* Marj *

مرج

Marj /ˈmɑrdʒ/ (Arabic: المرج‎ Al Marǧ, English: The Meadows), also spelt El Merj, formerly Barca or Barce, is a city in northeastern Libya and the administrative seat of the Marj District. It lies in an upland valley separated from the Mediterranean Sea by a range of hills, part of the Jebel Akhdar Mountains.

It has an estimated population of 85,315 (As of 2004). There are a couple of banks on the main street and the main post office is in the centre of city, not far from the Abu Bakr Assiddiq mosque.

• 1 History
• 2 Notes
• 3 Further reading
• 4 See also
• 5 External links

Marj was the site of the 7th-century-BCE Greek colony of Barce. It was captured by the Persians in 512 BCE, and was annexed by the Ptolemies following Alexander the Great''s death in 323 BCE. It was taken by the Arabs under ''Amr ibn al-''As in 641 CE.

In the 1800s, Marj grew around a Turkish fort built in 1842 and now restored. The Italians developed the city (1913–41) as an administrative and market centre and hill resort.

Marj was the capital of British-occupied Cyrenaica from 1942-1943.

Most of the city was destroyed by a 5.6 earthquake on 21 February 1963, which killed some 300 people and injured 500 more. The major rebuilding was commenced about 5 km (3.1 mi) from the old site, and was completed about 1970.