 to monopolize England's trade with the Ottoman Empire, never attempted to settle a factor, or agent, in Damascus, despite having had permission to do so. Aleppo served as the company's headquarters until the late 18th century.<ref name="Masters 2009">Ágoston and Masters (2009), Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire</ref>

[[File:Aleppo Khan Shuneh.jpg|thumb|left|Khan al-Shouneh dating back to 1546]]
As a result of the economic development, many European states had opened consulates in Aleppo during the 16th and the 17th centuries, such as the consulate of the [[Republic of Venice]] in 1548, the consulate of [[Kingdom of France|France]] in 1562, the consulate of [[Kingdom of England|England]] in 1583 and the consulate of the [[Dutch Republic|Netherlands]] in 1613.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.panoramaline.com/aleppo-arab.htm |title=Aleppo in History (in Arabic) |publisher=Panoramaline.com |access-date=11 March 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120315181143/http://www.panoramaline.com/aleppo-arab.htm |archive-date=15 March 2012}}</ref> The [[Armenians|Armenian]] community of Aleppo also rose to prominence in this period as they moved into the city to take up trade and developed the new quarter of Judayda.<ref>{{cite book |first=Elyse |last=Semerdjian |editor1-first=Stefan |editor1-last=Winter |editor2-first=Mafalda |editor2-last=Ade |title=Aleppo and its Hinterland in the Ottoman Period / Alep et sa province à l'époque ottomane |chapter=Armenians in the Production of Urban Space in Early Modern Judayda |year=2019 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-37902-2 |url=https://brill.com/view/title/38977 |access-date=5 September 2021 |archive-date=28 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128154204/https://brill.com/view/title/38977 |url-status=live }}pp. 28-61</ref> The most outstanding among Aleppine [[Armenian merchantry|Armenian merchants]] during the late 16th and early 17th centuries were [[Petik and Sanos|Khwaja Petik Chelebi]], the richest merchant in the city, and his brother [[Petik and Sanos|Khwaja Sanos Chelebi]], who monopolized Aleppine silk trade and were important patrons of the Armenians.<ref>{{cite book|last1=Aslanian |first1=Sebouh |title=From the Indian Ocean to the Mediterranean: The Global Trade Networks of Armenian Merchants from New Julfa |date=2011 |publisher=[[University of California Press]] |isbn=978-0-520-94757-3|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=mYAkDQAAQBAJ|page = 68}}</ref><ref>{{cite book|last1 = Sanjian|first1 = Avedis|title = The Armenian Communities in Syria under Ottoman Dominion|url = https://archive.org/details/Sanjian1965ACSOD|date = 1965|publisher = [[Harvard University Press]]|pages = 48–49, 261}}</ref>

[[File:Aleppo in Syrien - Peeters Jacob - 1690.jpg|thumb|left|Aleppo in 1690]] 
However, the prosperity Aleppo experienced in the 16th and 17th century started to fade as silk production in Iran went into decline with the fall of the [[Safavid dynasty]] in 1722. By mid-century, caravans were no longer bringing silk from Iran to Aleppo, and local Syrian production was insufficient for Europe's demand. European merchants left Aleppo and the city went into an economic decline that was not reversed until the mid-19th century when locally produced cotton and tobacco became the principal commodities of interest to the Europeans.<ref name="Masters 2009"/> According to [[Halil İnalcık]], "Aleppo ... underwent its worst catastrophe with the wholesale destruction of its villages by [[Bedouin]] raiding in the later years of the century, creating a long-running [[famine]] which by 1798 killed half of its inhabitants."<ref>Suraiya Faroqhi, Halil İnalcık, Donald Quataert (1997). "''[https://books.google.com/books?id=c00jmTrjzAoC&pg=PA651 An economic and social history of the Ottoman Empire] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010330/https://books.google.com/books?id=c00jmTrjzAoC&pg=PA651 |date=29 October 2019 }}''". [[Cambridge University Press]]. p.651. {{ISBN|0-521-57455-2}}</ref>

The economy of Aleppo was badly hit by the opening of the [[Suez Canal]] in 1869. This, in addition to political instability that followed the implementation of significant reforms in 1841 by the central government, contributed to Aleppo's decline and the rise of Damascus as a serious economic and political competitor with Aleppo.<ref name="Masters 2009"/> The city nevertheless continued to play an important economic role and shifted its commercial focus from long-distance caravan trade to more regional trade in wool and agricultural products. This period also saw the immigration of numerous "Levantine" (European-origin) families who dominated international trade. Aleppo's mixed commercial tribunal (''ticaret mahkamesi''), one of the first in the Ottoman Empire, was set up around 1855.<ref>{{cite book |first=Mafalda |last=Ade |editor1-first=Stefan |editor1-last=Winter |editor2-first=Mafalda |editor2-last=Ade |title=Aleppo and its Hinterland in the Ottoman Period / Alep et sa province à l'époque ottomane |chapter=L’innovation judiciaire dans l’Empire ottoman : l’établissement d’un tribunal de commerce à Alep au milieu du XIXe siècle |year=2019 |publisher=Brill |isbn=978-90-04-37902-2 |url=https://brill.com/view/title/38977 |access-date=5 September 2021 |archive-date=28 November 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211128154204/https://brill.com/view/title/38977 |url-status=live }}pp. 175-203</ref>

[[File:1 Beit Gazaleh RCh 2010 DSC 1798.jpg|thumb|left|The 17th-century oriental mansion of [[Beit Ghazaleh]]]]
[[File:Haygazian Armenian School, Aleppo Armenian Quarter (2).jpg|thumb|Qalayet al-Mawarina alley at the Christian quarter in [[Al-Jdayde|Jdeydeh]], dating back to the early 17th century]]
Reference is made to the city in 1606 in William Shakespeare's ''Macbeth''. The witches torment the captain of the ship the ''Tiger'', which was headed to Aleppo from England and endured a 567-day voyage before returning unsuccessfully to port. Reference is also made to the city in Shakespeare's ''Othello'' when Othello speaks his final words (ACT V, ii, 349f.): "Set you down this/And say besides that in Aleppo once,/Where a malignant and a turbanned Turk/Beat a Venetian and traduced the state,/I took by th' throat the circumcised dog/And smote him—thus!" (Arden Shakespeare Edition, 2004). The English naval chaplain [[Henry Teonge]] describes in his diary a visit he paid to the city in 1675, when there was a colony of Western European merchants living there.
[[File:Alep 1850.jpg|thumb|250px|City walls and citadel of Aleppo (1850)]]

The city remained under Ottoman rule until the empire's collapse, but was occasionally riven with internal feuds as well as attacks of [[cholera]] from 1823. Around 20–25 percent of the population died of [[Plague (disease)|plague]] in 1827.<ref>Suraiya Faroqhi, Halil İnalcık, Donald Quataert (1997). "''[https://books.google.com/books?id=c00jmTrjzAoC&pg=PA788 An economic and social history of the Ottoman Empire] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010331/https://books.google.com/books?id=c00jmTrjzAoC&pg=PA788 |date=29 October 2019 }}''". Cambridge University Press. p.788. {{ISBN|0-521-57455-2}}</ref> In 1850, a Muslim mob [[Massacre of Aleppo (1850)|attacked]] Christian neighbourhoods, tens of Christians were killed and several churches looted. Though this event has been portrayed as driven by pure sectarian principles, Bruce Masters argues that such analysis of this period of violence is too shallow and neglects the tensions that existed among the population due to the commercial favor afforded to certain [[Christianity in Syria|Christian minorities]] by the [[Tanzimat]] Reforms during this time which played a large role in creating antagonism between previously cooperative groups of Muslim and Christians in the eastern quarters of the city.<ref>Masters, Bruce. "The 1850 Events in Aleppo: The Aftershock of Syria's Incorporation into the Capitalist World System." ''International Journal of Middle East Studies'' 22, no. 1 (February 1990): 3–4.</ref> By 1901, the city's population was around 110,000.

In October 1918, Aleppo was [[Battle of Aleppo (1918)|captured]] by [[Feisal I of Iraq|Prince Feisal]]'s Sherifial Forces and the [[5th Cavalry Division (India)|5th Cavalry Division]] of the [[Allies of World War I|Allied forces]] from the Ottoman Empire during the [[World War I]]. At the end of war, the [[Treaty of Sèvres]] made most of the Vilayet of Aleppo, including the cities of [[Urfa]], [[Kahramanmaraş|Marash]], and [[Gaziantep|Aintab]], part of the newly established nation of [[Syria]]. However, [[Kemal Atatürk]] annexed most of the Vilayet of Aleppo as well as [[Allies of World War I|Allied]]-controlled Cilicia to Turkey in his [[Turkish war of independence|War of Independence]]. The Muslim Arab and Kurdish residents in the province supported the Turks in this war against the French, including the leader of the [[Hananu Revolt]], [[Ibrahim Hananu]], who directly coordinated with Atatürk and received weaponry from him. The outcome, however, was disastrous for Aleppo, because as per the [[Treaty of Lausanne]], most of the vilayet was made part of Turkey with the exception of Aleppo and [[Alexandretta]];<ref name="atak5">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ttYVBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT149 |publisher=Knopf Doubleday Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-8041-5347-8 |title=Eastward to Tartary |author=Robert D. Kaplan |page=149 |year=2014 |access-date=19 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010052607/https://books.google.com/books?id=ttYVBQAAQBAJ&pg=PT149 |archive-date=10 October 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> thus Aleppo was cut from its northern satellites which connected it to the Anatolian cities beyond on which Aleppo depended heavily in commerce. Moreover, the [[Sykes-Picot]] division of the Near East separated Aleppo from most of [[Mesopotamia]], including its twin city of Mosul, which also harmed the economy of Aleppo. The outcome of these newly created borders was epochal, as they redirected Syria's would-be capital from Aleppo to Damascus.

===French mandate===
{{See also|State of Aleppo}}
[[File:General Gouraud marching in Aleppo.jpg|thumb|left|General [[Henri Gouraud (French Army officer)|Gouraud]] crossing through al-Khandaq street on 13 September 1920]]
The [[State of Aleppo]] was declared by French General [[Henri Gouraud (French Army officer)|Henri Gouraud]] in September 1920 as part of a French plan to make Syria easier to administer by dividing it into several smaller states. France became more concerned about the idea of a united Syria after the [[Battle of Maysaloun]].

By separating Aleppo from Damascus, Gouraud wanted to capitalize on a traditional state of competition between the two cities and turn it into political division. The people in Aleppo were unhappy with the fact that Damascus was chosen as capital for the new nation of Syria. Gouraud sensed this sentiment and tried to address it by making Aleppo the capital of a large and wealthier state with which it would have been hard for Damascus to compete. The State of Aleppo as drawn by France contained most of the fertile area of Syria: the fertile countryside of Aleppo in addition to the entire fertile basin of river [[Euphrates]]. The state also had access to sea via the autonomous [[Sanjak of Alexandretta]]. On the other hand, Damascus, which is basically an oasis on the fringes of the [[Syrian Desert]], had neither enough fertile land nor access to sea. Basically, Gouraud wanted to satisfy Aleppo by giving it control over most of the agricultural and mineral wealth of Syria so that it would never want to unite with Damascus again.<ref name="M. Andrew 1981">M. Andrew & Sydney Kanya-Forstner (1981) The climax of French imperial expansion, 1914–1924</ref><ref name="Fieldhouse, David Kenneth 2006">Fieldhouse, David Kenneth (2006) Western imperialism in the Middle East 1914–1958</ref> Damascus's relative economic weakness was further exacerbated by the economic success of Beirut during the 1920s, a territory part of the larger French Mandate at the time.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Schayegh |first=Cyrus |title=The Middle East and the making of the modern world |date=2017 |publisher=Harvard university press |isbn=978-0-674-08833-7 |location=Cambridge (Mass.)}}</ref>

[[File:Aleppo Grand Seray.jpg|thumb|[[Grand Serail of Aleppo|Grand Serail d'Alep]], originally planned to become the seat of the government of the short-lived [[State of Aleppo]]]]
The limited economic resources of the Syrian states made the option of completely independent states undesirable for France, because it threatened an opposite result: the states collapsing and being forced back into unity. This was why France proposed the idea of a Syrian federation that was realized in 1923. Initially, Gouraud envisioned the federation as encompassing all the states, even Lebanon. In the end however, only three states participated: Aleppo, [[State of Damascus|Damascus]], and the [[Alawite State]]. The capital of the federation was Aleppo at first, but it was relocated to Damascus. The president of the federation was [[Subhi Barakat]], an [[Antioch]]-born politician from Aleppo.
[[File:Quweik flood Aleppo.jpg|The Queiq River flood of 6 February 1922|200px|thumb]]

The federation ended in December 1924, when France merged Aleppo and Damascus into a single Syrian State and separated the Alawite State again. This action came after the federation decided to merge the three federated states into one and to take steps encouraging Syria's financial independence, steps which France viewed as too much.<ref name="M. Andrew 1981"/><ref name="Fieldhouse, David Kenneth 2006"/>
[[File:Aleppo Old Photo of Psot Office (1920s).jpg|thumb|200px|The central post office, 1920]]
[[File:Old trams in Aleppo.JPG|Tram line, put into operation in 1929|thumb|200px]]

When the [[Great Syrian Revolt|Syrian Revolt]] erupted in southern Syria in 1925, the French held in Aleppo State new elections that were supposed to lead to the breaking of the union with Damascus and restore the independence of Aleppo State. The French were driven to believe by pro-French Aleppine politicians that the people in Aleppo were supportive of such a scheme. After the new council was elected, however, it surprisingly voted to keep the union with Damascus. [[Syrian National Block|Syrian nationalists]] had waged a massive anti-secession public campaign that vigorously mobilized the people against the secession plan, thus leaving the pro-French politicians no choice but to support the union. The result was a big embarrassment for France, which wanted the secession of Aleppo to be a punitive measure against Damascus, which had participated in the Syrian Revolt, however, the result was respected. This was the last time that independence was proposed for Aleppo.<ref>LaMaziere, Pierre (1926) Partant pour la Syrie</ref>

Bad economic situation of the city after the separation of the northern countryside was exacerbated further in 1939 when [[Sanjak of Alexandretta|Alexandretta]] was annexed to Turkey as [[Hatay State]],<ref name="atak">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=cO50m62MA8AC&pg=PT55 |title=Ataturk |author=Andrew Mango |page=55 |year=2011 |publisher=John Murray Press |isbn=9781848546189 |access-date=19 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010052810/https://books.google.com/books?id=cO50m62MA8AC&pg=PT55 |archive-date=10 October 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="atak3">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=smkXH4UwJOsC&pg=PA64 |title=Negotiating for the Past: Archaeology, Nationalism, and Diplomacy in the Middle East, 1919–1941 |author=James F. Goode |page=64 |year=2009 |publisher=University of Texas Press |isbn=978-0-292-77901-3 |access-date=19 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010053301/https://books.google.com/books?id=smkXH4UwJOsC&pg=PA64 |archive-date=10 October 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="atak4">{{cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3dnGAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA58 |title=Turkish Foreign Policy: Islam, Nationalism, and Globalization |author=Hasan Kösebalaban |page=58 |year=2011 |publisher=Springer |isbn=978-0-230-11869-0 |access-date=19 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171010053324/https://books.google.com/books?id=3dnGAAAAQBAJ&pg=PA58 |archive-date=10 October 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> thus depriving Aleppo of its main port of [[Iskenderun]] and leaving it in total isolation within Syria.<ref name="doi_10.1093/ia/iix118">{{cite journal |author=[[I. William Zartman]] |url=https://academic.oup.com/ia/article/93/4/937/3897516?searchresult=1 |title=States, boundaries and sovereignty in the Middle East: unsteady but unchanging |journal=International Affairs |volume=93 |issue=4 |date=July 1, 2017 |pages=937–948 |doi=10.1093/ia/iix118 |issn=0020-5850 |access-date=May 17, 2021 |oclc=1005506048 |publisher=Oxford University Press |archive-date=7 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220707170653/https://academic.oup.com/ia/article/93/4/937/3897516?searchresult=1 |url-status=live }}</ref>

