According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Izz al-Din had a population of 2,620 in the 2004 census, making it the fifth-largest locality in the al-Rastan nahiyah ("subdistrict").[1] Its inhabitants are predominantly Sunni Muslims from Bedouin tribes, such as the Nu'aym (Na'im).[2] It is popularly believed that Izz al-Din was named after a patriarch of the Nu'aym who was buried in the village and whose maqam (mausoleum) there was a site of visitation.[3]
History
In 1838 Izz al-Din was classified as a khirba (ruined or deserted village') by English scholar Eli Smith.[4] However, by December of that year Izz al-Din was one of roughly 20 ruined villages to be repopulated during the rule of Muhammad Ali's Egypt. The village was founded largely as a result of the Egyptian administration's major initiative to expand agricultural production. Izz al-Din was settled by the Bedouin tribes of the Mawali, Nu'aym and Uqaydat. Although by the 1840s, when the Egyptians withdrew from the Levant, most of the newly founded villages were abandoned, Izz al-Din remained inhabited. Other remaining villages included Salamiyah, Taldara and Taqsis.[5]
