Cyrenaica

Cyrenaica

Cyrenaica (sĭrənāˈĭkə, sīrə–), historic region, E Libya, bordering on the Mediterranean Sea. Benghazi, Al Marj, Darnah, and Tobruk are the chief cities. The Greeks colonized N Cyrenaica in the 7th cent. B.C., founding numerous settlements. In the mid-1st cent. B.C., Cyrenaica became a Roman province. In A.D. 115–16 there was a large-scale but unsuccessful revolt of Jewish settlers. When Rome was divided (4th cent.) into the Eastern and Western empires, Cyrenaica came under the Byzantines, who, however, exercised little control over the region. In 642 Arab armies conquered Cyrenaica and many Arabs settled in the region from the 9th to 11th cent. The Ottoman Turks captured the area in the mid-16th cent. The Sanusi Muslim brotherhood was founded (1843) in Cyrenaica and gained many adherents there. For the history of Cyrenaica after the Ottoman conquest, see Libya.

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The following article is from The Great Soviet Encyclopedia (1979). It might be outdated or ideologically biased.

Cyrenaica

 

a historic region in Libya. In the seventh century B.C., Greek cities were founded along the coast of Cyrenaica, the largest being Cyrene. From the sixth to the fourth century B.C. the region was part of the Achaemenid Empire. It was later incorporated into the empire of Alexander the Great. After Alexander’s death, Cyrenaica was under the rule of the Ptolemies. In the first century B.C., it became a Roman province; it subsequently was under Byzantine rule. In A.D. 640–650, Cyrenaica was conquered by the Arabs, and in the 16th century it fell to the Turks.

After the Italo-Turkish War of 1911–12, the Italians occupied part of Cyrenaica; they annexed the remainder of the territory in 1928. The region, together with Tripolitania and Fezzan, later formed the Italian colony of Libya. At the end of World War II (1939–45), Cyrenaica was occupied by British forces, who established a large military base there; the base was closed after the revolutionary coup in Libya in 1969. From 1951 (December) to 1963, Cyrenaica was one of the three provinces of Libya. With the introduction of new administrative divisions, the region ceased to exist as an independent unit and was divided into the muhafazat (governorships) of Benghazi, Darnah, and Al Jabal al Akhdar.

The Great Soviet Encyclopedia, 3rd Edition (1970-1979). © 2010 The Gale Group, Inc. All rights reserved.