===Post-independence===
[[File:Aleppo Quwwatli.jpg|thumb|''Boulevard de France'', renamed after [[Shukri al-Quwatli]] upon the independence of Syria]]
The increasing disagreements between Aleppo and Damascus led eventually to the split of the [[Syrian National Block|National Block]] into two factions: the [[National Party (Syria)|National Party]], established in Damascus in 1946, and the [[People's Party (Syria)|People's Party]], established in Aleppo in 1948 by [[Rushdi al-Kikhya]], [[Nazim Qudsi]] and [[Mustafa Bey Barmada]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Rothe |first=Wenja |date=January 1972 |title=Hvorfor blive ved med at interessere sig for Rorschach prøven?: En kommentar og nogle overvejelser vedrørende førskolebørns Rorschachprøver. |url=http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/00291463.1972.11675812 |journal=Nordisk Psykologi |volume=24 |issue=4 |pages=344–351 |doi=10.1080/00291463.1972.11675812 |issn=0029-1463 |access-date=28 October 2020 |archive-date=23 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923074731/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/00291463.1972.11675812 |url-status=live |url-access=subscription }}</ref> An underlying cause of the disagreement, in addition to the union with Iraq, was Aleppo's intention to relocate the capital from Damascus. The issue of the capital became an open debate matter in 1950 when the Popular Party presented a constitution draft that called Damascus a "temporary capital."<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.ibtimes.com/syrias-assad-end-one-party-rule-410958 |title=Syria's Assad to 'End' One-Party Rule |date=15 February 2012 |website=ibtimes.com |access-date=15 April 2018 |archive-date=6 March 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160306081100/http://www.ibtimes.com/syrias-assad-end-one-party-rule-410958 |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Aleppo 1950s.JPG|thumb|left|230px|[[Aleppo Public Park]] and adjacent highway, 1950]]
[[File:King Faisal street Aleppo 1950.jpg|thumb|left|230px|[[King Faisal Street]], 1950]]

The first [[coup d'état]] in modern Syrian history was carried out in March 1949 by an army officer from Aleppo, [[Hussni Zaim]]. However, lured by the absolute power he enjoyed as a dictator, Zaim soon developed a pro-Egyptian, pro-Western orientation and abandoned the cause of union with Iraq. This incited a second coup only four months after his.<ref>{{cite book |last=Wilford |first=Hugh |title=America's Great Game: The CIA's Secret Arabists and the Making of the Modern Middle East |publisher=Basic Books |year=2013 |isbn=9780465019656 |pages=[https://archive.org/details/americasgreatgam0000wilf/page/94 94, 101] |url=https://archive.org/details/americasgreatgam0000wilf/page/94}}</ref> The second coup, led by [[Sami Hinnawi]] (also officer from Aleppo), empowered the Popular Party and actively sought to realize the union with Iraq. The news of an imminent union with Iraq incited a third coup the same year: in December 1949, [[Adib Shishakli|Adib Shishakly]] led a coup preempting a union with Iraq that was about to be declared.<ref>{{cite book |last1=Mardelli |first1=Bassil A. |title=Middle East Perspectives: Personal Recollections |date=16 April 2010 |publisher=iUniverse |location=New York Bloomington |isbn=978-1-4502-1118-5 |page=28 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=INl8jGsewjUC&q=adib+shishakli+mother+kurd&pg=PA28 |access-date=5 September 2021 |archive-date=23 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923074744/https://books.google.com/books?id=INl8jGsewjUC&q=adib+shishakli+mother+kurd&pg=PA28 |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Nasser addresses Aleppo, 1960.jpg|230px|thumb|left|Nasser's speech in Aleppo (1960)]]

Soon after Shishakly's domination ended in 1954, a [[United Arab Republic|union]] with Egypt under [[Gamal Abdul Nasser]] was implemented in 1958. The union, however, collapsed three and a half years later when a junta of young Damascene officers carried out a separatist coup. Aleppo resisted the separatist coup, but eventually it had no choice but to recognize the new government.<ref>{{Cite book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iIy5CgAAQBAJ&q=nawaf+ghazaleh&pg=PT606 |title=Understanding the Volatile and Dangerous Middle East: A Comprehensive Analysis |isbn=9781491766583 |last1=Carol |first1=Steven |date=25 August 2015 |publisher=iUniverse |access-date=7 July 2022 |archive-date=23 September 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923074826/https://books.google.com/books?id=iIy5CgAAQBAJ&q=nawaf+ghazaleh&pg=PT606 |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Syrien 1961 Aleppol 2.jpg|thumb|150px|Streets of Aleppo shortly after [[1961 Syrian coup d'état|1961 Coup d'état]]]]

In March 1963 a coalition of [[Baathist]]s, [[Nasserist]]s, and Socialists launched a new coup whose declared objective was to restore the union with Egypt. However, the new government only restored the flag of the union. Soon thereafter disagreement between the Baathists and the Nasserists over the restoration of the union became a crisis, and the Baathists ousted the Nasserists from power. The Nasserists, most of whom were from the Aleppine middle class, responded with an insurgency in Aleppo in July 1963.

Again, the Ba'ath government tried to absorb the dissent of the Syrian middle class (whose center of political activism was Aleppo) by putting to the front [[Amin al-Hafiz]], a Baathist military officer from Aleppo.<ref>{{cite news |title=Amin al-Hafez obituary |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2010/feb/16/syria |work=The Guardian |access-date=31 May 2012 |agency=Associated Press |date=16 February 2010 |location=London |archive-date=9 September 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130909123147/http://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2010/feb/16/syria |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Tilel street old pic, Aleppo.jpg|thumb|Tilel street, 1970s|200px]]

President [[Hafez al-Assad]], who came to power in 1970, relied on support from the business class in Damascus.<ref>Seale, Patrick (1990) Asad: The Struggle for the Middle East</ref> This gave Damascus further advantage over Aleppo, and hence Damascus came to dominate the Syrian economy. The strict centralization of the Syrian state, the intentional direction of resources towards Damascus, and the hegemony Damascus enjoys over the Syrian economy made it increasingly hard for Aleppo to compete. Despite this, Aleppo remained a nationally important economic and cultural center.<ref>[https://web.archive.org/web/20200725024213/http://www.cbssyr.org/economy%20statistics/Foreign%20Investment/2008/m-tab7.htm The centralization of Economy in Syria]</ref>

[[File:Aleppo View.jpg|General view of the city from the Citadel (1989)|thumb|250px]]
On 16 June 1979, thirty-two military cadets were [[Aleppo Artillery School massacre|massacred]] by antigovernmental Islamist rebel group [[Syrian Muslim Brotherhood|Muslim Brotherhood]].{{sfnp|Seale|1989|p=316}}<ref>{{Cite book |last=Conduit |first=Dara |title=The Muslim Brotherhood in Syria |date=2019 |isbn=978-1-108-75832-1 |location=Cambridge, U.K. |pages=101 |oclc=1112495832}}</ref> In the subsequent violence around fifty people were killed.<ref>[[Middle East International]] No 103, 6 July 1979; pp.12-13</ref> On 10 July a further twenty-two Syrian soldiers were killed.<ref>Middle East International No 104, 20 July 1979; pp.13-14</ref> Both terrorist attacks were part of the [[Islamist uprising in Syria]].<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Lia |first=Brynjar |date=2016-10-01 |title=The Islamist Uprising in Syria, 1976–82: The History and Legacy of a Failed Revolt |journal=British Journal of Middle Eastern Studies |volume=43 |issue=4 |pages=546 |doi=10.1080/13530194.2016.1139442 |s2cid=146869114 |issn=1353-0194}}</ref> In 1980, events escalated into the [[Siege of Aleppo (1980)|a large-scale military operation]] in Aleppo, where Syrian government responded with military and security forces, sending in tens of thousands of troops backed by tanks, armored vehicles and helicopters.<ref name="Things Fall Apart p153">{{cite book |last1=Byman |first1=Daniel |last2=Pollack |first2=Kenneth Michael |title=Things Fall Apart: Containing the Spillover from an Iraqi Civil War |url=https://archive.org/details/thingsfallapartc00byma |url-access=limited |year=2008 |publisher=Brookings Institution Press |location=Washington D.C. |page=[https://archive.org/details/thingsfallapartc00byma/page/n169 153] |isbn=9780815713791}}</ref> Several hundred rebels were killed in and around city and eight thousand were arrested. By February 1981, the Islamist uprising in the city of Aleppo was suppressed.{{sfnp|Carré |Michaud |1983 |pages=141–146}}

Since the late 1990s, Aleppo has become one of the fastest growing cities in the Levant and the Middle East.<ref name="acad" /> The opening of the industrial city of [[Shaykh Najjar]] and the influx of new investments and flow of the new industries after 2004 also contributed to the development of the city.<ref>Oxford Business Group. (2011). ''[https://books.google.com/books?id=oDz9juos_tkC&q=Sheik+Najjar+Aleppo The Report: Syria 2011] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230923075255/https://books.google.com/books?id=oDz9juos_tkC&q=Sheik+Najjar+Aleppo |date=23 September 2023 }}''. Oxford Business Group. pp. 149–152.</ref> In 2006, Aleppo was named by the [[Islamic Educational Scientific and Cultural Organization]] (ISESCO) as the capital of Islamic culture.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aleppo-cic.sy/ |title=ﺣﻠﺐ ﻋﺎﺻﻤﺔ ﺍﻟﺜﻘﺎﻓﺔ ﺍﻟﺈﺳﻠﺎﻣﻴﺔ-Aleppo the Capital of Islamic Culture |access-date=2008-07-05 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080705113151/http://www.aleppo-cic.sy/ |archive-date=5 July 2008}}. Retrieved 1 February 2010.</ref>

Before the Syrian civil war, Aleppo was the third largest city in the Middle East after Cairo and Beirut in terms of the number of Christians.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Welcome all4syria.info - BlueHost.com |url=http://all4syria.info/Archive/231309 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20250218093009/http://all4syria.info/Archive/231309 |archive-date=2025-02-18 |access-date=2025-08-04 |website=all4syria.info |language=en}}</ref>

===Syrian civil war===
{{Main|Syrian civil war|Battle of Aleppo (2012–2016)}}

[[File:Saadallah al-Jabiri square, Aleppo, after the explosion of October 2012.jpg|thumb|The scene at [[Saadallah al-Jabiri Square]] after being targeted by Al-Nusra Front in October 2012]]

On 12 August 2011, some months after protests had begun elsewhere in Syria, anti-government protests were held in several districts of Aleppo, including the city's Sakhour district. During this demonstration, which included tens of thousands of protesters, security forces shot and killed at least twelve people.<ref>{{cite news |author1=Martin Chulov in Beirut |author2=Nour Ali |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/aug/12/syria-violence-spreads-aleppo |title=Syria violence spreads to commercial capital Aleppo &#124; World news |work=The Guardian |date=12 August 2011 |access-date=11 March 2012 |location=London |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130930192526/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2011/aug/12/syria-violence-spreads-aleppo |archive-date=30 September 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> Two months later, a pro-government demonstration was held in [[Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square]], in the heart of the city. According to the ''New York Times'', the 11 October 2011 rally in support of [[Bashar al-Assad]] was attended by large crowds,<ref name="nytimes">{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/20/world/middleeast/assad-supporters-hold-rally-in-aleppo-syria.html |work=The New York Times |first=Nada |last=Bakri |author-link=Nada Bakri |title=Pro-Assad Rally Shows Syrian Government Can Still Command Support |date=19 October 2011 |access-date=14 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170215064143/http://www.nytimes.com/2011/10/20/world/middleeast/assad-supporters-hold-rally-in-aleppo-syria.html |archive-date=15 February 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> while state and local media claimed more than 1.5&nbsp;million attended and stated that it was one of the largest rallies ever held in Syria.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.dp-news.com/en/detail.aspx?articleid=100538 |title=Aleppo Mass Rally &#124; DayPress |publisher=Dp-news.com |date=20 October 2011 |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120405223753/http://www.dp-news.com/en/detail.aspx?articleid=100538 |archive-date=5 April 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

In early 2012, rebels began bombing Aleppo after the spread of anti-government protests. On [[February 2012 Aleppo bombings|10 February 2012]], suicide [[car bombs]] exploded outside two security compounds — the [[Military Intelligence Directorate (Syria)|Military Intelligence Directorate]]'s local headquarters, and a Syrian [[Syrian Public Security Police|Internal Security Forces]] barracks<ref name="herald-sun">{{cite news |title=Syria says bombers kill 28 in Aleppo |url=http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/syria-says-bombers-kill-28-in-aleppo/story-e6frf7jx-1226268384138 |access-date=11 February 2012 |newspaper=[[The Herald-Sun]] |date=11 February 2012 |author=Aji, Albert |author2=Keath, Lee |agency=Associated Press |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130501233052/http://www.heraldsun.com.au/news/breaking-news/syria-says-bombers-kill-28-in-aleppo/story-e6frf7jx-1226268384138 |archive-date=1 May 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> — reportedly killing 28 (four civilians, thirteen military personnel and eleven security personnel)<ref name="herald-sun"/> and wounding 235.<ref name="BBC">{{cite news |title=Syria unrest: Aleppo bomb attacks 'kill 28' |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-16978803 |access-date=11 February 2012 |newspaper=BBC |date=10 February 2012 |author=Staff |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914210040/https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-16978803 |archive-date=14 September 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> On 18 March 2012, another car bomb blast in a residential neighbourhood reportedly killed two security personnel and one female civilian, and wounded 30 residents.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.emirates247.com/news/world/deadly-car-bombing-hits-syria-s-aleppo-2012-03-18-1.449068 |title=Deadly car bomb hits Alepp |publisher=Emirates247.com |date=18 March 2012 |access-date=29 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130707110431/http://www.emirates247.com/news/world/deadly-car-bombing-hits-syria-s-aleppo-2012-03-18-1.449068 |archive-date=7 July 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite news |author=The Associated Press |url=https://www.cbc.ca/news/world/syria-blames-aleppo-blast-on-terrorists-1.1203410 |title=Syria blames Aleppo blast on terrorists|publisher=Cbc.ca |date=18 March 2012 |access-date=29 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130707103417/http://www.cbc.ca/news/world/story/2012/03/18/syria-violence-sunday.html |archive-date=7 July 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Blown out tank Aleppo.jpg|250px|thumb|Destroyed [[Syrian Arab Army|SAA]] tank in the city in October 2012]]

In late July 2012, the conflict reached Aleppo in earnest when rebels in the city's surrounding countryside mounted their first offensive there,<ref name=mogelson>{{citation |url=https://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/04/29/130429fa_fact_mogelson |title=The River Martyrs |magazine=New Yorker |author=Luke Mogelson |page=42 |date=29 April 2013 |access-date=13 May 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130503235154/http://www.newyorker.com/reporting/2013/04/29/130429fa_fact_mogelson |archive-date=3 May 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> apparently trying to capitalise on momentum gained during the Damascus assault.<ref>{{cite news |author1=Martin Chulov |author2=Luke Harding |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jul/29/syria-unrest-assad-forces-aleppo |title=Syria unrest: Assad forces continue onslaught in Aleppo |work=The Guardian |date=29 July 2001 |access-date=2 August 2012 |location=London |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130920022123/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2012/jul/29/syria-unrest-assad-forces-aleppo |archive-date=20 September 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> Then, some of the civil war's "most devastating bombing and fiercest fighting" took place in Aleppo, often in residential areas.<ref name=mogelson/> In the summer, autumn and winter of 2012 house-to-house fighting between armed opposition and government forces continued, and by the spring 2013 the Syrian Army had entrenched itself in the western part of Aleppo (government loyalist forces were operating from a military base in the southern part of the city) and the Free Syrian Army in the eastern part with a [[no man's land]] between them.<ref name=mogelson/> One estimate of casualties by an international humanitarian organization is that by this time 13,500 had been killed in the fighting — 1,500 under 5 years of age — and that another 23,000 had been injured.<ref name=mogelson/> Local police stations in the city, used as bases of government forces and hated and feared by residents, were a focus of much of the conflict.<ref name=NYT73112>{{cite news |title=Rebels in Syria's Largest City Said to Seize 2 Police Stations |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2012/08/01/world/middleeast/rebels-in-syrias-aleppo-claim-to-seize-important-police-stations.html |access-date=1 August 2012 |newspaper=The New York Times |date=31 July 2012 |author=Damien Cave |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120731215953/http://www.nytimes.com//2012/08/01/world/middleeast/rebels-in-syrias-aleppo-claim-to-seize-important-police-stations.html |archive-date=31 July 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=NYT8312>{{cite web |title=Brutal Treatment of Pro-Assad Captives |url=https://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/08/02/world/middleeast/20120812-aleppo.html |work=The New York Times |access-date=3 August 2012 |format=Slide show |date=1–3 August 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120803045120/http://www.nytimes.com/slideshow/2012/08/02/world/middleeast/20120812-aleppo.html |archive-date=3 August 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref>

