Raqqa, Ancient city in northern Syria
Raqqa is a large city in Raqqa Governorate, northern Syria, sitting on the north bank of the Euphrates River. The urban fabric combines traditional Syrian housing with remains of fortifications that shape the appearance of the older districts.
The settlement was founded between 244 and 242 BC as Callinicum, a Hellenistic outpost controlling a river crossing. It became the capital of the Abbasid Caliphate from 796 to 809 under Harun al-Rashid, marking its peak in the Islamic world.
The settlement takes its name from a term meaning fortified town, reflecting its long role as a defended river crossing. Visitors today see traces of this military past in the layout of the old quarters, where narrow streets once helped control access to the water.
The Euphrates runs through the settlement and provides orientation for visitors exploring the older quarters on foot. Walking between historical sites can take time, so plan for sufficient breaks in shaded areas during warmer months.
Multiple defensive walls from different periods surround the settlement, including 8th-century fortifications that Caliph Al-Mansur ordered built against Byzantine advances. These layers show how military strategies evolved over more than a thousand years of continuous occupation.
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