No lines in the sand announce the Levant. It's borders
are loosely drawn. It never existed as a nation. It's people live in different
lands, speak different languages, have different faiths, fight for different
things.
The term is rarely used today. The media wrap
the lands of the Levant up in the catch-all term 'Middle East'. But I like the name. It's from the French
for rising - i.e. where the sun rises. Given that the term was first
used in the 15th century when the world's finest minds thought the earth was
flat, this makes some sort of sense.
The Levant stretches from Hatay, that finger of Turkey
that pokes into Syria, and travels south around the Mediterranean until it
reaches Jordan's border with Saudi Arabia and further west, the Suez Canal. It
covers Lebanon, most of Syria and Jordan, the Palestinian territories, Israel
and Egypt's Sinai desert. At least I include Sinai. Others may not. There
again, others may also include Cyprus. It really doesn't matter. All of the
lands are bound together by a common Levantine history. Unfortunately, it's
that common history that keeps most of them apart.
Charles Glass tackled the topic of a literary and
spiritual ramble through the Levant in his' Tribes With Flags' (1990). Unfortunately,
his kidnapping (and subsequent escape!) by Hezbollah cut his journey short. A
wonderful read nonetheless. His website is http://charlesglass.net/
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