As a result of the severe battle, many sections in [[Al-Madina Souq]] (part of the [[Old City of Aleppo]] [[World Heritage Site]]), including parts of the [[Great Mosque of Aleppo]] and other medieval buildings in the ancient city, were destroyed and ruined or burnt in late summer 2012 as the armed groups of the [[Syrian Arab Army]] and the [[Free Syrian Army]] [[Battle of Aleppo (2012)|fought]] for control of the city.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kyivpost.com/content/world/fighting-in-aleppo-starts-fire-in-medieval-souks-313673.html |title=Fighting in Aleppo starts fire in medieval souqs |date=29 September 2012 |publisher=Kyivpost.com |access-date=29 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130613062345/http://www.kyivpost.com/content/world/fighting-in-aleppo-starts-fire-in-medieval-souks-313673.html |archive-date=13 June 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |publisher=UNESCO World Heritage Centre |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/news/940 |title=UNESCO Director-General deplores destruction of ancient Aleppo markets, a World Heritage site |access-date=29 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130530143248/http://whc.unesco.org/en/news/940/ |archive-date=30 May 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name=":2" /> By March 2013, a majority of Aleppo's factory owners transferred their goods to Turkey with the full knowledge and facilitation of the Turkish government.<ref>{{cite news |agency=Agence France Presse |url=http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2013/Jan-10/201697-syria-says-turkey-involved-in-looting-northern-factories.ashx#axzz2O7XdaZUm |title=Syria says Turkey involved in looting northern factories |newspaper=The Daily Star |date=10 January 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130318011503/http://www.dailystar.com.lb/News/Middle-East/2013/Jan-10/201697-syria-says-turkey-involved-in-looting-northern-factories.ashx#axzz2O7XdaZUm |archive-date=18 March 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>[[File:National Evangelical Church of Aleppo (destructed), 12 June 2013.jpg|thumb|[[National Evangelical Synod of Syria and Lebanon|The National Presbyterian Church of Aleppo]] after being destroyed on 6 November 2012<ref name="thirdrva.org">{{Cite web |url=http://www.thirdrva.org/blog/vacation-bible-school-summer-mission-project |title=VBS and Aleppo Presbyterian Church, Syria |date=23 April 2015 |access-date=27 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170427192935/http://www.thirdrva.org/blog/vacation-bible-school-summer-mission-project |archive-date=27 April 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref>]]

A stalemate that had been in place for four years ended in July 2016, when Syrian Army troops closed the last supply line of the rebels into Aleppo with the support of Russian airstrikes. In response, rebel forces launched unsuccessful counter-offensives in September and October that failed to break the siege; in November, government forces embarked on a decisive campaign. The rebels agreed to evacuate from their remaining areas in December 2016.<ref>{{cite news |last=Sim |first=David |url=http://www.ibtimes.co.uk/fall-aleppo-timeline-how-assad-captured-syrias-biggest-city-1596504 |title=The fall of Aleppo timeline: How Assad captured Syria's biggest city |work=IB Times |date=16 December 2016 |access-date=26 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190212094836/https://www.ibtimes.co.uk/fall-aleppo-timeline-how-assad-captured-syrias-biggest-city-1596504 |archive-date=12 February 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> Syrian government victory with Russian aerial bombardment was widely seen as a potential turning point in Syria's civil war.<ref>{{cite news |last=Aron |first=Lund |url=http://carnegie-mec.org/diwan/66314 |title=A Turning Point in Aleppo |work=Carnegie Middle East Center |date=2016-12-15 |access-date=2016-12-16 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20181213094844/http://carnegie-mec.org/diwan/66314 |archive-date=13 December 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.cbsnews.com/news/syrias-long-brutal-civil-war-may-be-reaching-a-turning-point/ |title=Syria's long, brutal civil war may be reaching turning point |website=[[CBS News]] |date=4 December 2016 |access-date=26 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190502003252/https://www.cbsnews.com/news/syrias-long-brutal-civil-war-may-be-reaching-a-turning-point/ |archive-date=2 May 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> On 22 December, the evacuation was completed with the Syrian Army declaring it had taken complete control of the city.<ref name=Announcedvictory2>{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN14B1NQ |title=Syrian army announces victory in Aleppo in boost for Assad |date=22 December 2016 |work=Reuters |access-date=23 February 2018 |archive-date=4 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200504194706/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria/syrian-army-announces-victory-in-aleppo-in-boost-for-assad-idUSKBN14B1NQ |url-status=live }}</ref> Red Cross later confirmed that the evacuation of all civilians and rebels was complete.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/idUSKBN14B1NQ |title=Aleppo evacuation is complete, Red Cross says |date=22 December 2016 |work=Reuters |access-date=23 February 2018 |archive-date=4 May 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200504194706/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria/syrian-army-announces-victory-in-aleppo-in-boost-for-assad-idUSKBN14B1NQ |url-status=live }}</ref>

When the battle ended, 500,000 refugees and internally displaced persons returned to Aleppo,<ref name=":0"/> and Syrian state media said that hundreds of factories returned to production as electricity supply greatly increased.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://sana.sy/en/?p=111818 |title=400 factories return to production in al-Kallaseh industrial zone in Aleppo |work=Syrian Arab News Agency |language=en-US |date=15 August 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171013025728/http://sana.sy/en/?p=111818 |archive-date=13 October 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> Many parts of the city that were affected are undergoing reconstruction.<ref name=":0"/> On 15 April 2017, a convoy of buses carrying evacuees was [[2017 Aleppo suicide car bombing|attacked by a suicide bomber]] in Aleppo, killing more than 126 people, including at least 80 children.<ref>{{Cite news |url=http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-04-17/syrian-bus-bombing-kills-at-least-80-children/8447104 |title='A new horror': 80 children among those slaughtered in suicide attack on refugee convoy |date=2017-04-17 |work=ABC News |language=en-AU |access-date=25 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180503042731/http://www.abc.net.au/news/2017-04-17/syrian-bus-bombing-kills-at-least-80-children/8447104 |archive-date=3 May 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> Syrian state media reported that the Aleppo shopping festival took place on 17 November 2017 to promote industry in the city.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://sana.sy/en/?p=118464 |title=Thousands of people participate in Aleppo shopping festival |work=Syrian Arab News Agency |language=en-US |date=17 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171205203237/http://sana.sy/en/?p=118464 |archive-date=5 December 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> A [[YPG]] commander stated in February 2018 that Kurdish fighters had shifted to [[Afrin, Syria|Afrin]] to help repel the [[Operation Olive Branch|Turkish assault]]. As a result, he said the pro-Syrian government forces had regained control of the districts previously controlled by them.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-militia/syrian-ypg-militia-government-has-taken-control-of-aleppo-district-idUSKCN1G62K9 |title=Syrian YPG militia: government has taken control of Aleppo district |website=Reuters |date=22 February 2018 |access-date=23 February 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180223110234/https://www.reuters.com/article/us-mideast-crisis-syria-militia/syrian-ypg-militia-government-has-taken-control-of-aleppo-district-idUSKCN1G62K9 |archive-date=23 February 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> In February 2020, government forces achieved a major breakthrough when they captured the last remaining rebel-held areas in Aleppo's western periphery, thus decisively ending the clashes that began with the [[Battle of Aleppo (2012–2016)|Battle of Aleppo]] over eight years prior.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://apnews.com/b7132a6044a40d68934f693836b3a767 |title=Assad vows to defeat rebels, as forces capture new ground |date=2020-02-16 |website=AP NEWS |access-date=2020-02-16 |archive-date=17 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200217081705/https://apnews.com/b7132a6044a40d68934f693836b3a767 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/battle-of-aleppo-city-ends-in-syrian-army-victory-after-7-years-of-fighting/ |title=Battle of Aleppo city ends in Syrian Army victory after 7+ years of fighting |date=2020-02-16 |website=AMN - Al-Masdar News {{!}} المصدر نيوز |language=en-US |access-date=2020-02-16 |archive-date=16 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200216165355/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/battle-of-aleppo-city-ends-in-syrian-army-victory-after-7-years-of-fighting/ |url-status=dead }}</ref>

The city suffered damage due to the [[2023 Turkey-Syria earthquake]].<ref name="Aleppo360">{{cite news |date=8 February 2023 |title=Earthquake stuns Syria's Aleppo even after war's horrors |url=https://www.politico.com/news/2023/02/08/earthquake-aleppo-syria-turkey-00081989 |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230211152551/https://www.politico.com/news/2023/02/08/earthquake-aleppo-syria-turkey-00081989 |archive-date=11 February 2023 |access-date=9 February 2023 |work=Politico |agency=Associated Press}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |date=2024-04-25 |title=2023 Turkey-Syria Earthquake |url=https://disasterphilanthropy.org/disasters/2023-turkey-syria-earthquake/ |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=Center for Disaster Philanthropy |language=en-US}}</ref>

==== Takeover by Syrian opposition ====
{{main|Fall of Aleppo (2024)}}

On 29 November 2024, [[Syrian opposition]] groups, led by [[Tahrir al-Sham|Hayat Tahrir al-Sham]], captured the city during the [[Battle of Aleppo (2024)|Battle of Aleppo]]  as part of the [[Northwestern Syria offensive (2024)|offensive in northwestern Syria]].<ref>{{Cite web |last=El Deeb |first=Sarah |date=2024-11-29 |title=In a shock offensive, insurgents breach Syria's largest city for the first time since 2016 |url=https://apnews.com/article/syria-attack-clashes-aleppo-9c07da6f83036f34d4b18a479de9d085 |access-date=2024-11-30 |website=AP News |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Michaelson |first=Ruth |date=2024-11-29 |title=Syrian rebels enter Aleppo three days into surprise offensive |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2024/nov/29/syrian-rebels-launch-surprise-attack-on-aleppo |access-date=2024-11-30 |work=The Guardian |language=en-GB |issn=0261-3077}}</ref>

==Geography==
[[File:تلال جبل حلب.JPG|thumb|left|The nearby [[Kurd Mountains]] at the northwest of Aleppo]]
Aleppo lies about {{cvt|120|km|0}} inland from the [[Mediterranean Sea]], on a [[Aleppo plateau|plateau]] {{cvt|380|m}} above sea level, {{cvt|45|km}} east of the Syrian-Turkish border [[Bab al-Hawa Border Crossing|checkpoint of Bab al-Hawa]]. The city is surrounded by farmlands from the north and the west, widely cultivated with olive and [[pistachio]] trees. To the east, Aleppo approaches the dry areas of the [[Syrian Desert]].
[[File:Downtown Aleppo, Queik river at night.jpg|thumb|[[Queiq River]]]]
The city was founded a few kilometres south of the location of the current old city, on the right bank of [[Queiq River]] which arises from the [[Aintab plateau]] in the north and runs through Aleppo southward to the fertile country of [[Qinnasrin]]. The old city of Aleppo lies on the left bank of the Queiq. It was surrounded by a circle of eight hills surrounding a prominent central hill on which the castle (originally a temple dating to the 2nd millennium BC) was erected. The radius of the circle is about {{cvt|10|km}}. The hills are Tell as-Sawda, Tell ʕāysha, Tell as-Sett, Tell al-Yāsmīn (Al-ʕaqaba), Tell al-Ansāri (Yārūqiyya), ʕan at-Tall, al-Jallūm, Baḥsīta.<ref name="Duden6">{{cite book |editor=Alexander Russell |title=The Natural History of Aleppo |edition=1st |year=1856 |publisher=Unknown |location=London |page=266}}</ref> The old city was enclosed within an ancient wall that was last rebuilt by the [[Mamluk]]s. The wall has since disappeared. It had nine gates and was surrounded by a broad deep ditch.<ref name="Duden6"/>

Occupying an area of more than {{cvt|190|km²}}, Aleppo is one of the fastest-growing cities in the Middle East. According to the new major plan of the city adopted in 2001, it is envisaged to increase the total area of Aleppo up to {{cvt|420|km²}} by the end of 2015.<ref name="Syr-news1">Syria News [http://www.syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=99523 statement by Syrian Minister of Local Administration, Syria (Arabic, August 2009)] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120304055701/http://www.syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=99523 |date=4 March 2012 }}</ref><ref name="Aleppo plan"/>

===Climate===
Aleppo has a [[hot semi-arid climate|hot steppe climate]] ([[Köppen climate classification|Köppen]]: ''BSh''). The mountain series that run along the Mediterranean coast, namely the [[Syrian Coastal Mountain Range|Alawiyin Mountains]] and the [[Nur Mountains]], largely block the effects of the Mediterranean on climate ([[rain shadow effect]]). The average high and low temperature throughout the year is {{cvt|23.8|and|11.1|°C|°F}}. The average precipitation is {{cvt|329.4|mm|2}}. More than 80% of precipitation occurs between October and March. It snows once or twice every winter. Average humidity is 55.7%.<ref name=klimatafel>{{cite web |url=http://www.dwd.de/DWD/klima/beratung/ak/ak_400070_kt.pdf |title=Klimatafel von Aleppo (Halab) / Syrien |publisher=Federal Ministry of Transport and Digital Infrastructure |access-date=13 December 2016 |archive-date=19 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819004952/https://www.dwd.de/DWD/klima/beratung/ak/ak_400070_kt.pdf |url-status=live }}</ref>

{{Weather box
|width=auto
|location=Aleppo ([[Aleppo International Airport]]), {{cvt|393|m|abbr=off}} above sea level, 1991–2020 normals
|metric first=yes
|single line=yes
|Jan record high C=20.5
|Feb record high C=25.4
|Mar record high C=29.8
|Apr record high C=38.6
|May record high C=41.0
|Jun record high C=44.0
|Jul record high C=45.7
|Aug record high C=44.3
|Sep record high C=44.0
|Oct record high C=39.0
|Nov record high C=29.7
|Dec record high C=24.5
|year record high C=45.7
|Jan high C=10.7
|Feb high C=12.9
|Mar high C=17.6
|Apr high C=23.1
|May high C=29.4
|Jun high C=34.2
|Jul high C=36.8
|Aug high C=36.8
|Sep high C=33.5
|Oct high C=27.6
|Nov high C=18.8
|Dec high C=12.2
|year high C=
|Jan mean C = 6.6
|Feb mean C = 8.1
|Mar mean C = 11.9
|Apr mean C = 16.6
|May mean C = 22.2
|Jun mean C = 27.0
|Jul mean C = 29.8
|Aug mean C = 29.8
|Sep mean C = 26.5
|Oct mean C = 20.9
|Nov mean C = 13.1
|Dec mean C = 8.0
| year mean C = 
|Jan low C=2.4
|Feb low C=3.2
|Mar low C=6.1
|Apr low C=10.0
|May low C=15.0
|Jun low C=19.8
|Jul low C=22.8
|Aug low C=22.8
|Sep low C=19.4
|Oct low C=14.2
|Nov low C=7.3
|Dec low C=3.7
|year low C=
|Jan record low C=-11.3
|Feb record low C=-8.3
|Mar record low C=-5.5
|Apr record low C=-4.0
|May record low C=5.0
|Jun record low C=10.0
|Jul record low C=12.0
|Aug record low C=12.1
|Sep record low C=6.0
|Oct record low C=-2.0
|Nov record low C=-12.0
|Dec record low C=-10.8
|year record low C=-12.0
|precipitation colour=green
|Jan precipitation mm=57.5
|Feb precipitation mm=47.8
|Mar precipitation mm=42.4
|Apr precipitation mm=27.8
|May precipitation mm=16.0
|Jun precipitation mm=1.7
|Jul precipitation mm=0.0
|Aug precipitation mm=0.1
|Sep precipitation mm=3.5
|Oct precipitation mm=23.0
|Nov precipitation mm=35.6
|Dec precipitation mm=58.3
|year precipitation mm=
|unit precipitation days=1.0 mm
|Jan precipitation days=9.0
|Feb precipitation days=7.6
|Mar precipitation days=6.8
|Apr precipitation days=4.3
|May precipitation days=2.7
|Jun precipitation days=0.3
|Jul precipitation days=0.0
|Aug precipitation days=0.0
|Sep precipitation days=0.5
|Oct precipitation days=3.4
|Nov precipitation days=4.9
|Dec precipitation days=8.0
|year precipitation days=
|Jan humidity=84
|Feb humidity=79
|Mar humidity=68
|Apr humidity=65
|May humidity=50
|Jun humidity=42
|Jul humidity=42
|Aug humidity=45
|Sep humidity=46
|Oct humidity=55
|Nov humidity=66
|Dec humidity=80
|year humidity=
|Jan sun=120.9
|Feb sun=140.0
|Mar sun=198.4
|Apr sun=243.0
|May sun=319.3
|Jun sun=366.0
|Jul sun=387.5
|Aug sun=365.8
|Sep sun=303.0
|Oct sun=244.9
|Nov sun=186.0
|Dec sun=127.1
|year sun=3001.9
|Jand sun=3.9
|Febd sun=5.0
|Mard sun=6.4
|Aprd sun=8.1
|Mayd sun=10.3
|Jund sun=12.2
|Juld sun=12.5
|Augd sun=11.8
|Sepd sun=10.1
|Octd sun=7.9
|Novd sun=6.2
|Decd sun=4.1
|yeard sun=8.2
|source 1=[[National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration|NOAA]] (sun 1961–1990)<ref name=WMOCLINO>{{cite web
| archive-url = https://web.archive.org/web/20230902174644/https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Syria/CSV/AleppointAeroport_40007.csv
| archive-date = 2 September 2023
| url = https://www.nodc.noaa.gov/archive/arc0216/0253808/1.1/data/0-data/Region-6-WMO-Normals-9120/Syria/CSV/AleppointAeroport_40007.csv
| title = Aleppo International Airport Climate Normals 1991–2020
| work = World Meteorological Organization Climatological Standard Normals (1991–2020)
| publisher = National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration
| access-date = 2 September 2023}}</ref><ref name=NOAA>{{cite web |url=ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG_VI/SY/40007.TXT |title=Aleppo Climate Normals 1961–1990 |publisher=National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171009222936/ftp://ftp.atdd.noaa.gov/pub/GCOS/WMO-Normals/TABLES/REG_VI/SY/40007.TXT |archive-date=2017-10-09 |url-status=dead |access-date=26 April 2017 }}</ref>
|source 2=[[Deutscher Wetterdienst]] (humidity 1960–1967, extremes 1951–1978)<ref name=klimatafel/>
}}

