Tartus Governorate, also transliterated as Tartous Governorate, ( / ALA-LC: Muḥāfaẓat Ṭarṭūs) is one of the 14 governorates of Syria. It is situated in western Syria, bordering Latakia Governorate to the north, Homs and Hama Governorates to the east, Lebanon to the south, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. It is one of the few governorates in Syria that has an Alawite majority. Sources list the area as 1,890 km2 or 1,892 km2, with its capital being Tartus.

Archeological sites

Geography

Tartus comprises roughly half of Syria's Mediterranean coastline; offshore lie five small islands, the largest of which is Arwad. Inland the terrain is mountainous, comprising a section of the Syrian Coastal Mountain Range (Nusayriyah Mountains). The Nahr al-Kabir river forms the border with Lebanon to the south.

Settlements

Tartus is the regional capital; other major settlements include Al-Hamidiyah, Al Qadmus, Al-Sawda, Ayn ash Shams, Baniyas, Qusaybah and Safita.

Districts

The governorate is divided into five districts (manatiq). The districts are further divided into 27 sub-districts (nawahi):

Demographics

As per the 2004 Syrian census the population was 701,400. A 2011 UNOCHA estimate put the population at 797,000, though this has likely changed since the start of the war. The majority at 72% are Alawites, 7% Sunni Muslim, 8% Ismaili, and 13% Christian. There is a small Cretan Greek community concentrated in Al-Hamidiyah, the descendants of refugees who fled the Greco-Turkish War of 1897.

Gallery