Chekka

Chekka شكا
—  City  —
Chekka Location within Lebanon
Coordinates: 34°20′N 35°44′E / 34.333°N 35.733°E / 34.333; 35.733Coordinates: 34°20′N 35°44′E / 34.333°N 35.733°E / 34.333; 35.733
Country	Lebanon
Governorate	North Governorate
District	Batroun District
Highest elevation	200 m (656 ft)
Lowest elevation	22 m (72 ft)
Time zone	EET (UTC+2)
- Summer (DST)	EEST (UTC+3)
Postal code
Dialing code	+961

Chekka is coastal town located in the South of North Lebanon. It is located north of Râs ach-Chaq’a’ and Herri beaches, or Theoprosopon of classical times and south of the ancient Phoenician port of Enfeh and the city of Tripoli. The origin of the word is believed to be Canaanite from the word Chikitta. Chikitta was mentioned Amarna letters in Egypt as a coastal town situated in the geographical area of modern Chekka. Until now there are no Canaanite archeological findings in Chekka backing this hypothesis. Chekka's modern history is clear. The high land in Chekka now known as Chekka Al-Atika was resettled around 300 years ago and the fertile valley of Chekka was cultivated in the intention of making Chekka a Maronite stronghold on the Lebanese coast. Many families moved from Mount Lebanon to Chekka at that time.

Chekka is rich in freshwater submarine springs.^[1] The American University of Beirut's Faculty of Engineering investigated the potential of sustainable exploitation of the Chekka Bay submarine springs in 2000.^[1]

Chekka is renowned for Râs ach-Chaq’a’ a white and green mountain touching the Mediterranean sea and its public an private sand beaches.

In 2009 Lebanese parliamentary elections, March 14 alliance backed by the west notably USA and France scored a victory in Chekka over March 8 alliance backed by Syrian and deputy Sleiman Franjiyeh. Residents of Chekka put aside for the first time sectarian divisions and loyalty to families.

Economy

Chekka is home to some of the largest cement and paper factories in the eastern Mediterranean.^[2] Companies such as Holcim Liban, Cimenterie Nationale S.A.L and Société Libanaise des Ciments Blancs S.A.L.B,, headquartered in Chekka.^[3] The ancient process of extracting salt from the sea is still practiced in Chekka but without traditional wind powered water pumps.^[4]

Chekka is also an agricultural city. It is known for producing the best figs in Lebanon. It is the headquarters of the second largest Lebanese poultry producer with a slaughterhouse, farms, hatcheries and feed mill plant located in it. It has large public and private sand beaches and a good view over the sea.

The Las Salinas Beach resort provides a wide range of nautical and inland activities for which Chekka is best known. It offers a variety of activities for people of all ages. Kids can play several sports, including bowling, pool, table tennis. Amusement center, equipped with a cinema theatre and the latest video games. Chekka has a range of other hotels and resorts, including Florida Beach. With more than a 170 chalets, 60 Cabins and a Marina capable of receiving more than 50 boats this beach resort welcomes visitors from all around the country. Visitors from all around the Mediterranean are usually attracted to Chekka because of the several resorts and hotels and the amount of activities that they have to offer.

There are several sports team that represent chekka. The most renowned sports club is the Chekka soccer club, which holds a very impressive record. They have won the north district soccer championship in 2005-06, and havefinished on the podium ever since. There are several other sports clubs in the region such as the Chekka ‘Saint famille’ Basketball club. Although it has gone through a lot of political disputes this club remains very successful.Chekka habitants are known for supporting their local teams. On game days, people grill and drink and offer their neighbors food and beverages.

Education and youth

Chekka is considered as the center for education for the neighboring regions. There are many public and private schools in Chekka most notably Sainte Famille Maronite" and "Les moines Libanais" private maronite schools. Universite Saint-Esprie de Kaslik has a branch in Chekka for law and business majors and is currently considering expanding to other fields. I t is the home town for Groupe Saint Maron Chekka فوج مار مارون شكا a member of L'Association des Scouts du Liban and a vibrant member in the community.

People and diaspora

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One of Chekka's famous sons is Elias Eldayrie, an editor and chief of the Lebanese renowned newspaper Al-Nahar.

Eldayrie (George(3), Elias (4), Toni (4), Masaad, Michele (2),Carlos, Alexis, Erica),Hallal (Abboud), Mkesh (Khoury, Boutros, Abi Badra), Chalfoun, Daher, Farah (Nehme, Ghabour, Romanos, Riskallah, Nasrallah, Yaacoub), Sayfi (Boulos, Fadous, Khoury, Semaan),Sarkis are some of the most notable founding Maronite families of Chekka. Today Chekka has a Christian majority and a Muslim minority. It has many Maronite Christian, Greek Catholic and Greek Orthodox churches.

Around 17,000 people are currently residing in Chekka many of which come originally from villages such as Tannourin, Zgharta and Bcharre. Chekka has a rich diaspora in USA ,Australia, Canada, France and the Gulf.

Joseph Soueif, the Eastern Catholic Church Maronite Rite Archbishop of Cyprus, was born in Chekka in 1962.

References

1. ^ ^{a b} Projects in Lebanon: International Development Research Centre
2. ^ Tourism @ Lebanon.com
3. ^ Cement - Providers, importers, exporters - Lebanon
4. ^ Lebanon's tourist dream | Contemporary Review | Find Articles at BNET.com