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=> The CHALDEAN town of Al-Qosh...

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Flashback - Alqosh, A Quick Glance

[ Chaldeans Discussion Forum ]

Written by Gawrieh on 01 Jan 2006 20:21:02:

Belwo are excerpts from the writings of Mr. Fadhel Pola, himself a son of El Qosh:

El Qush, also written as Alqosh, is an ancient Assyrian settlement that has adorned Bahidhra Mountain for more than twenty-five centuries. It is situated over Nineveh’s northern plateau, known for its fertile soil, and extends southward toward other Assyrian settlements such as Tel-Isquf, Baquofa, Batnaya and Tel-Keppe, until it reaches great Nineveh’s walls.

El Qush traces its history back to the Assyrian Empire, and perhaps, even further back into history. Indeed, the earliest mention of El Qush appears in ca 750 BC, as evidenced by the relief inside Senharib’s palace discovered in Mosul/Nineveh. An inscription on this relief reads, “This rock was brought from El Qush.” A number of sites within El Qush still carry Assyrian names. For example, Seenna (Moon) Quarter and Bee Seennat, a plain south of the town. Within a short distance is located Shayro Meliktha, the site of an Assyrian temple where appears a relief of Senharib taking aim with his bow.
El Qush’s stone dwellings lie along the mountain slope up to the tip of the plateau. They share a similarity with other Christian villages within the Nineveh plateau. El Qush is divided into four quarters: Seenna, Qasha, Oodou, and Khateetha. Along the slopes and valleys of Ba-hidhra are to be found over seventeen named sites: caves, springs, vineyards and orchards. Some names are: Goobba Ismouqa (red cave), Goobba Imkawar (thunderous cave), Kerma d-raysha (Peak’s vineyard), Gilya d-neba d-Eyoo (Devil’s valley), and Qilya d-Qasha Hanna (Priest Hanna’s well).

Conflicting opinions appear pertaining to the name El Qush. Its meaning has nothing to do with the Turkish word for bird (qush) since the Turks did not appear in Mesopotamia or Anatolia until long after the coming of Islam. The interpretation that seems most logical comes from Marotha, the wise man of El Qush, who says the name derives from the Assyrian god Seen when addressed as “the greatest god.” Marotha relates the story passed down from the ancients that people living in Mosul would visit El Qush during the festival of Akitho, the Assyro-Babylonian New Year. They would honor the god in a procession all the way back to Nineveh traveling along the old Mosul-El Qush road. Forty days later, the Ninevites would return the statue of the god to its place in El Qush.

El Qush people have inbred mountain alertness: they are sharp and ready to confront their attackers with force, a habit that has ensured their successful resistance to the plentiful enemies they have battled in the past. The known history dates to the 13th century Mongol period. Timer-lane’s forces led three campaigns to this area. Kurdish attacks are the most prolific, dating from the 16th century. In 1842, even Rabban Hurmizd Monastery was robbed and its abbot, Hanna Jesra, and the monks were imprisoned. In 1876 the men of El Qush struck back at the head of the Kurdish Sendiya Tribe and killed him. Successive Kurdish attacks and El Qush’s successful defense of their homes and lands have earned them a reputation as strong and steadfast.
Prior to becoming a part of the Catholic Church, the people of El Qush belonged to the Church of the East. No less than eleven Patriarchs served the earlier church when it was hereditary in the Aboona family. They are buried in Rabban Hermizd. Since the 16th century, however, El Qush has produced five sons who have served as Patriarch of the Catholic Church. The last was Mar Paulus Shekho (1958-1989).
El Qush, like, there has been a long history of educational achievement represented by Mar Mikha Al-Towhidhri School where the teaching of Aramaic was stressed since the beginning of the 5th century. Among the many who have left their literary and artistic heritage are: Priest Attaya Al-Meqdisi (ca. 1517), a writer and calligrapher, Priest Hermizd Al-El Qushi, late 16th early 17th century poet, and Priest Israel Al-El Qush (1541-1611), a poet who founded a school of writers and calligraphers. Other important persons from the more modern history of El Qush are Yousif Rayes and Toma Thomas, a very important leader in the Opposition to the Ba’athist party. It’s important to remember that in 1933 people of El Qosh offered shelter to their brethrens who survived the Semele Massacre. The population of El Qush stands at around 5000, but the Diaspora from El Qush is in the thousands. People left for other cities in Iraq, and a huge number left the country altogether

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