History

A-Fih in History

FIH has been always populated.

- First and Intermediate Stone Age: (report of the Japanese Expedition).

- Phoenician Age: of its monuments FIH stone from the 6th – 5th century B.C.

- Greek Roman Age: of its monuments cemeteries engraved in stone.

- Byzantine Age: mortars and mills for wine and oil.

- Arabic conquest: Cellars and tunnels under the houses of the Old Quarter.

Yared Bin Fares the Crusader and his brother Munzir lived in it during 818 A.D., and their clan fought the Crusaders (Najib the Crusader).

	Ottoman Age: the adult men in FIH were 33 (according to the 1519 census) and 52 in the 1571 census (Dr. Issam Khalifé).
	In the Seventeenth Century (1602), its chiefs participated in the reconstruction of the Balamand Monastery and raised money for it as it is mentioned in the monastery documents.
	Governorate Era: FIH was a part of the Middle Koura, and witnessed during the end of the 19^th century 10 large immigrations to both Americas.

B- The Name "Fih"

Aramic (Syriac) root.

There are many opinions about its meaning:

	The place where the sheep bleat.
	The abundance and exuberance.
	The beautiful and charming.
	Of wind and breeze.

And all these attributes apply on the natural site of FIH.

C- Fih the High Hill

One people got used, since the Phoenician age and till now, to choose the best places and the most overlooking and high ones to build the altars and the temples dedicated to the rituals and the big religious celebrations.

They had always preferred the high hills covered with green trees so that they become closer to the heaven. In fact, the Old Testament mentioned this as follows:

They also build monuments and poles on every high hill and under every green tree.

Every coastal town had a sacred place on a high hill, dedicated to build an altar for its gods. Thus was Beit-Mery (Deir El-Kal’a – Ba’l Markad) to Beirut, and Afqa (Ashtarout and Adonis temple) to Jbeil…

We think that FIH, which is the highest hill in El-Koura overlooking the coast, was one of the most important high and sacred hills to the region, especially the historical coastal cities of the North, such as Tripoli and Anfeh. This tradition is still adopted till now because FIH was and still the destination of the region during the celebration of St. Simon Day, its patron saint. In fact, the citizens of many towns come to FIH and celebrate the feast for many days under its green oaks. This is proved by the archeological stone of FIH and its surrounding of cemeteries and forests.

FIH: the Antiquities

FIH Stone

It was discovered when the work began in the foundations of the Lady Church. It is the basement of a limestone statue, with a cubic form (55 cm for the side). Its top surface shows a picture of two bulls butting one another in front of the sacred tree (a cedar?) with a religious pattern among the corners engraved in the form of winged bulls. The scene represents one of the gods sitting on a throne of winged and bearded lions (Abi El-Hawl), wearing a folded dress. We see above his head the sacred snake and a disk between a cow’s horns. In front of the throne, there is a man wearing long Phoenician dress who stands to get the benediction. In the top middle, we see a disk inside a crescent.

This stone is kept in Constantinople Museum as FIH stone under the number 1594/99.

The Cemeteries Dug in Stone

They consist of a room dug in stone under the ground level. You can get down to it by the means of a stairs leading to a narrow door. This door takes you to a small lobby surrounded by dug sarcophaguses topped with vaults emanating from stone (2 or 3) going back to the Greek Roman period (First centuries B.C.).

Valley Hole Cave

It was discovered by the Tokyo University Expedition (1970) who did archeological excavations that unveiled the presence of six layers containing remains and ruins going back to the first and Middle Ages, including polished arrows, sculpture tools, scrapers and the remains of animals bones (bears and cows). It seems that the citizens hunted big bears with small arrows.

This cave was registered in the general inventory of ancient buildings by virtue of decision N^o 3 dated 14/1/1972.

Basins and Mills Stones

Wine and Oil are an important part of the tradition in FIH El-Koura. That’s why we find basins and mill stones in the Old Quarter that witnessed this alive and permanent tradition in FIH and among its citizens since the Byzantine Age till now.

FIH in the document of Balamand Monastery (7117 Adam, i.e. 1602 A.D.). This document mentioned the reconstruction of Balamand Monastery and the participation of FIH chiefs in it (Hajj Farhat and Hajj Boutros). It stated also that the monastery had around 200 olives trees in FIH village.

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