Tokyo
Japan |
Tokyo is the capital of Japan located on the eastern
coast of Honshu Island at the head of Tokyo Bay. The
city of Tokyo is the administrative, financial,
educational, cultural and industrial center of Japan,
surrounded by numerous suburban manufacturing complexes. |
Seoul
The Republic of Korea |
Seoul is the capital of the Republic of Korea (South
Korea), located in NW part of the contry, on the Han
River. The political, commercial, industrial, and
cultural center of the nation, Seoul is by far the most
important city in the country. |
Pyongyang
Democratic People's Republic of Korea |
Pyongyang is the capital of North Korea, in SW of the
country, on a high bluff looking down the Taedong River.
It is considered as the oldest city on the Korean
Peninsula. During the Korean War, Pyongyang fell to the
North Koreans. After having been ravaged in the war, the
city was rebuilt according to an organized city
planning. |
Ulan
Bator/ Ulaanbaatar
Mongolia
|
Ulan Bator (Ulaan Baatar) is the capital city of
Mongolia, situated in the north central part of the
country, on the Tuul River. It is situated at the foot
of the Bogdo Khan Uul, It is the political, cultural,
economic, and transportation center of the country.
|
Beijing
People's Republic of China
|
Beijing is the capital of the People's Republic of
China. The second largest city in China (after
Shanghai), Beijing is the political, cultural, and
educational center of the country. At the center of the
city, Tianmen square is located surrounded by Great Hall
of the People to the west and Museum of the Revolution
to the east. |
Taipei
Taiwan
|
Taipei is the capital of Taiwan located in the northern
part of Taiwan Island. Taiwan's largest city, it is the
administrative, cultural, and industrial center of the
island. The Jiang Jie-shi Memorial Park is located in
the center of the city. |
Manila
Republic of the Philippines |
Manila is the capital of Republic of the Philippines, SW
Luzon, on Manila Bay. Manila is the center of the
country's largest metropolitan area, with its chief
port, and the center of all the governmental,
commercial, industrial, and cultural activities.
|
Hanoi
Socialist Republic of Vietnam |
Hanoi is the capital of Vietnam, on the right bank of
the Red River. Hanoi became (7th cent.) the seat of the
Chinese rulers of Vietnam. Hanoi was occupied briefly by
French in 1873 and it became the capital of French
Indochina after 1887. |
Vientiane
Lao People's Democratic Republic |
Vientiane is the administrative capital and the largest
city of Laos, in the north central part of the country
on the Mekong River. Vientiane possesses diverse light
industries and is a trading center of forest products,
textiles, and hides. |
Phnom Penh
Kingdom of Cambodia |
Phnom Penh is the capital of Cambodia, in SW part of the
contry, at the confluence of the Mekong and Tonle Sap
rivers. Phnom Penh was founded in the 14th cent. and
became Khmer capital after the abandonment of Angkor. It
became the capital of Cambodia in 1867. The cultural and
commercial center as well as political capital of
Cambodia. |
Bangkok
Kingdom of Thailand
|
Bangkok is the capital of Thailand, in SW part of the
country, on the east bank of the Chao Phraya River, near
the Gulf of Thailand. Thailand's largest city and one of
the leading cities of Southeast Asia. Bangkok is home to
the regional headquarters of the UN Economic and Social
Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), as well as
many other international businesses and organizations.