===Architecture===
[[File:Citadel of Aleppo.jpg|thumb|left|upright=1.25|[[Citadel of Aleppo|Aleppo Citadel]]]]
Aleppo is characterized with mixed architectural styles, having been ruled by, among others, Romans, Byzantines, Seljuqs, Mamluks and Ottomans.<ref>{{cite news |last=Yacoub |first=Khaled |url=https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSTRE66F1ED20100716 |title=Travel Postcard: 48 hours in Aleppo, Syria |work=Reuters |date=16 July 2010 |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-date=30 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211230154929/https://www.reuters.com/article/lifestyleMolt/idUSTRE66F1ED20100716 |url-status=live }}</ref>
[[File:Villa Rose, Aleppo.jpg|thumb|right|[[Villa Rose]], built in 1928 during the period of the French mandate]]
Various types of 13th and 14th centuries constructions, such as caravanserais, caeserias, Quranic schools, hammams and religious buildings are found in the [[Old City of Aleppo|old city]]. The quarters of [[al-Jdayde]] district are home to numerous 16th and 17th-century houses of the Aleppine bourgeoisie, featuring stone engravings. [[Baroque architecture]] of the 19th and early 20th centuries is common in al-Azizyah district, including the [[Villa Rose]]. The new Shahbaa district is a mixture of several styles, such as [[Neo-classical architecture|Neo-classic]], [[Norman Architecture|Norman]], Oriental and even [[Chinese architecture]].<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.middleeast.com/aleppo.htm |title=Aleppo |publisher=Middleeast.com |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120316160211/http://www.middleeast.com/aleppo.htm |archive-date=16 March 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref>

Since the old city is characterized with its large mansions, narrow alleys and covered souqs, the modern city's architecture has replenished the town with wide roads and large squares such as the [[Saadallah Al-Jabiri Square]], the [[Liberty Square (Aleppo)|Liberty Square]], the President's Square and [[Sabaa Bahrat Square (Aleppo)|Sabaa Bahrat Square]]
[[File:Aleppo throne hall.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Throne hall of the citadel]]
[[File:Aleppo Cittadella - GAR - 9-22.JPG|thumb|[[Citadel of Aleppo|Aleppo Citadel]], roof of the baths, with the mosque and minaret in the background]]
There is a relatively clear division between old and new Aleppo. The older portions of the city, with an approximate area of {{cvt|160|ha|sqmi|1}} are contained within a wall, {{cvt|5|km}} in circuit with nine gates. The huge medieval [[castle]] in the city — known as the [[Citadel of Aleppo]] — occupies the center of the ancient part, in the shape of an [[acropolis]].

Being subjected to constant invasions and political instability, the inhabitants of the city were forced to build cell-like quarters and districts that were socially and economically independent. Each district was characterized by the religious and ethnic characteristics of its inhabitants.

The mainly white-stoned old town was built within the historical walls of the city, pierced by the nine historical gates, while the newer quarters of the old city were first built by the Christians during the early 15th century in the northern suburbs of the ancient city, after the Mongol withdrawal from Aleppo. The new quarter known as [[al-Jdayde]] is one of the finest examples of a cell-like quarter in Aleppo. After [[Timur|Tamerlane]] invaded Aleppo in 1400 and destroyed it, the Christians migrated out of the city walls and established their own cell in 1420, at the northwestern suburbs of the city, thus founding the quarters of al-Jdayde. The inhabitants of the new quarters were mainly brokers who facilitated trade between foreign traders and local merchants. As a result of the economic development, many other quarters were established outside the walls of the ancient city during the 15th and 16th centuries.

Thus, the [[Old City of Aleppo]] — composed of the ancient city within the walls and the old cell-like quarters outside the walls — has an approximate area of {{cvt|350|ha|sqmi}} housing more than 120,000 residents.<ref>{{cite web |author=bleeker |url=http://www.historische-aleppo-seife.de/engl_history.html |title=Alepposeife: Aleppo history |publisher=Historische-aleppo-seife.de |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180326040544/http://www.historische-aleppo-seife.de/engl_history.html |archive-date=26 March 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Demographics==
===Historical population===
{{Historical populations
|type=
|percentages=
|footnote=Source<ref name="Population facts"/><ref>{{cite web |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2012/07/29/world/meast/syria-aleppo-civilians/ |title=200,000 civilians try to escape violence in Syrian city of Aleppo |date=29 July 2012 |access-date=2 August 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160818023503/http://edition.cnn.com/2012/07/29/world/meast/syria-aleppo-civilians/ |archive-date=18 August 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref name="wrldrew"/>
|1883 |99179
|1901 |108143
|1922 |156748
|1925 |210000
|1934 |249921
|1944 |325000
|1950 |362500
|1960 |425467
|1965 |500000
|1983 |639000
|1990 |1216000
|1995 |1500000
|2000 |1937858
|2004 |2132100
|2005 |2301570
|2016 |1800000
|2021 |2098210
}}
[[File:Alepp0fashion.jpg|thumb|left|upright|Two [[Bedouins]] and a [[Jewish]] woman in Aleppo, 1873]]

According to the Aleppine historian Sheikh ''Kamel Al-Ghazzi'' (1853–1933), the population of Aleppo was around 400,000 before the disastrous [[1822 Aleppo earthquake|earthquake of 1822]]. Followed by cholera and plague attacks in 1823 and 1827 respectively, the population of the city declined to 110,000 by the end of the 19th century.<ref>Saint Terezia Church Aleppo [http://www.terezia.org/section.php?id=1823 Christians in Aleppo at the end of the Ottoman Empire] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171009230825/http://www.terezia.org/section.php?id=1823 |date=9 October 2017 }}</ref> In 1901, the total population of Aleppo was 108,143 of which Muslims were 76,329 (70.58%), Christians — mostly Catholics — 24,508 (22.66%) and Jews 7,306 (6.76%).<ref>Alepppo in One Hundred Years 1850– 1950, vol.2-page 3, 1994 Aleppo. Authors: Mohammad Fuad Ayntabi and Najwa Othman</ref>

Aleppo's large Christian population swelled with the influx of [[Armenians in Syria|Armenian]] and [[Syrian-Assyrians|Assyrian]] Christian refugees during the early 20th-century and after the [[Armenian genocide|Armenian]] and [[Assyrian Genocide|Assyrian genocides]] of 1915. After the arrival of the first groups of [[Armenians in Syria|Armenian]] refugees (1915–1922) the population of Aleppo in 1922 counted 156,748 of which Muslims were 97,600 (62.26%), native Christians — mostly Catholics —  22,117 (14.11%), Jews 6,580 (4.20%), Europeans 2,652 (1.70%), Armenian refugees 20,007 (12.76%) and others 7,792 (4.97%).<ref>Alepppo in One Hundred Years 1850–1950, vol.3-page 26, 1994 Aleppo. Authors: Mohammad Fuad Ayntabi and Najwa Othman</ref><ref>The Golden River in the History of Aleppo, ({{langx|ar|ﻧﻬﺮ ﺍﻟﺬﻫﺐ ﻓﻲ ﺗﺎﺭﻳﺦ ﺣﻠﺐ}}), vol.1 (1922) page 256, published in 1991, Aleppo. Author: Sheikh ''Kamel Al-Ghazzi''</ref> However, even though a large majority of the Armenians arrived during the period, the city has had an Armenian community since at least the 1100s, when a considerable number of Armenian families and merchants from the [[Armenian Kingdom of Cilicia]] settled in the city. The [[Forty Martyrs Cathedral|oldest Armenian church in the city]] is from 1491 as well, which indicates that they have been there long before.{{Clarification needed|reason=Long before what?|date=June 2025}}

The second period of Armenian flow towards Aleppo marked with the withdrawal of the French troops from [[Cilicia]] in 1923.<ref>The Golden River in the History of Aleppo ({{langx|ar|ﻧﻬﺮ ﺍﻟﺬﻫﺐ ﻓﻲ ﺗﺎﺭﻳﺦ ﺣﻠﺐ}}), vol.3 (1925) pages 449–450, published in 1991, Aleppo. Author: Sheikh ''Kamel Al-Ghazzi''</ref> After the arrival of more than 40,000 Armenian refugees between 1923 and 1925, the population of the city reached up to 210,000 by the end of 1925, of which more than a quarter were Armenians.<ref>{{cite book |last=Hovannisian |first=Richard G. |author-link=Richard G. Hovannisian |title=The Armenian People From Ancient to Modern Times, Volume II: Foreign Dominion to Statehood: The Fifteenth Century to the Twentieth Century |publisher=Palgrave Macmillan |location=New York |year=2004 |isbn=978-1-4039-6422-9 |page=425 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=s2ByErk19DAC |access-date=25 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131009060842/http://books.google.com/books?id=s2ByErk19DAC |archive-date=9 October 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref>

According to the historical data presented by ''Al-Ghazzi'', the vast majority of the Aleppine Christians were Catholics until the latter days of the Ottoman rule. The growth of the [[Oriental Orthodox]] Christians is related with the arrival of the Assyrian survivors from Cilicia and Southern Turkey, while on the other hand, large numbers of [[Eastern Orthodox Church of Antioch|Eastern Orthodox Christians]] from the [[Hatay Province|Sanjak of Alexandretta]] arrived in Aleppo, after the annexation of the Sanjak in 1939 in favour of Turkey.
[[File:Umayyad Mosque, Aleppo, Syria (5077865830).jpg|thumb|Syrian children in Aleppo]]

In 1944, Aleppo's population was around 325,000, with 112,110 (34.5%) Christians among which Armenians numbered 60,200. Armenians formed more than half of the Christian community in Aleppo until 1947, when many groups of them left for [[Soviet Armenia]] within the frames of the ''Armenian Repatriation Process (1946–1967)''.

===Pre-civil war status===
[[File:Rahman mosque.jpg|thumb|[[Ar-Rahman Mosque, Aleppo]]]]
Aleppo was the most populous city in Syria, with a population of 2,132,100 as indicated in the latest official census in 2004 by the [[Central Bureau of Statistics (Syria)|Syria Central Bureau of Statistics]] (CBS). Its subdistrict (''[[nahiya]]'') consisted of 23 localities with a collective population of 2,181,061 in 2004.<ref name="CBS">{{cite web |url=http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB02-1-2004.htm |title=General Census of Population and Housing 2004 |access-date=2012-05-20 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120520173518/http://www.cbssyr.org/new%20web%20site/General_census/census_2004/NH/TAB02-1-2004.htm |archive-date=20 May 2012}}. [[Central Bureau of Statistics (Syria)|Syria Central Bureau of Statistics]] (CBS). Aleppo Governorate. Archived. {{in lang|ar}}</ref> According to the official estimate announced by the Aleppo City Council, the population of the city was 2,301,570 by the end of 2005. As a result of the [[Syrian civil war]], however, the city eastern half's population under the control of the opposition had plummeted to an estimated 40,000 by 2015.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/12/worst-place-in-world-aleppo-ruins-four-years-syria-war |title=The worst place in the world? Aleppo in ruins after four years of Syria war |work=theguardian.com |date=12 March 2015 |access-date=22 November 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20151123101110/http://www.theguardian.com/world/2015/mar/12/worst-place-in-world-aleppo-ruins-four-years-syria-war |archive-date=23 November 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Muslims===
More than 80% of Aleppo's inhabitants are [[Sunni]] [[Muslims]].{{citation needed|date=November 2022}} They are mainly Syrian [[Syrian people|Arabs]], followed by [[Syrian Turkmen|Turkmens]] and [[Kurds]]. Other Muslim groups include small numbers of ethnic [[Circassians]], [[Chechens]], [[Albanians]], [[Bosniaks]], [[Greeks]] and [[Bulgarians]].

===Christians===
[[File:Armenian Church of the Holy Mother of God, Aleppo, 2010 (1).jpg|thumb|[[Church of the Holy Mother of God (Aleppo)|Armenian Apostolic church of the Holy Mother of God]]]]
Until the beginning of the Battle of Aleppo in 2012, the city contained one of the largest Christian communities in the [[Middle East]]. There were many [[Oriental Orthodox]] Christian congregations, mainly [[Armenians in Syria|Armenians]] and [[Assyrians in Syria|Assyrians]] (locally known as Syriacs). Historically, the city was the main centre of French Catholic missionaries in Syria.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.catholicnews.sg/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2746&Itemid=120 |title=Catholic Doctor "Flies High" with The Flying Hospital to Treat the Less Fortunate in Aleppo, Syria |publisher=Catholicnews.sg |date=23 March 2009 |access-date=29 August 2013 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20131020104335/http://www.catholicnews.sg/index.php?option=com_content&view=article&id=2746&Itemid=120 |archive-date=20 October 2013}}</ref>

The Christian population of Aleppo was slightly more than 250,000 before the Syrian civil war, representing about 12% of the total population of the city. However, as a consequence of the war, the Christian population of the city decreased to less than 100,000 as of the beginning of 2017, of whom around 30% were ethnic Armenians.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aina.org/news/20141202174517.htm |title=Christians Hold Out in Syria's Aleppo Despite Jihadist Threat |work=aina.org |access-date=3 December 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190124102115/http://www.aina.org/news/20141202174517.htm |archive-date=24 January 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

A significant number of the [[Assyrians in Syria|Assyrians]] in Aleppo speak [[Aramaic]], hailing from the city of [[Urfa]] in Turkey. The large community of [[Oriental Orthodox]] Christians belongs to the [[Armenian Apostolic Church|Armenian Apostolic]] and [[Syriac Orthodox Church|Syriac Orthodox]] churches. However, there is a significant presence of the [[Eastern Orthodox Church of Antioch]] as well.

