Al Dair
الدَيْر
Al Dair is located in Bahrain
Al Dair
Al Dair
Coordinates: 26°17′6″N 50°37′26.4″E / 26.28500°N 50.624000°E / 26.28500; 50.624000
CountryBahrain
IslandMuharraq Island

Al Dair (Arabic: الدَيْر) is a village in Bahrain on the northern coast of Muharraq Island. It lies north of the Bahrain International Airport, and north west of Samaheej village.

Before the discovery of oil in Bahrain, most of the inhabitants were involved in farming, especially date palms, and fishing.

Similarly to Deir ez-Zor in Syria, The name Ad-Dair is Aramaic for "the monastery," indicating the Christian past of Muharraq Island.[1]

Its inhabitants are mostly Shi’ite though there are a small number of Sunni Muslims who are present.

Name

Al-Dair comes from the word dair (Arabic: دير) which is defined in Arabic dictionaries as a Christian monastery.[2] The origin of the name of the village is thought to have originated from the presence of a dair in the village in the past, which alludes to its Christian origins.[3][4]

Education

The Ministry of Education operates government schools in Al-Dair, Al-Dair Primary Intermediate Girls School and Al-Dair Primary Boys School.

References

  1. ^ Bahrain through the ages: the history 1993 ʻAbd Allāh ibn Khālid Khalīfah, Michael Rice, Bahrain. Wizārat al-Iʻlām - "The islands were then under Persian influence and Mazdaism was prevalent; however, the Christian faith was also practised in churches and monasteries. Al Dair village in Muharraq island, for instance, was named after a monastery in the "
  2. ^ "تعريف و معنى الدير في معجم المعاني الجامع - معجم عربي عربي". Retrieved 2023-11-03.
  3. ^ هلال, علي (2015). الدير – سيرة ذاتية (in Arabic). Vol. 1 (1st ed.). p. 71.
  4. ^ السبع, وسام (2015-09-15). "حكاية الدَّير… الرواية المتأخرة". مدونة وسام السبع (in Arabic). Retrieved 2014-01-17. كتاب (الدَّير)، حصيلة سنين عشر من الجمع والتدوين والبحث عن المعلومات عن قرية تُعدّ – تاريخيًّا – ضاحية من ضواحي سماهيج وقطعة من التمدد الجغرافي الذي اتسع وتنامى على مر السنين، وتسمية (الدَّير) ذاتها تعود لوجود (دَيّر) قديم فيها يحيل إلى أثر مسيحي عميق الجذور ضارب العراقة في المنطقة، كما يوحي بالصلة العميقة بين الدَّير و(سماهيج) القرية الواقعة على الجنوب الشرقي منها، فسماهيج كانت قبل الإسلام وبعده بقليل إحدى أشهر معاقل المسيحية النسطورية في شرق الجزيرة العربية أو ما كانت تُعرف بالبحرين سابقاً.

26°17′06″N 50°37′26″E / 26.285°N 50.624°E / 26.285; 50.624

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