|
Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia |
Kuala Lumpur is the capital of Malaysia, located in the
southern part of Malay Peninsula, at the confluence of
the Klang and Gombak rivers. Malaysia's chief inland
city, Kuala Lumpur is the country's commercial and
transportation hub. |
Singapore
Republic of Singapore
|
Singapore , officially called Republic of Singapore,
consists of the mainland of Singapore and about 50 small
adjacent islands at the southern tip of the Malay
Peninsula, SE Asia. Its Capital, Singapore city is the
largest city and historically played an important role
as a key junction of trade between Pacific Ocean and
Indian Ocean. |
Jakarta
Republic of Indonesia |
Jakarta is the capital and largest city of Indonesia
located in NW Java island, at the mouth of the canalized
Ciliwung River, on Jakarta Bay. It is the country's
administrative, commercial, industrial, and
transportation center. |
Yangon
Union of Myanmar
|
Yangon, formerly Rangoon, is the capital of Myanmar and
of Yangon div., located in the south central of Myanmar,
on the Yangon River. The name of Yangon, meaning "the
end of war" was given in 1755, ever since the city has
been developed as a port city, the center of commercial
activities. Central part of the city was constructed
according to the city planning in 1952, when beautiful
grid street was developed. |
Dhaka
People's Republic of Bangladesh |
Dhaka is the capital of Bangladesh, located in the high
populated delta prone to floods on a channel of the
Dhaleswari River, in the heart of the world's largest
jute-growing region, and the industrial, commercial, and
administrative center of Bangladesh. The city achieved
glory as the 17th-century Mughal capital of Bengal and
became the capital of Pakistan in 1971. |
Katmandu
Kingdom of Nepal
|
Katmandu is the capital of Nepal, central Nepal in a
fertile valley of the E Himalayas. It is the
administrative, business, and commercial center of
Nepal. Great many western tourists visit Katmandu, many
of them mountain climbers. Tourism and trade with India
led to a rapid increase in Katmandu's population and to
the expansion of paved streets and sewage systems. |
New Delhi
India |
Delhi is
located in the middle of Delhi plain, where Yamuna River
crosses. New Delhi, the capital of India, and Delhi (or
Old Delhi) are the chief urban centers. Government
buildings are concentrated in New Delhi, which has
organized streets with greens and parks. |
Islamabad
Islamic
Republic of Pakistan
|
Islamabad is the capital of Pakistan, in NE part of the
country, just NE of Rawalpindi, the former interim
capital. Construction of Islamabad [city of Islam] as
the capital to replace Karachi began in 1960.
|
Kabul
Islamic State of Afganistan |
Kabul is the capital of Afghanistan and its largest city
and economic and cultural center, in the east part of
the country, on the Kabul River. It is strategically
located in a high narrow valley, between mountain ranges
that commands the main approaches to the Khyber Pass. A
tunnel under the Hindu Kush mountains links Kabul to the
Tajikistan border. |
Tashkent
Republic of Uzbekistan |
Tashkent is the capital of Tashkent region and of
Uzbekistan, in the foothills of the Tian Shan mts. The
largest and one of the oldest cities of Central Asia, it
is the economic heart of the region. |
Tehran
Islamic Republic of Iran
|
Tehran is the capital of Iran, in north part of the
country, near Mt. Damavand. It is Iran's largest city
and its administrative, commercial, and industrial
center. Meherabad international airport is located in
the center of the image, and Azadi Tower (Freedom Tower)
, which was built for the celebrations of the 2500th
anniversary of the monarchy, is located at the junction
of the roads from the airport, and acts as a gateway to
the capital. |
Baghdad
Republic of Iraq |
Baghdad is the capital of Iraq, located in the central
Iraq, on both banks of the Tigris River. The city was
founded (762) on the west bank of the Tigris by the
Abbasid caliph Mansur, who made it his capital. The
period of its utmost glory is reflected in the Thousand
and One Nights, in which many of the tales are set in
Baghdad. Now, the city's principal economic activity is
oil industry, as a result, Baghdad experienced rapid
economic and population growth. |
Riyadh |
Mecca |
Madinah
Kingdom of Saudi Arabia |
Riyadh is the capital and the largest city of Saudi
Arabia, located in the Nejd district, central part of
Saudi Arabia. Situated in an oasis, Riyadh is the
nation's educational, administrative, financial, and
transportation center. Oil refining is the main
industry. |
Jerusalem
State of Israel |
Jerusalem is the capital of Israel. It is situated on a
ridge of 760 m high that lies west of the Dead Sea and
the Jordan River. Jerusalem is the center of
administrative, religious, educational, cultural, and
market activities. Tourism and construction are the
city's major industries. |
Cairo
|
Pyramids
Arab Republic of Egypt |
Cairo is the capital of Egypt in NE part of the country.