There is also a large number [[Eastern Catholic Churches|Eastern Catholic]] Christians in the city, including [[Melkite Greek Catholic Church|Melkite Greeks]], [[Maronite Church|Maronites]], [[Chaldean Catholic Church|Chaldeans]], [[Syriac Catholic Church|Syrian Catholics]] and the followers of the [[Latin Church]]. [[Evangelical]] Christians of different denominations are a minority in the city.<ref>{{cite encyclopedia |last=Takahashi |first=Hidemi |date=2011 |title=Aleppo  |url=https://gedsh.bethmardutho.org/Aleppo |encyclopedia=Gorgias Encyclopedic Dictionary of the Syriac Heritage: Electronic Edition |location= |publisher=Gorgias Press |access-date=July 3, 2025}}</ref>

Several districts of the city have a Christian and Armenian majority, such as the old Christian quarter of [[al-Jdayde]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://lisa.gerda-henkel-stiftung.de/judayda_churches_english?nav_id=8819&publication=1 |title=Judayda Churches (English) |last=Ross Burns & Stefan Knost |date=2020 |website=L.I.S.A. WISSENSCHAFTSPORTAL GERDA HENKEL STIFTUNG |language=en, ar |access-date=2020-02-13 |archive-date=3 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200603074739/https://lisa.gerda-henkel-stiftung.de/judayda_churches_english?nav_id=8819&publication=1 |url-status=live }}</ref> Around 50 churches are operated in the city by the above-mentioned congregations. However, according to the Deputy Chairman of the commission for [[UNESCO]] of the Russian Federation, Alexander Dzasokhov, around 20 churches suffered great destruction during the battles in Aleppo,<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.imsoblesseddaily.com/20-churches-destroyed-aleppo-syria/ |title=20 Churches Were Destroyed As Bombings Continue in Aleppo, Syria |access-date=3 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170804013303/http://www.imsoblesseddaily.com/20-churches-destroyed-aleppo-syria/ |archive-date=4 August 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://armenianweekly.com/2015/01/10/cathedral-bombed/ |title=Armenian Catholic Cathedral in Aleppo Bombed Hours Before Mass |date=10 January 2015 |access-date=2 May 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150115114857/http://armenianweekly.com/2015/01/10/cathedral-bombed/ |archive-date=15 January 2015 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://horizonweekly.ca/en/79419-2/ |title=Armenian Evangelical Church in Aleppo damaged in rocket attack |date=18 January 2016 |access-date=27 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180831035425/https://horizonweekly.ca/en/79419-2/ |archive-date=31 August 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.gettyimages.ae/detail/news-photo/picture-taken-on-march-9-2017-in-the-northern-syrian-city-news-photo/650514740#picture-taken-on-march-9-2017-in-the-northern-syrian-city-of-aleppo-picture-id650514740 |title=Picture taken on 9 March 2017 in Aleppo showing the damage around Saint George's Armenian Church |date=9 March 2017 |access-date=27 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190320172258/https://www.gettyimages.ae/detail/news-photo/picture-taken-on-march-9-2017-in-the-northern-syrian-city-news-photo/650514740#picture-taken-on-march-9-2017-in-the-northern-syrian-city-of-aleppo-picture-id650514740 |archive-date=20 March 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> with the most notable being the National Evangelical Church,<ref name="thirdrva.org"/> as well as the surrounding historic churches of al-Jdayde district.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://syriacpatriarchate.org/2017/01/visit-to-the-old-city-of-aleppo/ |title=Syrian orthodox Patriarchate of Antioch: Visit to the Old City of Aleppo |date=January 2017 |access-date=27 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190320133840/https://syriacpatriarchate.org/2017/01/visit-to-the-old-city-of-aleppo/ |archive-date=20 March 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=http://syrcata.com/news/2016/august-2016/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AE%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D8%A7%D8%B5%D9%84-%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%AE%D9%84-%D9%85%D8%B7%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%AA%D9%86%D8%A7-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%A9-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%AD%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%AF%D8%A9.html |title=The destruction at the Mar Assia Syrian Catholic Church of Aleppo |access-date=27 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190316161245/http://syrcata.com/news/2016/august-2016/%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AE%D8%B1%D8%A7%D8%A8-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AD%D8%A7%D8%B5%D9%84-%D8%AF%D8%A7%D8%AE%D9%84-%D9%85%D8%B7%D8%B1%D8%A7%D9%86%D9%8A%D8%AA%D9%86%D8%A7-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%82%D8%AF%D9%8A%D9%85%D8%A9-%D9%81%D9%8A-%D8%AD%D8%A7%D8%B1%D8%A9-%D8%A7%D9%84%D9%8A%D8%A7%D8%B3%D9%85%D9%8A%D9%86-%D8%A7%D9%84%D8%AC%D8%AF%D9%8A%D8%AF%D8%A9.html |archive-date=16 March 2019 |url-status=dead}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://lisa.gerda-henkel-stiftung.de/damage_assessment?nav_id=8902&publication=1 |title=Al-Judayda Churches Rapid Damage Assessment |author1=Rami Al-Afandi |author2=Issam Ballouz |author3=Alaa Haddad |author4=York Rieffel |date=2019 |website=L.I.S.A. WISSENSCHAFTSPORTAL GERDA HENKEL STIFTUNG |language=en, ar |access-date=2020-02-13 |archive-date=25 July 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200725023058/https://lisa.gerda-henkel-stiftung.de/damage_assessment?nav_id=8902&publication=1 |url-status=live }}</ref> On 25 December 2016, following the government victory, [[Christmas]] was publicly celebrated in Aleppo for the first time in four years.<ref>{{cite news |last=Eyad |first=Alhosein |url=http://www.ibtimes.com/christmas-aleppo-photos-video-show-christians-celebrate-assad-victory-syria-2464372 |title=Christmas in Aleppo: Photos, Video Show Christians Celebrate Assad Victory in Syria |work=International Business Times |date=2016-12-22 |access-date=2016-12-26 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180914125652/https://www.ibtimes.com/christmas-aleppo-photos-video-show-christians-celebrate-assad-victory-syria-2464372 |archive-date=14 September 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref>

===Jews===
[[File:Synagogue Aleppo.jpg|thumb|The [[Central Synagogue of Aleppo]] in 2011]]
The city was home to a significant [[Jewish]] population from ancient times. The [[Central Synagogue of Aleppo|Great Synagogue]], built in the 5th century, housed the [[Aleppo Codex]].<ref>[https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18957096 Profile: Aleppo, Syria's second city] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180415053417/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-middle-east-18957096 |date=15 April 2018 }}. [[BBC News]]. 24 July 2012.</ref> In the 12th century, [[Benjamin of Tudela]] recorded that the Jewish community in Aleppo consisted of 5,000 people, calling it one of the largest communities in [[Bilad al-Sham|Bilād al-Shām]].<ref>{{Cite book |last=Guidetti |first=Mattia |title=Umayyad Legacies |publisher=Brill |year=2010 |isbn=9789004190986 |pages=358 |chapter=Sacred Topography In Medieval Syria And Its Roots Between The Umayyads And Late Antiquity |doi=10.1163/ej.9789004184749.i-560.85}}</ref>

The Jews of Aleppo were known for their religious commitment, Rabbinic leadership, and their liturgy, consisting of [[Pizmonim]] and [[Baqashot]]. After the [[Spanish Inquisition]], the city of Aleppo received many [[Sephardic Jewish]] immigrants, who eventually joined with the [[Musta'arabi Jews|native Aleppo Jewish community]]. Peaceful relations existed between the Jews and surrounding population. In the early 20th century, the town's Jews lived mainly in Al-Jamiliyah, Bab Al-Faraj and the neighbourhoods around the Great Synagogue. Unrest in Palestine in the years preceding the establishment of Israel in 1948 resulted in growing hostility towards Jews living in Arab countries, culminating in the [[Jewish exodus from Arab lands]]. In December 1947, after the UN decided the [[partition of Palestine]], an Arab mob<ref>Howard Sachar, A History of Israel: From the Rise of Zionism to Our Time., (NY: Alfred A. Knopf, 1979), p. 400; Maurice Roumani, The Case of the Jews from Arab Countries: A Neglected Issue, (Tel Aviv: World Organization of Jews from Arab Countries, 1977), p. 31; Norman Stillman, The Jews of Arab Lands in Modern Times, (NY: Jewish Publication Society, 1991), p. 146</ref> [[Aleppo pogrom|attacked the Jewish quarter]]. Homes, schools and shops were badly damaged.<ref name="Human rights in Syria">{{cite book |author=James A. Paul |title=Human Rights in Syria |url=https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_N-xjxWYWnlwC |year=1990 |publisher=Human Rights Watch |isbn=978-0-929692-69-2 |page=[https://archive.org/details/bub_gb_N-xjxWYWnlwC/page/n94 91] |access-date=12 October 2015}}</ref> Soon after, many of the town's remaining 6,000 Jews emigrated.<ref name="books.google.co.uk">{{cite book |author1=Cyrus Adler |author2=Henrietta Szold |title=The American Jewish Year Book |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=6KgyAAAAMAAJ |year=1949 |publisher=American Jewish Committee |page=441 |access-date=12 October 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010336/https://books.google.com/books?id=6KgyAAAAMAAJ |archive-date=29 October 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> In 1968, there were an estimated 700 Jews still remaining in Aleppo.<ref>{{cite book |author=Avi Beker |title=Jewish Communities of the World |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FP_38S-75eQC |year=1998 |publisher=Lerner Publishing Group |isbn=978-0-8225-9822-0 |page=208 |access-date=16 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010338/https://books.google.com/books?id=FP_38S-75eQC |archive-date=29 October 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The houses and other properties of the Jewish families which were not sold after the migration, remain uninhabited under the protection of the Syrian Government. Most of these properties are in Al-Jamiliyah and Bab Al-Faraj areas, and the neighbourhoods around the [[Central Synagogue of Aleppo]]. In 1992, the Syrian government lifted the travel ban on its 4,500 Jewish citizens.<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/1992/04/28/world/syria-giving-jews-freedom-to-leave.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm |title=The New York Times:Syria Giving Jews Freedom To Leave |work=The New York Times |date=28 April 1992 |access-date=11 March 2012 |first=Thomas L. |last=Friedman |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130524224212/http://www.nytimes.com/1992/04/28/world/syria-giving-jews-freedom-to-leave.html?pagewanted=all&src=pm |archive-date=24 May 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> Most traveled to the United States, where a sizable number of [[Syrian Jews]] currently live in [[Brooklyn]], New York. The last Jews of Aleppo, the Halabi family, were evacuated from the city in October 2016 by the [[Free Syrian Army]] and now live in Israel.<ref>{{cite news |last1=Solomon |first1=Daniel |title=There Are No More Jews in Aleppo |url=http://forward.com/news/356914/aleppos-last-jewish-family-flees-for-israel-amid-devastation/?attribution=home-article-listing-12-headline |access-date=14 December 2016 |work=The Forward |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220191207/http://forward.com/news/356914/aleppos-last-jewish-family-flees-for-israel-amid-devastation/?attribution=home-article-listing-12-headline |archive-date=20 December 2016 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The Jews from Aleppo referred to their city as "Aram Tzova" (ארם צובא) after the ancient [[Aramean]] city of [[Aram-Zobah]] mentioned in the [[Hebrew Bible]].

===Spoken languages===
The Arabic dialect of Aleppo is a type of [[Syrian Arabic]], which is of the [[North Levantine Arabic]] variety. Much of its vocabulary is derived from the [[Syriac language]]. The [[Kurdish language]] is the second most spoken language in the city, after [[Arabic]].<ref name=Behnstedt>{{citation |last=Behnstedt |first=Peter |year=2008 |chapter=Syria |title=Encyclopedia of Arabic language and linguistics |volume=4 |page=402 |publisher=[[Brill Publishers]] |isbn=978-90-04-14476-7}}</ref> [[Kurds in Syria|Kurds]] in Aleppo speak the [[Northern Kurdish]] (also known as Kurmanji). [[Syrian Turkmen]] population of Aleppo speak the Kilis and Antep dialect of the [[Turkish language]]. Most Armenians speak the [[Western Armenian|Western]] form of the [[Armenian language]]. The [[Syriac language]] is rarely spoken by the Syriac community during daily life, but commonly used as the liturgical language of the Syriac Church. The members of the small [[Greeks in Syria|Greco-Syrian]] community in Aleppo speak Arabic. [[English language|English]] and [[French language|French]] are also spoken.

==Culture==
===Art===
[[File:Aleppomusic.jpg|thumb|Musicians from Aleppo, 18th century]]
Aleppo is considered one of the main centres of Arabic traditional and classic music with the Aleppine ''[[Muwashshah]]s'', ''[[Qudud Halabiya]]'' and ''[[Arabic maqam|Maqams]]'' (religious, secular and folk poetic-musical genres). In December 2021, the Qudud Halabiya was included into the [[UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritage Lists|UNESCO's intangible cultural heritage list]] as [[Intangible cultural heritage]].<ref>{{cite web |title=Al-Qudoud al-Halabiya |url=https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/al-qudoud-al-halabiya-01578 |publisher=UNESCO Culture Sector |access-date=2021-12-18 |archive-date=15 December 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20211215150323/https://ich.unesco.org/en/RL/al-qudoud-al-halabiya-01578 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Aleppines in general are fond of Arab classical music, the ''Tarab'', and it is not a surprise that many artists from Aleppo are considered pioneers among the Arabs in classic and traditional music. The most prominent figures in this field are Sabri Mdallal, [[Sabah Fakhri]],<ref>{{cite news |url=https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/sabah-fakhri-dies/2021/11/02/6e795a2a-3bdd-11ec-a493-51b0252dea0c_story.html |title=Sabah Fakhri, Syrian tenor who helped preserve classical Arabic music, dies at 88 |newspaper=The Washington Post |date=2021-11-02 |accessdate=2022-09-11 |archive-date=3 November 2021 |archive-url=https://archive.today/20211103070023/https://www.washingtonpost.com/local/obituaries/sabah-fakhri-dies/2021/11/02/6e795a2a-3bdd-11ec-a493-51b0252dea0c_story.html |url-status=live }}</ref> [[Shadi Jamil]], [[Abed Azrie]] and [[Nour Mhanna]]. Many iconic artists of the Arab music like [[Sayed Darwish]] and [[Mohammed Abdel Wahab]] were visiting Aleppo to recognize the legacy of Aleppine art and learn from its cultural heritage.

Aleppo is also known for its knowledgeable and cultivated listeners, known as ''sammi'a'' or "connoisseur listeners".<ref>{{cite book |last=Racy |first=A.J. |title=Making Music in the Arab World: The Culture and Artistry of Tarab |year=2003 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |location=Cambridge, UK |isbn=978-0-521-31685-9 |page=248 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=3-28hM3kdskC |access-date=25 July 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010339/https://books.google.com/books?id=3-28hM3kdskC |archive-date=29 October 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> Aleppine musicians often claim that no major Arab artist achieved fame without first earning the approval of the Aleppine ''sammi'a''.<ref>{{cite book |last=Shannon |first=Johnathan Holt |title=Among the Jasmine Trees: Music and Modernity in Contemporary Syria |url=https://archive.org/details/amongjasminetree00shan |url-access=registration |year=2006 |publisher=Wesleyan University Press |location=Middletown, CT |isbn=978-0-8195-6944-8}}</ref>

Aleppo hosts many music shows and festivals every year at the citadel amphitheatre, such as the "Syrian Song Festival", the "Silk Road Festival" and "Khan al-Harir Festival".

Al-Adeyat Archaeological Society founded in 1924 in Aleppo, is a cultural and social organization to preserve the tangible and intangible heritage of Aleppo and Syria in general. The society has branches in other governorates as well.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.aladeyat.org/ |title=Al-Adeyat Archaeological Society |access-date=3 March 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180303164725/https://www.aladeyat.org/ |archive-date=3 March 2018 |url-status=usurped}}</ref>

===Museums===
[[File:Aleppo citadel Museum laz.jpg|thumb|[[Aleppo Citadel Museum]]]]
*[[National Museum of Aleppo]].
*Museum of the popular traditions known as the ''Aleppine House'' at [[Beit Achiqbash]] in [[al-Jdayde]].
*[[Aleppo Citadel Museum]].
*Museum of medicine and science at Bimaristan Arghun al-Kamili.
*Aleppo Memory Museum at ''[[Beit Ghazaleh]]'' in al-Jdayde.
*''Zarehian Treasury'' of the Armenian Apostolic Church at the old Armenian church of the Holy Mother of God, Al-Jdeydeh.

===Cuisine===
[[File:Kebab khashkhash.jpg|thumb|left|Kebab khashkhash from Aleppo]]
{{see also|Syrian cuisine}}
Aleppo is surrounded by olive, nut and fruit orchards, and its cuisine is the product of its fertile land and location along the [[Silk Road]].<ref name="acad" /> The International Academy of Gastronomy in France awarded Aleppo its culinary prize in 2007.<ref name="acad">{{cite news |title=NPR web: Food Lovers Discover The Joys of Aleppo |newspaper=NPR.org |url=https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122058669 |access-date=5 April 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180118122510/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=122058669 |archive-date=18 January 2018 |url-status=live}}</ref> The city has a wide selection of different types of dishes, such as [[kebab]], [[kibbeh]], [[dolma]], [[hummus]], ful halabi, [[za'atar]] halabi, muhshi. Ful halabi is a typical Aleppine breakfast meal: fava bean soup with a splash of olive oil, lemon juice, garlic and Aleppo's red peppers. The za'atar of Aleppo (thyme) is a kind of oregano which is popular in the regional cuisines.
[[File:Bakery, Aleppo, Syria - 1.jpg|thumb|Aleppine [[lahmajoun]]]]
The kibbeh is one of the favourite foods of the locals, and the Aleppines have created more than 17 types of kibbeh dishes, which is considered a form of art for them. These include ''kibbeh'' prepared with [[sumac]] (''kәbbe sәmmāʔiyye''), [[yogurt]] (''kәbbe labaniyye''), [[quince]] (''[[Kibbeh safarjaliyeh|kәbbe safarjaliyye]]''), lemon juice (''kәbbe ḥāmḍa''), [[pomegranate]] sauce and [[cherry]] sauce. Other varieties include the "disk" ''kibbeh'' (''kәbbe ʔrāṣ''), the "plate" ''kibbeh'' (''kәbbe bәṣfīḥa'' or ''kәbbe bṣēniyye'') and the raw ''kibbeh'' (''kәbbe nayye''). Kebab Halabi – influenced by Armenian and Turkish tastes – has around 26 variants<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticlePrintPage.aspx?id=1591518&language=ar |title=ﻛﻮﻧﺎ :: ﺍﻟﻤﻄﺒﺦ ﺍﻟﺤﻠﺒﻲ ﻳﻨﻔﺮﺩ ﺑﺘﻨﻮﻉ ﺍﻃﻌﻤﺘﻪ ﻭﻃﻴﺐ ﻧﻜﺘﻪ 11/01/2006 |publisher=Kuna.net.kw |access-date=29 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130922073820/http://www.kuna.net.kw/ArticlePrintPage.aspx?id=1591518&language=ar |archive-date=22 September 2013 |url-status=live}}</ref> including: ''kebab'' prepared with cherry (''kebab karaz''), eggplant (''kebab banjan''), [[chili pepper]] with [[parsley]] and [[pine nut]] (''kebab khashkhash''), [[truffle]] (''kebab kamayeh''), [[tomato paste]] (''kebab hindi''), cheese and [[mushroom]] (''kebab ma'juʔa''), etc.<ref>{{Cite web|url=http://www.isalep.com/cuisine-aleppo/?p=1362|archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20120421234007/http://www.isalep.com/cuisine-aleppo/?p=1362|url-status=dead|title=أنواع الكباب الحلبي : لؤلؤة المطبخ الحلبي|archivedate=21 April 2012|language=ar}}</ref> The favourite drink is [[Arak (distilled beverage)|Arak]], which is usually consumed along with [[meze]], Aleppine kebabs and kibbehs. [[Beer in Syria|Al-Shark beer]] – a product of Aleppo – is also among the favourite drinks. Local wines and brandies are consumed as well.

