and other taxes, and from an increased knowledge of the secluded
parts of the country, the difficulty of determining the
population of Syria has of late been diminished, and a careful
comparison of the most accurate accounts,1 together with the
results of some personal observations, give the following as an
approximative estimate of the numbers of the people:—
The Turks, Kurds, Turcomans, Arabs, and the Muslims,
who in general are of the Sunni creed, appear
to be .
The Mitaulis
The Ismaïli or Assassins
The Syrians, Samaritans, &c
The Ansàries
The Druses .
The Maronites
The Armenians
The Hebrews
The Greek Catholics
The Schismatics
The moving population of merchants, pilgrims, &c
Or 29 souls per square mile.
about
Souls.
604.000
40.000
15.000
40.000
90.000
180.000
250,000
20.000
40.000
70.000
80.000
25,000
1,454,000
* Amongst those who have taken pains on this subject are the Rev. W.
Thompson of Beiriit, Col. Campbell, lately consul-general for Egypt and
Syria, Mr. Fareen, previously consul-general of the latter country, and Her
Majesty’s consuls, Messrs. Werry and Moore. In every estimate some considerable
sections of the people, such as Turkomans, Kurds, and Syrians,
have been left out; it is therefore probable that more extensive intercourse will
show that the estimate in the text is rather below than above the true amount.
CHAPTER XXII.
ARABIA.
Situation, Extent, &c.—Mountains of Arabia.—Persian and Arabian Gulfs.—
Winds, Commerce, &c.—Lakes and Rivers.-—Mirage.—General Surface :
Plateau, and Deserts of Arabia.-—-Temperature.—Rain.—Desert Winds.—
Loss of Caravans.—Animal and Vegetable Productions.—Manufactures.—
Imports and Exports.
Geographically, the preceding territory forms a portion o f
that which is about to be described, since by its south-eastern
prolongation, the plateau of Syria forms the peninsula of
Arabia, which ever has been one of the most interesting
countries in the world. The physical structure of this extensive
region seems to belong to Africa, rather than Asia;
whilst the almost uniform surface of its vast wilderness, like
a great sea, at once separates and connects both continents.
Arabia forms an irregular quadrangle, containing upwards
of 22 degrees of latitude, from Thapsacus to Bab-el-Mandeb, and
26 of longitude, from Akabah to Ras el Hadd; the former
being a distance of 1415, and the latter 1540 geographical
miles; or, according to the Arabs, it is a journey of 100 days
in a north-westerly direction, viz., from Aden to the borders
of Syria.1 Arabia is bounded on the west by the Red Sea, on
the . south and south-east by the Indian Ocean, on the east by
the Gulf of Persia, on the north by the Upper Euphrates, Syria,
&c.; and it covers an area of more than 1,100,000 square
geographical miles: thus it rather exceeds the magnitude of
India within the Ganges, and consequently it is the greatest
peninsula in the world. The ancients were well acquainted
1 Arabic MS. in the British Museum, p. 7502; translated by Dr. A.
Sprenger.