The city includes two islands in the Nile, Zamalik (Gezira)
and Roda (Rawdah), which are linked to the mainland by
bridges. Cairo is the largest city in the Middle East
and in Africa. It is Egypt's administrative center and,
along with Alexandria, the heart of its economic
activities. |
Tunis
Republic of Tunisia |
Tunis is the capital of Tunisia, in NE part of the
county, on the Lake of Tunis. Access to the Gulf of
Tunis (an arm of the Mediterranean) is by a canal
terminating at a subsidiary port, Halq al Wadi (La
Goulette). Tunis has notable mosques, the Univ. of
Tunis, and a national museum. The ruins of Carthage are
located nearby, to the northeast in the right of the
image. |
Casablanca
Kingdom of Morocco |
Casablanca is the largest city and principal port of
Morocco, located in the western parth of Morocco, on the
Atlantic Ocean. It accounts for more than half of
Morocco's industrial production. During World War II,
Casablanca was the scene of one of the three major
Allied landings in North Africa (Nov., 1942) and the
conference between Franklin Delano Roosevelt and Winston
Churchill was held (Nov., 1943). |
Johannesburg
Republic of South Africa
|
Johannesburg is the largest city in South Africa, the
center of its important gold-mining industry, its
manufacturing and commercial center, and the hub of its
transportation network. Gold mining is the sprawling
city's chief industry. Manufactures include cut
diamonds, industrial chemicals, plastics, cement,
electrical, electronic, and mining equipment, paper and
paper products, glass, food products, and beer.
|
Istanbul
Republic of Turkey |
Istanbul is the largest city in Turkey on both sides of
the Bosporus at its entrance into the Sea of Marmara.
Its name was officially changed from Constantinople to
Istanbul in 1930; before A.D. 330 it was known as
Byzantium. In cities adjacent to Europe, Overseas
Establishments, hotels, restaurants and shops are
concentrated, while old cities adjacent to Asia has
landmark constructions represented by Blue Mosque,
Ayasofya, Topkapi Sarayi and Kapali Carsi, commemorating
Greek, Rome and Ottman Enpire. |
Athens
Greece |
Athens is the capital of Greece, eastern central Greece,
on the plain of Attica, between the Kifisos and Ilissus
rivers, near the Saronic Gulf. Mt. Aigaleos, Mt. Parnis
, Mt. Pendelikon , and Mt. Hymettus are lined in a
semicircle with the city at its center. The capital of
Attica prefecture, Athens is the largest city in Greece
and it is administrative, economic, and cultural center.
In the city there are many landmarks, major one is the
acropolis which dominates the city and on which stand
the remains of the Parthenon. |
Kiev
Ukraine
|
Kiev is the capital of Ukraine with a port on the
Dnieper River. The largest city of Ukraine, Kiev is the
industrial, commercial, and cultural center. Known to
Russians as the "mother of cities,Ĺh Kiev is one of the
oldest towns in the north Europe. Lying amid hills along
the Dnieper and filled with gardens and parks, Kiev is
one of Europe's most beautiful cities, as well as a
treasury of medieval art and architecture. |
Moscow
Russian Federation
|
Moscow is the capital of Russia and the administrative
center of the Central district, in the western central
European Russia, on the Moskva River near its junction
with the Moscow Canal. In the city, roads spread in
concentric circles with Kremlin at the center, dividing
the city into several divisions. The outermost division
is allocated as a residental area. A loop road
surrounding the area is the boundary of the city.
|
St. Petersburg
Russian Federation
|
Sankt Petersburg, the second largest city and former
capital in Russia, formerly named Leningrad at the head
of the Gulf of Finland on both banks of the Neva River
and on the islands of its delta. The city's main
thoroughfare is the celebrated Nevsky Prospekt. On it
are the high-spired admiralty building; the Winter
Palace; the Hermitage museum; the huge domed Cathedral
of St. Isaac ; and the equestrian statue of Peter the
Great. |
Rome
Republic of Italy
|
Rome is the capital of Italy and see of the pope, whose
residence, Vatican City , is a sovereign state within
the city of Rome. Rome is also the capital of Latium, a
region in central part of Italy, and of Rome prov. It
lies on both banks of the Tiber and its affluent, the
Aniene, in the Campagna di Roma, between the Apennine
Mts. and the Tyrrhenian Sea. Called the Eternal City, it
is one of the world's richest cities in history and art
as well as one of its cultural, religious, and
intellectual centers. |
Paris
French Republic
|
Paris is the capital of France on the Seine River. It is
the commercial and industrial focus of France and a
cultural and intellectual center in the world. Paris is
divided into roughly equal sections by the Seine. On the
right (northern) bank are the Bois de Boulogne, Arc de
Triomphe, Place de la Concorde, Opera and Louvre. The
left bank, with the Sorbonne, the French Academy,is the
governmental and the intellectual section. |
Berlin
Federal Republic of Germany
|
Berlin is the capital of Germany, coextensive with
Berlin state , NE Germany, on the Spree and Havel
rivers. Formerly divided into East Berlin and West
Berlin , the city was reunified along with East and West
Germany on Oct. 3, 1990. The large Tiergarten park in
central Berlin contains the reconstructed Reichstag
building with its glass dome and the Berlin zoo.