Aleppo is the origin of different types of sweets and pastries. The Aleppine sweets, such as mabrumeh, siwar es-sett, balloriyyeh, etc., are characterized by containing high rates of ghee butter and sugar. Other sweets include mamuniyeh, shuaibiyyat, mushabbak, zilebiyeh, ghazel al-banat etc. Most pastries contain Aleppine pistachios and other types of nuts.

===Leisure and entertainment===
[[File:Aleppo Public Park (1).jpg|thumb|Aleppo Public Park]]
Until the break-out of the [[Battle of Aleppo (2012–16)|Battle of Aleppo]] in July 2012, the city was known for its vibrant [[nightlife]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/27/arts/design/27preserve.html |title=Preserving Heritage, and the Fabric of Life, in Syria |last=Ourousseff |first=Nicolai |work=The New York Times |date=26 December 2010 |access-date=27 December 2016 |archive-date=20 December 2016 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20161220102427/http://www.nytimes.com/2010/12/27/arts/design/27preserve.html |url-status=live }}</ref> Several night-clubs, bars and cabarets operated at the centre of the city as well as at the northern suburbs. The historic quarter of [[al-Jdayde]] was known for its pubs and boutique hotels, situated within ancient oriental mansions, providing special treats from the Aleppine flavour and cuisine, along with local music.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://heartoforient.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/aleppo-burns-dar-zamaria-sisi-house-and.html |title=ORIENT: Aleppo Burns – Dar Zamaria, Sisi House and much of Souq reported Burned- Syria Comment |last=Atlioglu |first=Dr Yasin |date=2012-09-30 |website=ORIENT |access-date=2017-01-01 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170102084425/http://heartoforient.blogspot.com.es/2012/09/aleppo-burns-dar-zamaria-sisi-house-and.html |archive-date=2 January 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>{{Cite news |last=Beehner |first=Lionel |date=2010-01-22 |title=Tourists Return to an Ancient Crossroads in Syria |language=en-US |work=The New York Times |url=https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/24/travel/24next.html |access-date=2020-08-21 |issn=0362-4331 |archive-date=4 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220804065904/https://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/24/travel/24next.html |url-status=live }}</ref>

[[Club d'Alep]], opened in 1945, is a unique social club known for [[Contract bridge|bridge games]] and other nightlife activities, located in a 19th-century mansion in the Aziziyah district of central Aleppo.<ref>Philip Mansel (2016) Aleppo:  The Rise and fall of Syria's Great Merchant City IB Taurus, p.55 and 13pl</ref>

The [[Aleppo Public Park]], opened in 1949, is one of the largest planted parks in Syria, located near in the Aziziyah district, where [[Queiq River]] breaks through the green park.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=53681 |title=Aleppo new fountains |access-date=3 December 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171009233650/http://syria-news.com/readnews.php?sy_seq=53681 |archive-date=9 October 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

The ''Blue Lagoon'' water park – heavily damaged during the battles – was one of the favourite places among the locals, as it was the first water park in Syria. Aleppo's [[Shahba Mall]] – one of the largest shopping centres in Syria – was also among the most visited locations for the locals. It has received major damages during the civil war.

===Historical sites===
{{Main|Ancient City of Aleppo}}

====Souqs and khans====
{{Main|Al-Madina Souq}}

[[File:Aleppo suq - GAR - 7-06.jpg|thumb|A shop in [[al-Madina Souq]] displaying [[Aleppo soap]] products, 2004]]
[[File:Aleppo-suq-Alp.JPG|thumb|Ancient Aleppo, [[Al-Madina Souq]]]]
The city's strategic trading position attracted settlers of all races and beliefs who wished to take advantage of the commercial roads that met in Aleppo from as far as China and [[Mesopotamia]] to the east, Europe to the west, and the [[Fertile Crescent]] and [[Egypt]] to the south. The largest covered [[souq]]-market in the world is in Aleppo, with an approximate length of {{cvt|13|km|abbr=off}}.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.esyria.sy/ealeppo/index.php?p=stories&category=round&filename=201010291220021 |title=eAleppo: The old Souqs of Aleppo (in Arabic) |publisher=Esyria.sy |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330131845/http://www.esyria.sy/ealeppo/index.php?p=stories&category=round&filename=201010291220021 |archive-date=30 March 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref><ref>Forbes, Andrew, and Henley, David, ''[http://www.cpamedia.com/article.php?pg=archive&acid=120601100823&aiid=120601101137 Aleppo's Great Bazaar] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140823085443/http://www.cpamedia.com/article.php?pg=archive&acid=120601100823&aiid=120601101137 |date=23 August 2014 }}''</ref>

''[[Al-Madina Souq]]'', as it is locally known, is an active trade centre for imported luxury goods, such as raw silk from [[Iran]], spices and dyes from India, and coffee from [[Damascus]]. Souq al-Madina is also home to local products such as wool, agricultural products and soap. Most of the souqs date back to the 14th century and are named after various professions and crafts, hence the wool souq, the copper souq, and so on. Aside from trading, the souq accommodated the traders and their goods in ''khans'' ([[caravanserai]]s) and scattered in the souq. Other types of small market-places were called ''caeserias'' (ﻗﻴﺴﺎﺭﻳﺎﺕ). Caeserias are smaller than khans in their sizes and functioned as workshops for craftsmen. Most of the khans took their names after their location in the souq and function, and are characterized by their façades, entrances and fortified wooden doors.

====Gates of Aleppo and other historic buildings====
[[File:Antioch gate in Aleppo walls.jpg|thumb|upright|[[Bab Antakeya|Gate of Antioch]] rebuilt during the 11th century]]
The old part of the city is surrounded with {{cvt|5|km|mi|adj=mid|-long}}, thick walls, pierced by the nine historical gates (many of them are well-preserved) of the old town. These are, clockwise from the north-east of the citadel:

*[[Bab al-Hadid]], [[Bab al-Ahmar]], [[Bab al-Nairab]], [[Bab al-Maqam]], [[Bab Qinnasrin]], [[Bab Antakeya]], [[Bāb Jnēn]], [[Bab al-Faraj (Aleppo)|Bab al-Faraj]] and [[Bab al-Nasr (Aleppo)|Bab al-Nasr]].

The most significant historic buildings of the ancient city include:
*[[Citadel of Aleppo|The Citadel]], a large fortress built atop a huge, partially artificial mound rising {{cvt|50|m}} above the city, dates back to the first millennium BC. Recent excavations unearthed a temple and 25 statues dating back to the first millennium BC.<ref>{{cite news |url=http://www.dp-news.com/pages/detail.aspx?articleid=80968&l=2 |title=Aleppo&nbsp;... Cultural Landmark, Trade Hub |agency=Xinhua News Agency |publisher=DP-news |date=16 April 2011 |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010341/http://www.dp-news.com/en/detail.aspx?articleid=80968 |archive-date=29 October 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> Many of the current structures date from the 13th century. The Citadel had been extensively damaged by earthquakes, notably in 1822.
*[[Al-Shibani Church|Al-Shibani building]], [[al-Halawiyah Madrasa]], [[al-Muqaddamiyah Madrasa]], [[al-Zahiriyah Madrasa]], [[al-Sultaniyah Madrasa]], [[al-Firdaws Madrasa]], Bimaristan Arghun al-Kamili, [[Beit Junblatt]], [[Bab al-Faraj Clock Tower]], etc.

[[File:Aleppo Night by Charles Hajj.jpg|left|thumb|[[Bab al-Faraj Clock Tower]]]]

The following are among the important historic mansions of [[al-Jdayde]] Christian quarter:<ref>{{cite web |title=Ministry of Tourism, Syria: Aleppine House (in Arabic) |url=http://www.syriatourism.org/index.php?module=subjects&func=viewpage&pageid=2081 |access-date=22 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110716101034/http://www.syriatourism.org/index.php?module=subjects&func=viewpage&pageid=2081 |archive-date=16 July 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref>
*''Beit Wakil'', an Aleppine mansion built in 1603, with unique wooden decorations. One of its decorations was taken to [[Berlin]] and exhibited in the [[Museum of Islamic Art, Berlin|Museum of Islamic Art]], known as the ''[[Aleppo Room]]''.
*''[[Beit Achiqbash]]'', an old Aleppine house built in 1757. The building is home to the ''Popular Traditions Museum'' since 1975, showing fine decorations of the Aleppine art.
*''[[Beit Ghazaleh]]'', an old 17th-century mansion characterized with fine decorations, carved by the Armenian sculptor ''Khachadur Bali'' in 1691. It was used as an Armenian elementary school during the 20th century.

====Places of worship====
[[File:Great Mosque of Aleppo, Aleppo, Syria.jpg|thumb|The courtyard of the Great Mosque of Aleppo]]
[[File:Al-Shibani Alp8.JPG|thumb|[[Al-Shibani Church|Al-Shibani building]]]]
*[[Great Mosque of Aleppo]] (Jāmi' Bani Omayya al-Kabīr), founded {{Circa|715}} by Umayyad caliph [[Walid I]] and most likely completed by his successor [[Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik|Sulayman]]. The building contains a tomb associated with [[Zechariah (priest)|Zachary]], father of [[John the Baptist]]. Construction of the present structure for Nur al-Din commenced in 1158. However, it was damaged during the [[Mongol]] invasion of 1260 and was rebuilt. The {{cvt|45|m|ft|adj=mid|-high}} tower (described as "the principal monument of medieval Syria")<ref name="Burns 1999 35">{{cite book |first=Russ |last=Burns |title=Monuments of Syria |url=https://archive.org/details/monumentsofsyria0000burn |url-access=registration |page=[https://archive.org/details/monumentsofsyria0000burn/page/35 35] |year=1999 |location=New York, London |isbn=9781860642449}}</ref> was erected in 1090–1092 under the first Seljuk sultan, [[Tutush I]]. It had four façades with different styles. The tower was completely destroyed during the Syrian civil war in March 2013 (reported on 24 March 2013).
*[[Al-Nuqtah Mosque]] ("Mosque of the drop [of blood]"), a [[Shia|Shī'ah]] mosque, which contains a stone said to be marked by a drop of [[Husayn ibn Ali|Husayn]]'s blood. The site is believed to have previously been a monastery, which was converted into a mosque in 944.
*[[Al-Shuaibiyah Mosque]], [[Al-Qaiqan Mosque]], [[Mahmandar Mosque]], [[Altun Bogha Mosque]], [[Al-Sahibiyah Mosque]], [[Bahsita Mosque]], [[Al-Tawashi Mosque]], [[Al-Otrush Mosque]], [[Al-Saffahiyah Mosque]], [[Khusruwiyah Mosque]], [[Al-Adiliyah Mosque]], [[Bahramiyah Mosque]], etc.
*Churches of al-Jdayde quarter: the [[Forty Martyrs Cathedral|Forty Martyrs Armenian Apostolic Cathedral]], the [[Church of the Dormition of Our Lady|Dormition of Our Lady]] Greek Orthodox church, [[Mar Assia al-Hakim Church|Mar Assia al-Hakim Syrian Catholic church]], the [[Saint Elijah Cathedral, Aleppo|Maronite Cathedral of Saint Elijah]], the Armenian Catholic Cathedral of Our Mother of Reliefs and the Melkite Greek Catholic Cathedral of Virgin Mary.
*[[Central Synagogue of Aleppo]] or al-Bandara synagogue, dating to the 9th century. The synagogue was destroyed during an anti-Jewish pogrom in 1947.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.MAGAZINE-as-pogroms-targeted-aleppo-s-jews-my-family-made-a-dangerous-choice-to-flee-1.9828957 |title=As Pogroms Targeted Aleppo's Jews, My Family Made a Dangerous Choice: To Flee |newspaper=Haaretz |access-date=23 June 2021 |archive-date=22 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210622103449/https://www.haaretz.com/israel-news/.premium.MAGAZINE-as-pogroms-targeted-aleppo-s-jews-my-family-made-a-dangerous-choice-to-flee-1.9828957 |url-status=live }}</ref> In the 1980s, the building was restored, but destroyed again during the civil war.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://imageusa.com/restoring-the-great-synagogue-of-aleppo/ |title=Rstoring the Great Synagogue of Aleppo |date=7 November 2019 |access-date=23 June 2021 |archive-date=24 June 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210624203138/https://imageusa.com/restoring-the-great-synagogue-of-aleppo/ |url-status=live }}</ref>

====Hammams====
[[File:Hammam Al-Nahhasseen Aleppo.jpg|thumb|[[Hammam al-Nahhasin]]]]
Aleppo was home to 177 [[Turkish bath|hammams]] during the medieval period until the Mongol invasion, when many of the prominent structures of the city were destroyed. Before the civil war, 18 hammams were operating in the old city, including:
*[[Hammam al-Nahhasin]] built during the 12th century near khan al-Nahhaseen.
*Hammam al-Sultan built in 1211 by [[Az-Zahir Ghazi]].
*Hammam al-Bayadah of the Mamluk era built in 1450.
*[[Hammam Yalbugha]] built in 1491 by the [[List of rulers of Aleppo|Emir of Aleppo]] Saif ad-Din Yalbugha al-Naseri.<ref>{{cite book |title=Syria & Lebanon |last1=Carter |first1=Terry |last2=Dunston |first2=Lara |last3=Humphreys |first3=Andrew |year=2004 |publisher=Lonely Planet |isbn=978-1-86450-333-3 |page=[https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781864503333/page/186 186] |url=https://archive.org/details/isbn_9781864503333 |url-access=registration |access-date=12 October 2015}}</ref>
*Hammam al-Jawhary, hammam Azdemir, hammam Bahram Pasha, hammam Bab al-Ahmar, etc.

