Syria

[seer-ee-uh]

noun

1. Official Name Syrian Arab Republic. a republic in SW Asia at the E end of the Mediterranean. 71,227 sq. mi. (184,478 sq. km). Damascus.

2. a territory mandated to France in 1922, including the present republics of Syria and Lebanon (Latakia and Jebel ed Druz were incorporated into Syria 1942): the French mandatory powers were nominally terminated as of January 1, 1944.

3. an ancient country in W Asia, including the present Syria, Lebanon, Israel, and adjacent areas: a part of the Roman Empire 64 b.c.–a.d.

Syria

/ ˈsɪrɪə /

noun

1. a republic in W Asia, on the Mediterranean: ruled by the Ottoman Turks (1516–1918); made a French mandate in 1920; became independent in 1944; joined Egypt in the United Arab Republic (1958–61). Hafez al-Assad elected president in 1971 following a coup; after his death in 2000 Assad's son Bashar took over the presidency; his rule was challenged (from 2012) by an uprising that led to a civil war. Official language: Arabic. Religion: Muslim majority. Currency: Syrian pound. Capital: Damascus. Pop: 22 457 336 (2013 est). Area: 185 180 sq km (71 498 sq miles)

2. (formerly) the region between the Mediterranean, the Euphrates, the Taurus, and the Arabian Desert

Syria

1. Republic in the Middle East, bordered by Turkey to the northwest, north, and northeast; Iraq to the east and south; Jordan to the south; and Israel, the Mediterranean Sea, and Lebanon to the west. Its capital and largest city is Damascus.

Syria was established from former Ottoman Empire territory in 1920 but dominated by France until the 1940s. It is extremely hostile toward Israel.

In the Six-Day War, in 1967, Israeli troops dislodged Syrian forces from the Golan Heights, which overlook Israeli territory.

Example Sentences

But Cairo has diminished in influence, and other former powers in Iraq and Syria are weak following years of war.

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Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu on Wednesday also drew a rebuke from Damascus and others in the region after visiting Israeli troops deployed in a buffer zone inside Syria.

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The government is in talks with Syria's new Islamist-led government to resume deportations of violent criminals.

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After more than a decade of unspeakable and unending violence, the challenge in Syria is no longer finding mass graves.

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For all the benefits of joining the anti-ISIS coalition and negotiating security understandings with Israel, the real test lies inside Syria.

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