Landmark of the city includes Charlottenburg castle,
Kaiser Wilhelm Memorial church, Reichstag and
Philharmonic Hall. |
Wien
Republic of Austria |
Wien (Vienna) is the capital and largest city of Austria
and administrative seat of Lower Austria, in NE part of
the country, on the Danube River. The city plays an
important role as a major riverfront town in Europe. The
former residence of the Holy Roman emperors and, after
1806, of the emperors of Austria, Wien is one of the
great historic cities of the world and a melting pot of
the Germanic, Slav, Italian, and Hungarian peoples and
cultures. |
London
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland |
London is the capital of Great Britain, in SE part of
England, on both sides of the Thames River. Greater
London consists of the "City of London", or "City" and
32 boroughs. The City is the commercial center; it is
also referred to as the "Square Mile" because of its
a real feature. The 13 inner boroughs that surround the
City are Westminster, Camden, Islington, Hackney, Tower
Hamlets, Greenwich, Lewisham, Southwark, Lambeth,
Wandsworth, Hammersmith and Fulham, Kensington and
Chelsea. |
Madrid |
Barcelona
Spain |
Madrid is the capital of Spain located in the central
part of the country, and the center of its own
autonomous region, on the Manzanares River. Its
landmarks include the huge royal palace, opera house,
the Buen Retiro park and three superb art museums, the
Prado, which houses one of the finest art collections in
the world; the Queen Sofia Museum of modern art; and the
Thyssen-Bornemisza Museum; housed in the renovated
Villahermosa Palace. |
Lisbon
Portuguese Republic |
Lisbon is the capital of Portugal on the Tejo River
where it broadens to enter the Atlantic Ocean. Lisbon is
Portugal's largest city and its cultural,
administrative, commercial, and industrial hub. Delta at
the mouth of Tejo river provided the optimum location as
a harbor in Europe for handling large trades, which led
to develop into a major cruise port. In 1966 , one of
the world's longest suspension bridges was completed
across the Tejo. |
Vancouver |
Toronto
Canada
|
Vancouver is a city in SW British Columbia, Canada, on
Burrard Inlet of the Strait of Georgia, opposite
Vancouver Island and just north of the Wash. border. It
is the largest city on Canada's Pacific coast, the
center of the third largest metropolitan area in Canada,
and the nation's chief Pacific port, with an excellent
year-round harbor. At Point Grey in metropolitan
Vancouver is the Univ. of British Columbia in the lower
left of image , and Stanley Park, the largest among the
city's parks, is in the top of peninsula in the center
of ithe mage. |
New York
United States of America |
New York city is the largest city in the United States
and one of the largest in the world, on New York Bay at
the mouth of the Hudson River. It consists five
boroughs, Queens, Brooklyn, State Island, Bronx and
Manhattan. Except for Bronx, all the other boroughs are
located on island. Central park, which spreads in the
central part of Long Island, is said to be the first
public buildings to have applied landscape architecture
in the U.S. history. |
Washington D.C.
United States of America |
Washington, D.C. is the capital of the United States ,
coextensive with the District of Columbia, on the
Potomac River. The city is the center of a metropolitan
area extending into Maryland and Virginia. Washington is
the legislative, administrative, and judicial center of
the United States but has little industry; its business
is mainly involved in the government, and hundreds of
thousands of people are employed in the metropolitan
area. |
San Francisco
United States of America |
San Francisco is a city in western California, on the
tip of a peninsula between the Pacific Ocean and San
Francisco Bay, which are connected by the strait known
as the Golden Gate. The city is the heart of the San
Francisco Bay region and with along Oakland and San
Jose, the city comprises the fourth largest metropolitan
area in the United States. |
Los Angels
South California |
Los Angeles is a city in South California. It has the
second largest population in US cities and it is one of
the largest cities as the hub of industries,
commercials, transportations, finances and international
trades. Two mountain ranges, the Santa Monica and
Verdugo, cut across the center of the city. The east end
of the Santa Monica Mountains is seen in the upper left
of the image. |
Mexico City
United Mexican States
|
Mexico City is the capital and largest city of Mexico
located in the center of the country. Mexico City forms
the core of the Federal District and is the commercial,
industrial, financial, political, and cultural center of
the nation. Population has increased rapidly in a city
that had already spread out into many residential
sections called colonies. |
Brasilia
Federative Republic of Brazil
|
Brasilia is the capital city and federal district of
Brazil located in the southwest of Goias state.