As a city with an ancient architectural style characterized by covered markets, khans, baths, and schools, in addition to mosques and churches, the city is an archaeological treasure in need of continuous care and maintenance. The city was significantly replanned after the end of World War II. In 1954, an architectural plan was adopted by the French architect André Guitton, who proposed the construction of several wide avenues through the city to accommodate the entry of cars. Between 1954 and 1983, many old neighborhoods were demolished under this pretext for expansion, particularly in the northern areas such as Bab al-Faraj and Bab Janin. However, growing awareness of the importance of these buildings ultimately led to the cancellation of Guitton's plan in 1979 and its replacement by a plan by the Swiss urban engineer Stefano Bianco, who launched the idea of preserving the ancient urban fabric of Old Aleppo. This paved the way for UNESCO to include the Old City of Aleppo on the World Heritage List in 1986.<ref>{{Cite web |date=2019-10-07 |title=موقع حلب - مخططات "حلب" التنظيمية عبر التاريخ |url=http://esyria.sy/sites/code/index.php?site=aleppo&p=stories&category=misc&filename=201009251220032 |access-date=2025-03-12 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191007050846/http://esyria.sy/sites/code/index.php?site=aleppo&p=stories&category=misc&filename=201009251220032 |archive-date=7 October 2019 }}</ref>

===Nearby attractions and the ''Dead Cities''===
{{Main|Dead Cities}}

[[File:Kharab Shams Basilica, Dead Cities region, NW Syria.jpg|thumb|left|Kharab Shams Basilica, 4th century]]
Aleppo's western suburbs are home to a group of historical sites and villages which are commonly known as the ''[[Dead Cities]]''. Around 700 abandoned settlements in the northwestern parts of Syria before the 5th century, contain remains of Christian [[Byzantine architecture]]. Many hundreds of those settlements are in [[Mount Simeon]] (Jabal Semaan) and Jabal Halaqa regions at the western suburbs of Aleppo, within the range of [[Limestone Massif]].<ref>[http://www.syria.strabon.org/ua/pm_villesmortes/antique-villages/index_en.html Ancient villages (dead cities)]{{dead link|date=June 2017 |bot=InternetArchiveBot |fix-attempted=yes }}</ref> Dead Cities were inscribed as a [[UNESCO World Heritage Site]] in 2011, under the name of "Ancient Villages of Northern Syria".<ref>{{cite web |url=https://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1348 |title=Ancient Villages of Northern Syria |author=UNESCO |access-date=30 October 2011 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111018204926/http://whc.unesco.org/en/list/1348/ |archive-date=18 October 2011 |url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Church of Saint Simeon Stylites 01.jpg|thumb|Church of Saint Simeon Stylites, 5th century]]
The most notable ''Dead cities'' and archaeological sites in Mount Simeon and [[Kurd Mountain|Mount Kurd]] near Aleppo include: Kalota Castle and churches northwest of Aleppo, Kharab Shams Byzantine basilica of the 4th century,<ref>eAleppo:Kharab Shams [http://www.esyria.sy/ealeppo/index.php?p=stories&category=ruins&filename=200812270845011 Kharab Shams in history (in Arabic)] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120330131819/http://www.esyria.sy/ealeppo/index.php?p=stories&category=ruins&filename=200812270845011 |date=30 March 2012 }}</ref> the half-ruined Roman basilica in [[Fafertin]] village dating back to 372 AD, the old Byzantine settlement of [[Surqanya]] village at the northwest of Aleppo, the 4th-century Basilica of Sinhar settlement, the Mushabbak Basilica dating back to the second half of the 5th century, the 9th-century BC Assyrian settlement of [[Kafr Nabu]], [[Barad, Syria|Brad]] village and the [[Julian of Antioch|Saint Julianus]] Maronite monastery (399–402 AD) where the shrine of [[Maron|Saint Maron]] is located, the 5th-century Kimar settlement of the Roman and Byzantine eras, the [[Church of Saint Simeon Stylites]] of the 5th century, the [[Neo-Hittite states|Syro-Hittite]] [[Ain Dara temple]] of the [[Iron Age]] dating back to the 10th and 8th centuries BC, the ancient city of [[Cyrrhus]] with the old Roman amphitheatre and two historic bridges, etc.

==Transportation==
{{See also|Transport in Syria}}

===Highways and roads===
The main highway leading to and within the city is the [[M4 Motorway (Syria)|M4 Highway]], which runs in the eastern side of the city from south to north along the [[Queiq River]].<ref name=jordantimes-20200226>{{cite news |url=https://www.jordantimes.com/opinion/michael-jansen/capture-m5-one-most-celebrated-prizes-damascus-campaign-regain-territory |title=Capture of M5 one of the most celebrated prizes in Damascus' campaign to regain territory |last=Jansen |first=Michael |website=The Jordan Times |date=26 February 2020 |access-date=28 March 2020 |archive-date=27 February 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200227112714/https://www.jordantimes.com/opinion/michael-jansen/capture-m5-one-most-celebrated-prizes-damascus-campaign-regain-territory |url-status=live }}</ref> Driving south on M4 Highway gives access to [[M5 Motorway (Syria)|M5 Highway]] leading to [[Homs]], [[Hama]], and [[Damascus]]. The northern bypass of the city called Castello Road leads through [[Azaz]] to the border with Turkey and further to the city of [[Gaziantep]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://sana.sy/en/?p=278854 |title=Rehabilitation of Damascus-Aleppo international highway affected by terrorism in Idleb began |publisher=[[Syrian Arab News Agency]] |access-date=22 October 2022 |date=26 July 2022 |archive-date=24 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221024142612/https://sana.sy/en/?p=278854 |url-status=live }}</ref> Driving east on M4 Highway gives access to the coastal road leading to [[Latakia]] and [[Tartus]]. Within the city, main routes include Al Jalaa Street, Shukri Al-Quwatly Street, [[King Faisal Street]], Bab Antakya Street, Ibrahim Hanano Street and Tishreen Boulevard.

===Public transport===
[[File:Microbus Station (1265057959).jpg|250px|thumb|Microbus station in the city center]]
The city of Aleppo is a major transportation hub, served by a comprehensive [[public transport]] network of buses and minibuses. New modern buses are used to connect the city with Damascus and the other Syrian cities to the east and the south of Aleppo. The city is also served by local and inter-city [[share taxis]].

===Railway===
[[File:Aleppo Bagdad Railway Station, cropped.jpg|thumb|[[Aleppo railway station]] (Gare de Baghdad)]]
Aleppo was one of the major stations of Syria that was connected to the [[Baghdad Railway]] in 1912, within the [[Ottoman Empire]]. The connections to Turkey and onwards to [[Ankara]] still exist today, with a twice weekly train from Damascus. It is perhaps for this historical reason that Aleppo is the headquarters of Syria national railway network, [[Chemins de Fer Syriens]]. As the railway is relatively slow, much of the passenger traffic to the port of [[Latakia]] had moved to road-based air-conditioned coaches. But this has reversed in recent years with the 2005 introduction of South Korean built [[Diesel multiple unit|DMUs]] providing a regular bi-hourly express service to both Latakia and Damascus, which miss intermediate stations.

However, after the break-out of the civil war in 2011, the Syrian railway network has suffered major damage and is partially out of use. Reconstruction of the Damascus-Aleppo railway line was started in 2020, after its completion and securing rail transport will be resumed.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://sana.sy/en/?p=186448 |title=General Establishment of Railways: Aleppo-Damascus railway to be put into service in May |publisher=Syrian Arab News Agency |author=Hybah Sleman / Hazem Sabbagh |date=24 February 2020 |access-date=3 February 2022 |archive-date=2 February 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220202092043/https://sana.sy/en/?p=186448 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The opening scene in [[Agatha Christie]]'s ''[[Murder on the Orient Express]]'' takes place on the railway station in Aleppo: "It was five o'clock on a winter's morning in Syria. Alongside the platform at Aleppo stood the train grandly designated in railway guides as the Taurus Express."

===Airport===
[[File:Aleppo (2) cropped.jpg|thumb|upright 1.2|[[Aleppo International Airport]]]]
[[Aleppo International Airport]] ([[IATA]]: ALP, [[ICAO]]: OSAP) is the international airport serving the city. The airport serves as a secondary hub for [[Syrian Air]]. The history of the airport dates back to the beginning of the 20th century. It was upgraded and developed in the years to 1999 when the new current terminal was opened.<ref>Aleppo Int. Airport [http://www.terezia.org/section.php?id=1823 Historical Overview] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171009230825/http://www.terezia.org/section.php?id=1823 |date=9 October 2017 }}</ref>

The airport was closed since the beginning of 2013 as a result of the military operations in the area. However, following the Syrian government's recapture of eastern Aleppo during the [[Battle of Aleppo (2012–16)|Battle of Aleppo]], an airplane conducted its first flight from the airport in four years.<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/first-airplane-takes-off-aleppo-international-airport-4-years/ |title=First airplane takes off from Aleppo International Airport in 4 years |access-date=6 January 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170106151817/https://www.almasdarnews.com/article/first-airplane-takes-off-aleppo-international-airport-4-years/ |archive-date=6 January 2017 |url-status=dead}}</ref>

==Economy==

===Trade and industry===
[[File:Aleppo, textile suq market.jpg|left|thumb|Traditional textile and rug markets]]
The main role of the city was as a trading place throughout the history, as it sat at the crossroads of two trade routes and mediated the trade from India, the [[Tigris]] and [[Euphrates]] regions and the route coming from [[Damascus]] in the South, which traced the base of the mountains rather than the rugged seacoast. Although trade was often directed away from the city for political reasons {{Why|date=January 2012}}, it continued to thrive until the Europeans began to use the [[Cape of Good Hope|Cape route]] to India and later to use the route through [[Egypt]] to the [[Red Sea]].

The commercial traditions in Aleppo have deep roots in the history. The Aleppo Chamber of commerce founded in 1885, is one of the oldest chambers in the Middle East and the Arab world. According to many historians, Aleppo was the most developed commercial and industrial city in the [[Ottoman Empire]] after [[Constantinople]] and [[Cairo]].<ref name="Encyclopedia of the Ottoman Empire"/> However the post-Ottoman conditions favored other cities, such as [[Haifa]], whose economy thrived more in the new circumstances. The issue was that the city's hinterland wasn't included in the "customs-free zone" between the newly established [[Mandate for Syria and the Lebanon|British and French mandates]] which hurt the city's economic growth.<ref name=":03">{{Cite book |last=Schayegh |first=Cyrus |title=The Middle East and the Making of the Modern World |publisher=Harvard University Press |year=2018 |isbn=978-0-674-98110-2 |location=Cambridge |pages=177}}</ref>
[[File:Aleppo shopping street.jpg|thumb|Markets at Tilel street]]
As the largest urban area in pre-civil war Syria, Aleppo was considered the capital of Syrian industry.<ref>{{Cite web |url=http://www.dnnar.com/index.php/markets/13869/6-3-2017-12-4 |title=معرض خان الحرير في حلب عاصمة الصناعة السورية |work=D.N.N شبكة دمشق الإخبارية |access-date=29 April 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171009222521/http://www.dnnar.com/index.php/markets/13869/6-3-2017-12-4 |archive-date=9 October 2017 |url-status=live |last1=قاسم |first1=جمانة }}</ref> The economy of the city was mainly driven by textiles, chemicals, pharmaceutics, agro-processing industries, electrical commodities, alcoholic beverages, engineering and tourism. It occupied a dominant position in the country's manufacturing output, with a share of more than 50% of manufacturing employment, and an even greater export share.<ref>Madinatuna:Aleppo City Development Strategy [http://madinatuna.com/en/economy Economy Syria] {{Webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100505211720/http://madinatuna.com/en/economy |date=5 May 2010 }}</ref>
[[File:Tilel Street, Aleppo (4).jpg|thumb|upright|Tilel street]]

Possessing the most developed commercial and industrial plants in Syria, Aleppo is a major centre for manufacturing precious metals and stones.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aliqtisadi.com/index.php?mode=article&id=23863 |title=Gold in Syria |publisher=aliqtisadi.com |access-date=29 August 2013 |archive-date=19 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200819004954/https://aliqtisadi.com/?mode=article&id=23863 |url-status=live }}</ref> The annual amount of the processed gold produced in Aleppo is around 8.5 tonnes, making up to 40% of the entire manufactured gold in Syria.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.syriasteps.com/?d=128&id=42162 |title=Aleppo gold market |publisher=Syria Steps |access-date=29 August 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140408215618/http://www.syriasteps.com/?d=128&id=42162 |archive-date=8 April 2014 |url-status=live}}</ref>

The industrial city of Aleppo in [[Shaykh Najjar|Sheikh Najjar]] district is one of the largest in Syria and the region. Occupying an area of {{cvt|4412|ha|acre}} in the north-eastern suburbs of Aleppo, the total investments in the city counted more than US$3.4&nbsp;billion during 2010.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.aksalser.com/?page=view_news&id=5ace559cb86c8b34f1e024e479b11815&ar=17773089 |title=155 billion Syrian Pounds invested in Aleppo Industrial City (in Arabic) |publisher=Aksalser.com |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120303110557/http://www.aksalser.com/?page=view_news&id=5ace559cb86c8b34f1e024e479b11815&ar=17773089 |archive-date=3 March 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> Still under development, it is envisaged to open hotels, exhibition centres and other facilities within the industrial city.

In July 2022, the Aleppo Thermal Power Plant, which generates 200 megawatts of electricity for the city and its surroundings, was put into partial operation after restoration.<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://sana.sy/en/?p=277369 |title=In the presence of President al-Assad… the fifth generating set in Aleppo Thermal Power Plant kicks off after rehabilitating it |author=Ibrahim Shaza |publisher=SANA |date=8 July 2022 |access-date=10 July 2022 |archive-date=10 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220710012512/http://sana.sy/en/?p=277369 |url-status=live }}</ref>

The old traditional crafts are well-preserved in the old part of the city. The famous laurel [[Aleppo soap|soap of Aleppo]] is considered to be the world's first hard soap.<ref>Aleppo Soap [http://www.ursoap.com/pages/history_page.htm Soap History] {{webarchive |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100826235621/http://www.ursoap.com/pages/history_page.htm |date=26 August 2010}}</ref>

===Construction===
[[File:AleppoCitadel.jpg|thumb|The restored square of the citadel]]
In the 2000s, Aleppo was one of the fastest-growing cities in Syria and the Middle East.<ref>{{cite book |title=The Report Syria 2011 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=oDz9juos_tkC&pg=PA195 |year=2011 |publisher=Oxford Business Group |isbn=978-1-907065-34-7 |page=195 |access-date=19 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191029010342/https://books.google.com/books?id=oDz9juos_tkC&pg=PA195 |archive-date=29 October 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref> Many villagers and inhabitants of other Syrian districts are migrating to Aleppo in an effort to find better job opportunities, a fact that always increases population pressure, with a growing demand for new residential capacity. New districts and residential communities have been built in the suburbs of Aleppo, many of them were still under construction {{As of|2010|lc=on}}.

Two major construction projects are scheduled in Aleppo: the "Old City Revival" project and the "Reopening of the stream bed of Queiq River":
*The Old City revival project completed its first phase by the end of 2008, and the second phase started in early 2010. The purpose of the project is the preservation of the old city of Aleppo with its souqs and khans, and restoration of the narrow alleys of the old city and the roads around the citadel.
*The restoration of [[Queiq River]] is directed towards the revival of the flow of the river, demolishing both the artificial cover of the stream bed and the reinforcement of the stream banks along the river in the city centre. The flow of the river was blocked during the 1960s by the Turks, turning the river into a tiny sewage channel, something that led the authorities to cover the stream during the 1970s. In 2008 the flow of pure water was restored through the efforts of the Syrian government, granting a new life to the Quweiq River.<ref name="station">{{Cite news |url=https://sana.sy/en/?p=277384 |title=President al-Assad inaugurates Tal Hasel water pumping plant, Aleppo |author=Shaza Qreima |publisher=SANA |access-date=10 July 2022 |date=8 July 2022 |archive-date=9 July 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220709184201/http://sana.sy/en/?p=277384 |url-status=live }}</ref>

Like other major Syrian cities, Aleppo is suffering from the dispersal of [[informal settlements]]: almost half of its population (around 1.2&nbsp;million) is estimated to live in 22 informal settlements of different types.<ref>{{cite web |title=Madinatuna, Aleppo Cite Development Strategy: Informal Settlements |url=http://madinatuna.com/en/informals |access-date=14 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20100505211725/http://madinatuna.com/en/informals |archive-date=5 May 2010 |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Education==
[[File:Aleppo University, Faculty of Arts and Humanities.jpg|thumb|The faculty of Arts and Humanities at the [[University of Aleppo]]]]
As the main economic centre of Syria, Aleppo has a large number of educational institutions. According to the UNICEF, there are around over 1280 schools in Aleppo and its suburbs that welcomed 485,000 new students as of September 2018,<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.unicef.org/syria/stories/children-return-school-aleppo-supported-unicef |title=Children return to school in Aleppo, supported by UNICEF |publisher=UNICEF |access-date=20 August 2022 |date=9 September 2018 |archive-date=26 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326034439/https://www.unicef.org/syria/stories/children-return-school-aleppo-supported-unicef |url-status=live }}</ref> and around 25,000 students resumed their learning as of December 2021.<ref>{{Cite web |date=19 December 2021 |title=Around 25,000 students resumed their learning in Aleppo. |url=https://www.unicef.org/syria/stories/around-25000-students-resumed-their-learning-aleppo |access-date=21 August 2022 |website=UNICEF |archive-date=21 August 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220821132012/https://www.unicef.org/syria/stories/around-25000-students-resumed-their-learning-aleppo |url-status=live }}</ref>
 
Not to mention there are some colleges. In addition to the [[University of Aleppo]], there are state colleges and private universities which attract large numbers of students from other regions of Syria and the Arab countries. The number of the students in Aleppo University is more than 60,000.<ref>[https://www.daad-akademie.de/medien/ida/webversion_ida_bildungshintergr%C3%BCnde_syrien.pdf Students] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220302040305/https://www.daad-akademie.de/medien/ida/webversion_ida_bildungshintergr%C3%BCnde_syrien.pdf |date=2 March 2022 }} daad-akademie.de, 22. February 2021.</ref> The university has 18 faculties and 8 technical colleges in the city of Aleppo.