Inaugurated in 1960, it is situated in the highlands of
central Brazil, and its modern public buildings stand
out in sparsely settled countryside. The city was laid
out (1957) in the shape of an airplane by the Brazilian
architect Lucio Costa. Government services, small-scaled
industry, food services, and construction are important
factors for the country's economy. |
Rio de Janeiro
Federative Republic of Brazil
|
Rio de Janeiro is the capital of Rio de Janeiro state,
in SE Brazil, on Guanabara Bay of the Atlantic Ocean.
The second largest city and former capital of Brazil, it
is the cultural center of the country as well as
financial, commercial, communication, and transportation
hub. Rio has one of the world's most beautiful natural
harbors. It is surrounded by low mountain ranges, which
extend to the waterside, across the city. |
Buenos Aires
Argentine Republic |
Buenos Aires is the capital of Argentina located in the
east central part of Argentina, on the Rio de la Plata.
One of the largest cities in Latin America, Buenos Aires
is Argentina's chief port and financial, industrial,
commercial, and social center. Area around a port in the
right part of the image is the place where the people
first settled. Since then, the city has expanded in
semicircle form. |
Santiago
Republic of Chile
|
Santiago is the capital of Chile and of Metropolitan de
Santiago region, on the Mapocho River. It is the
political, commercial, and financial heart of the
nation. The city was founded and named Santiago de Nueva
Estremadura on Feb. 12, 1541, by Pedro de Valdivia. Laid
out according to Valdivia's plan in a gridiron pattern
between the hill of Santa Lucia and the Mapocho, a
mountain torrent, Santiago has spread over a broad
valley plain and it is one of the largest cities in
South America. |
Canberra |
Sydney
Commonwealth of Australia
|
Canberra is
the capital of Australia, in the Australian Capital
Territory, located in SE Australia. The city was first
settled in 1824, and chosen as the capital in 1908. In
1913, Canberra officially became the second capital of
the commonwealth (succeeding Melbourne); however,
although the Parliament first met there in 1927, the
transfer of federal functions was not completed until
after World War II and the Parliament House, on Capitol
Hill, was not opened until 1988. |
Abu Dhabi
United Arab Emirates
|
The city is
laid out on a mostly regular grid with a
southeast-to-northwest orientation. The Corniche, a 7-km
(4-mi) seafront boulevard, is landscaped with
artificially watered flowers and greenery. Numerous
parks and planted medians also add to the beautification
of what was once a dusty, desert landscape. Abu Dhabi is
the site of the National Library (founded 1981),
National Archives (1985), and the Center for
Documentation and Research (1968), which maintain
collections of materials relating to the nation’s
history. A large sports complex and a cultural center
are also located in the city. |
Dubai
United Arab Emirates
|
Dubai, also
Dubayy, city on the northeastern coast of the United
Arab Emirates (UAE), and the capital of the emirate of
Dubai. The city is divided in half by Dubai Creek, which
is actually an inlet of the Persian Gulf. The eastern
side of the creek, the traditional city center, is
called Deira (or Dayrah), and the western side is
referred to simply as Dubai. Dubai is the chief port and
commercial center of the UAE, and the principal
shipping, trading, and communications hub of the Persian
Gulf region. Port Rashid, a large artificial port, lies
within Dubai on the western side of the creek, and Jebel
Ali, the largest artificial port in the world, is
located 37 km (23 mi) down the coast to the southwest.
|
Doha
Qatar |
Doha, also
Ad Dawhah, eastern Qatar, capital and largest city of
the country, on the Persian Gulf. It has a large,
artificial deepwater port, which was opened in 1969 and
serves as a major transshipment center for cargo of the
Persian Gulf nations. Shrimping and shrimp processing
are important industries. The University of Qatar (1973)
and the National Museum (1975) are here. The marketplace
and the Government House (1969) are major landmarks.
More than half the population of Qatar resides in Doha. |
Muscat
Oman |
Masqaţ or
Muscat, city and capital of Oman, located on the
northeastern coast of the country on the Gulf of Oman
(an arm of the Arabian Sea, itself part of the Indian
Ocean). Flanked by steep cliffs and hills, the city lies
almost exactly on the Tropic of Cancer. Masqaţ is the
center of an expanding metropolitan area encompassing
several neighboring cities. Once the country’s leading
port, Masqaţ’s harbor has been surpassed by the nearby
modern port facilities at Maţraḩ and Mina Qaboos. Also
close to Masqaţ are Mina al-Fahl, a loading terminal for
oil supertankers and, farther west, an international
airport. Modern highways link Masqaţ with other Omani
cities and with the United Arab Emirates. |
Kuwait City
Kuwait |
Kuwait
(city), city, capital of Kuwait and a port on Kuwait Bay
(an arm of the Persian Gulf). Also called Al Kuwait.
Wealth from oil fields in the coastal desert and in the
gulf has been used to make the city one of the most
modern in the Middle East. An important oil port, Kuwait
produces petrochemicals and other petroleum products and
is a trade and financial center. Shrimp and pearls are
obtained from the Persian Gulf. The city is the site of
Kuwait University (1962); vocational, technical, and
teachers colleges; and a state museum. Founded in the
early 18th century, Kuwait was once considered a
terminus for a projected Berlin-Baghdād railway. It
began to expand after World War II. In the early 1990s,
however, it faced the difficulties of recovering from
the severe damage inflicted during the Iraqi occupation
of Kuwait and the Persian Gulf War. The name is also
spelled Al Kuwayt, Kuweit, or Koweit. Population (1995)
28,259. |
Bandar Seri Begawan
Brunei |
Bandar Seri
Begawan, formerly Brunei Town, capital city of Brunei.
The city is located in the northern part of the country
on the Brunei River, near its mouth on Brunei Bay (an
inlet of the South China Sea). A large port, open to
oceangoing vessels, the city is an agricultural market
as well as a commercial center. Besides government
offices, the city is the seat of the University of
Brunei Darussalam (1985). A royal palace and one of the
largest mosques in Asia are notable structures in the
city. Population (1995 estimate) 50,000. |
Manama
Bahrain |
Manama, also
Al Manamah, city in northeastern Bahrain, capital of the
country, on the northeastern shore of Bahrain Island, in
the Persian Gulf, near Dhahran, Saudi Arabia. The port
developed and the city began to be modernized in the
1950s and 1960s, as a result of proceeds from the sale
of petroleum. Industries include oil refining, dhow (an
Arab boat with triangular sail) building, fishing, and
pearling; pearling was once the city's chief economic
activity. The town is connected by a causeway with
adjoining Al Muḩarraq, site of an international airport.
In 1958 Manama was declared a free-transit port. The
Arabian Gulf University (1980) and the University of
Bahrain (1986) are here. Population (2001 estimate)
135,000. |
Sana
Yemen |
Sana‘a or
Sanaa, city and political capital of Yemen, located in
Sana‘a Province, on a plateau northeast of the port of
Al Hudaydah. Sana‘a is the commercial center of a
fruit-growing region. It is divided into two sections
with the junction formed by the palace of the former
imams, or rulers, of Yemen. The eastern section, known
as the old city, has several mosques and a market where
jewelry, silver and leather goods, silks, and carpets
are made and sold. The western section is largely
residential. Sana‘a University (1970) is in the city.
Sana‘a first became an important center in the 4th
century ad, in the kingdom of an ancient Arabian people,
the Himyarites. The city was included in the Muslim
caliphate in 632, and it came under the control of the
Ottoman Empire in the 1870s. Formerly the capital of the
Yemen Arab Republic (YAR), Sana‘a became the political
capital of the Republic of Yemen when the YAR merged
with the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen in 1990;
Aden was made the economic capital. Population (2000
estimate) 1,303,000. |
Damascus
Syria |
Damascus or
Dimashq, capital and chief city of Syria, in
southwestern Syria, on the Baradá River, near the
Anti-Lebanon Mountains in the southwestern part of the
country. The greater part of Damascus, including the
rectangular ancient city, is on the south bank of the
Baradá. Modern suburbs extend from the north bank.
Damascus has long been an important commercial center.
In former times it was famous for dried fruit, wine,
wool, linens, and silks. Damask, a type of patterned
fabric, was named for the silk fabrics woven in
Damascus. The city was notable also for the manufacture
and transshipment of damascened steel sword blades,
which were exceptionally hard and resilient. Today the
city is the trading center for figs, almonds, and other
fruit produced in the surrounding region. Industries in
Damascus include handicrafts, such as the weaving of
silk cloth and the making of leather goods, filigreed
gold and silver objects, and inlaid wooden, copper, and
brass articles. Among the city's other manufactures are
processed food, clothing, and printed material. |