Currently, there are two private universities operating in the city: [[al-Shahba University]] (SU) and [[Mamoun University for Science and Technology]] (MUST). Branches of the state conservatory and the fine arts school are also operating in the city.

Aleppo is home to several Christian schools, such as St. Mariam's Christian School (the city's main Christian school) and Armenian private schools as well as two international schools: [[International School of Aleppo]] and [[Lycée Français d'Alep]].

==Sport==
[[File:Aleppo International Stadium, day view, 2009 (2).jpg|thumb|[[Aleppo International Stadium]]]]
The city of Aleppo is considered as important centre of [[team sport]]s with [[association football|football]] being the most popular in the city. The five major sporting clubs of the city are [[Al-Ittihad SC Aleppo|al-Ittihad SC]], [[al-Hurriya SC]], [[al-Yarmouk SC Aleppo|al-Yarmouk SC]], [[Jalaa SC]] and [[Ouroube SC Aleppo|Ouroube SC]].<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://sana.sy/en/?p=22131 |publisher=[[Syrian Arab News Agency]] |author=H. Zain/ H. Said |title=Al-Jalaa basketball team takes lead in 1st leg of Aleppo Gathering League Tournament. |access-date=21 January 2022 |date=18 December 2014 |archive-date=22 January 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220122113227/https://sana.sy/en/?p=22131 |url-status=live }}</ref> Many other sport clubs are located in several districts of the city including [[al-Herafyeen SC]], [[Shorta Aleppo SC]], [[Ommal Aleppo SC]], Nayrab SC, al-Shahbaa SC, al-Qala'a SC and Aleppo Railways SC.
[[File:Hamadania arena.jpg|thumb|230px|[[Al-Hamadaniah Sports Arena]] opened in 2021]]
[[Basketball]] is also played in the city. All of the 5 Aleppine major sport clubs participate in the men's and women's top division of the [[Syrian Basketball League]], in which both [[Jalaa SC (men's basketball)|Jalaa SC]] and [[Al-Ittihad SC Aleppo (men's basketball)|Al-Ittihad SC]] consecutively dominated winning the league from 1956 to 1993.<ref name="it">{{Cite news |url=https://basketball.asia-basket.com/team/Syria/Al-Ittihad-Aleppo/3415?Page=5 |title=Al-Ittihad, History |work=asia-basket |access-date=21 December 2021 |archive-date=8 November 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171108093754/http://basketball.asia-basket.com/team/Syria/Al-Ittihad-Aleppo/3415?Page=5 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref name="hist">{{cite news |url=https://basketball.asia-basket.com/team/Syria/Al-Jalaa-Aleppo/5047?Page=5 |title=Al Jalaa, History |work=asia-basket |access-date=20 December 2021 |archive-date=23 September 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170923141255/http://basketball.asia-basket.com/team/Syria/Al-Jalaa-Aleppo/5047?Page=5 |url-status=live }}</ref>

In July 2022, international qualifying matches were played in Aleppo for the first time since the beginning of the conflict. In the [[Al-Hamadaniah Sports Arena|Hamadaniah Arena]], the [[Syria national basketball team|Syrian national team]] met the teams of Iran and Bahrain as part of the [[2023 FIBA Basketball World Cup qualification (Asia)|qualification for the World Cup]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/asian-qualifiers/game/0107/Syria-Bahrain |title=Syria-Bahrain |publisher=FIBA |access-date=7 June 2022 |archive-date=26 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326034459/https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/asian-qualifiers/game/0107/Syria-Bahrain |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |url=https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/asian-qualifiers/game/0407/Syria-Iran |title=Syria-Iran |publisher=FIBA |access-date=7 June 2022 |archive-date=26 March 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230326202119/https://www.fiba.basketball/basketballworldcup/2023/asian-qualifiers/game/0407/Syria-Iran |url-status=live }}</ref>

Other sports being practiced by the major clubs in the city include [[tennis]], [[handball]], [[volleyball]], [[Sport of athletics|athletics]], [[table tennis]] and [[swimming (sport)|swimming]].

With a capacity of 53,200 seats, the [[Aleppo International Stadium]] is the largest sports venue in Syria.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.worldstadiums.com/middle_east/countries/syria.shtml |title=Stadiums in Syria |publisher=World Stadiums |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120316200947/http://www.worldstadiums.com/middle_east/countries/syria.shtml |archive-date=16 March 2012 |url-status=dead}}</ref> Other major sport venues in the city include the [[Al-Hamadaniah Sports Arena]], [[Bassel al-Assad Swimming Complex]], and [[Al-Hamadaniah Olympic Swimming and Diving Complex]].

On 29 January 2017, Aleppo hosted the first sports event since 2012,<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-38786182 |title=Football returns to Aleppo after five years of war |work=BBC News |date=29 January 2017 |access-date=21 June 2018 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20171109191233/http://www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-38786182 |archive-date=9 November 2017 |url-status=live}}</ref> when the local football rivals [[Al-Ittihad SC Aleppo|al-Ittihad SC]] and [[al-Hurriya SC]] played at the [[Ri'ayet al-Shabab Stadium]], within the frames of the [[2016–17 Syrian Premier League]].<ref>{{Cite web |url=https://edition.cnn.com/2017/02/10/football/football-returns-to-aleppo-syria-al-ittihad-al-hurriya/index.html |title=Anger vs. Joy: Playing football on 'Aleppo's ruins' |date=10 February 2017 |access-date=26 December 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20191227023853/https://edition.cnn.com/2017/02/10/football/football-returns-to-aleppo-syria-al-ittihad-al-hurriya/index.html |archive-date=27 December 2019 |url-status=live}}</ref>

==Municipality==
[[File:Aleppo city hall laz.jpg|thumb|Aleppo City Hall]]
The city of Aleppo is the capital of [[Aleppo Governorate]] and the centre of [[Mount Simeon District]]. Aleppo City Council is the governing body of the city. The first municipality council was formed in 1868.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.esyria.sy/ealeppo/index.php?p=stories&category=ruins&filename=201111062205011 |title=eAleppo:Khans in Aleppo |publisher=Esyria.sy |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120629185847/http://www.esyria.sy/ealeppo/index.php?p=stories&category=ruins&filename=201111062205011 |archive-date=29 June 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> However, the governor being appointed directly by the president of the republic, has a supreme authority over the city and the entire governorate. But the city is managed directly by the mayor.

===Subdivisions===
{{See also|Ancient City of Aleppo}}
[[File:السلام.jpg|180px|thumb|Suleimaniyeh District, St George's Church and [[Tawhid Mosque]], 2020]]
Districts in Aleppo can be considered in four categories:
*Old quarters inside the walls of the ancient city.
*Old quarters outside the walls of the ancient city.
*Modern neighborhoods, including a newly developed area called The New Aleppo.
*Informal settlements.

===Integrated Urban Development in Aleppo===
[[File:Covered Suq of Aleppo2.JPG|thumb|''Souq al-Dira''', maintaining its traditional role as a tailoring centre]]
The "Integrated Urban Development in Aleppo" (UDP) is a joint programme between the German Development Cooperation (GTZ) and the Municipality of Aleppo.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.udp-aleppo.org/ |title=UDP-Aleppo |publisher=UDP-Aleppo |date=15 December 2011 |access-date=11 March 2012 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120315104149/http://www.udp-aleppo.org/ |archive-date=15 March 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref> The programme promotes capacities for sustainable urban management and development at the national and municipal level.

The Programme has three fields of work:
# Aleppo City Development Strategy (CDS): promoting support structures for the municipality, including capacity building, networking, and developing municipal strength in the national development dialogue.
# Informal Settlements (IS): includes strategy and management development of informal settlements.
# The Project for the Rehabilitation of the Old City of Aleppo (OCA): includes further support for the rehabilitation of the Old City, as well as for a city development strategy oriented to the long term.

The UDP cooperates closely with other interventions in the sector, namely the EU-supported 'Municipal Administration Modernization' programme. It is planned to operate from 2007 to 2016.

===Preservation of the ancient city===
[[File:Khan al-Wazir with Sahibiyah mosque.jpg|thumb|left|Khan al-Wazir after rehabilitation in 2009]]
As an ancient trading centre, Aleppo has impressive ''[[souq]]s'', ''khans'', ''hammams'', ''madrasas'', mosques and churches, all in need of more care and preservation work. After [[World War II]] the city was significantly redesigned; in 1954 French architect [[André Gutton]] had a number of wide new roads cut through the city to allow easier passage for modern traffic. Between 1954 and 1983 many buildings in the old city were demolished to allow for the construction of modern apartment blocks, particularly in the northwestern areas (Bab al-Faraj and [[Bab al-Jinan]]). As awareness for the need to preserve this unique cultural heritage increased, Gutton's master plan was finally abandoned in 1979 to be replaced with a new plan presented by the Swiss expert and [[urban designer]] [[Stefano Bianca]], which adopted the idea of "preserving the traditional architectural style of Ancient Aleppo" paving the way for [[UNESCO]] to declare the [[Old City of Aleppo]] as a World Heritage Site in 1986.<ref name="Aleppo plan">{{cite web |title=eAleppo:Aleppo city major plans throughout the history |url=http://www.esyria.sy/ealeppo/index.php?p=stories&category=misc&filename=201009251220032 |language=ar |access-date=27 September 2010 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20121218150720/http://www.esyria.sy/ealeppo/index.php?p=stories&category=misc&filename=201009251220032 |archive-date=18 December 2012 |url-status=live}}</ref>
[[File:Khandaq6 Alp.jpg|thumb|The historic street of al-Khandaq, restored just before the civil war]]
Several international institutions have joined efforts with local authorities and the Aleppo Archaeological Society, to rehabilitate the old city by accommodating contemporary life while preserving the old one. The governorate and the municipality are implementing serious programmes directed towards the enhancement of the ancient city and Jdeydeh quarter.

The German Technical Cooperation ([[GTZ]]) and [[Aga Khan Foundation]] (within the frames of [[Aga Khan Historic Cities Programme]]) has made a great contribution in the preservation process of the old city.

==Twin towns – sister cities==
{{See also|List of twin towns and sister cities in Syria}}
Aleppo is [[Sister city|twinned]] with:
*{{flagicon|BLR}} [[Brest, Belarus|Brest]], Belarus (2010)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140409025245/http://jamahir.alwehda.gov.sy/__archives.asp?FileName=103164560320100127234904 |title=التوقيع على اتفاقية توءمة بين محافظتي حلب و برست البيلاروسية |publisher=jamahir.alwehda.gov |language=ar |date=28 January 2010 }}</ref>
*{{flagicon|TUR}} [[Gaziantep]], Turkey (2005, 2025)<ref>{{cite web |title=Humanitarian remoteness: aid work practices from 'little Aleppo' |url=https://www.uab.cat/web/news-detail/humanitarian-remoteness-aid-work-practices-from-little-aleppo-1345680342044.html?noticiaid=1345803091143 |website=uab.cat |publisher=Barcelona Research and Innovation |date=2020-01-20 |access-date=2020-09-16 |archive-date=17 September 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200917053514/https://www.uab.cat/web/news-detail/humanitarian-remoteness-aid-work-practices-from-little-aleppo-1345680342044.html?noticiaid=1345803091143 |url-status=live }}</ref><ref>{{cite web |url=https://english.enabbaladi.net/archives/2025/05/aleppo-signs-twinning-agreement-with-gaziantep/ |title=Aleppo signs twinning agreement with Gaziantep |publisher=enabbaladi.net |date=29 May 2025 }}</ref>
*{{flagicon|TUR}} [[Izmir]], Turkey (1995)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111006005024/http://www.izmir-yerelgundem21.org.tr/kardes.htm |title=İZMİR YURT DIŞI |publisher=izmir-yerelgundem21.org |language=tr |date= }}</ref>
*{{flagicon|FRA}} [[Lyon]], France (2000)<ref>{{cite web |url=https://web.archive.org/web/20111014094015/http://www.lyon.fr/vdl/sections/en/villes_partenaires/villes_partenaires_2/?aIndex=1 |title=Partner cities |publisher=lyon.fr |date= }}</ref>
*{{flagicon|TUR}} [[Osmangazi]], Turkey (2010)<ref>{{cite web |title=Kardeş Şehirlerimiz |url=http://www.osmangazi.bel.tr/tr/osmangazi/kardes-sehirler |website=osmangazi.bel.tr |publisher=Osmangazi |language=tr |access-date=2020-09-16 |archive-date=27 February 2021 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210227235239/http://osmangazi.bel.tr/tr/osmangazi/kardes-sehirler |url-status=live }}</ref>

==Notable people==
{{See also|List of people from Aleppo|Rulers of Aleppo}}

==See also==
{{Portal|Asia}}
*''[[Pinus halepensis]]''
*''[[Tulipa aleppensis]]''
*[[The Aleppo room|Aleppo Room]]
*[[Jaysh Muhammad in Bilad al-Sham]]

==Notes==
{{notelist}}

==References==
{{Reflist}}

==Bibliography==
{{See also|Timeline of Aleppo#Bibliography|l1=Bibliography of the history of Aleppo}}
* {{cite book |title=The Great Seljuqs: A History |first=Osman Aziz |last=Basan |publisher=Taylor & Francis |year=2010 }}
*{{cite book |last1=Beihammer |first1=Alexander Daniel |title=Byzantium and the Emergence of Muslim Turkish Anatolia, ca. 1040-1130 |date=2017 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-138-22959-4}}
* {{EI2|title=Mirdās, Banū or Mirdāsids|last=Bianquis|first=Thierry|authorlink=Thierry Bianquis|volume=7|pages=115–123|url=https://doi.org/10.1163/1573-3912_islam_SIM_5220}}
*{{Cite book |last=Burns |first=Ross |title=Aleppo, A History |publisher=Routledge |year=2016 |isbn=9780415737210}}
*{{cite book |last1=Carré |first1=Olivier |last2=Michaud |first2=Gérard |year=1983 |isbn=9782070259847 |title=Les Frères musulmans: Egypte et Syrie (1928–1982) |place=Paris |publisher=Gallimard}}
*{{Cite book |last=Demurger |first=Alain |title=Jacques de Molay |language=fr |publisher=Editions Payot&Rivages |year=2007 |isbn=978-2-228-90235-9}}
*{{Cite book |last=Elliott |first=Simon |title=Old Testament Warriors: The Clash of Cultures in the Ancient Near East |publisher=Casemate Publishers |year=2020 |isbn=978-1612009544}}
*{{cite book |last=Runciman |first=Steven |author-link=Steven Runciman |year=1952 |title=A History of the Crusades, Volume II: The Kingdom of Jerusalem and the Frankish East, 1100-1187 |location=Cambridge, United Kingdom |publisher=Cambridge University Press |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=D_POQwAACAAJ}} (1990 reprint paperback {{ISBN|978-0140137040}})
*{{Cite book |last=Runciman |first=Steven |title=A History of the Crusades: Volume 3, The Kingdom of Acre and the Later Crusades |publisher=Cambridge University Press |year=1987 |isbn=9780521347723}}
*{{Cite book |last=Seale |first=Patrick |year=1989 |title=Asad of Syria: the struggle for the Middle East |publisher=University of California Press |isbn=0-520-06667-7 |edition=1st |location=Berkeley |oclc=19130614}}
*{{cite thesis |type=PhD |last=Zakkar |first=Suheil |date=1969 |title=The Emirate of Aleppo 392/1002–487/1094 |publisher=University of London |url=https://eprints.soas.ac.uk/29516/1/10731672.pdf |location=London}}

==External links==
{{Wikivoyage|Aleppo}}
{{Wiktionary|Aleppo}}
{{Commons category}}
*[http://www.aleppo.gov.sy/en/home Aleppo Governorate]
*[http://www.esyria.sy/ealeppo/ Aleppo news]
*[http://www.aleppo.us/ Aleppo history and culture] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20210128013456/http://www.aleppo.us/ |date=28 January 2021 }}
*[https://acor.digitalrelab.com/index.php?s=filter=place_name:Aleppo%20(Syria) Photos of Aleppo] at the [[American Center of Research]]

{{Aleppo landmarks}}
{{Aleppo Governorate}}
{{Cities of Syria}}
{{World Heritage Sites in Syria}}
{{Neo-Hittite states}}

{{Authority control}}

[[Category:Aleppo| ]]
[[Category:Amorite cities]]
[[Category:Populated places along the Silk Road]]
[[Category:Populated places in Mount Simeon District]]
[[Category:Populated places established in the 5th millennium BC]]
[[Category:Cities in Syria]]
[[Category:Levant]]