Maaloula or Maʿlūlā ( in Eastern Aramaic Syriac script, in Western Aramaic Maalouli script; ) is a town in the Rif Dimashq Governorate in Syria. The town is located 56 km to the northeast of Damascus and built into the rugged mountainside, at an altitude of more than 1500 m. It is known as one of three remaining villages where Western Aramaic – said to be the language of Jesus – is spoken, the other two being the nearby, smaller villages of Jubb'adin and Bakhah. Etymology is said to derive from the Aramaic word (), meaning 'entrance'. The name is romanized in multiple different ways, e.g. Maaloula, Ma'loula, Maalula, Ma'lula, Malula. However, "Maaloula" is the most common one. Population In 1838, its inhabitants were Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch Christians, Melkite Greek Catholic Church Christians, and Sunni Muslim. Half a century ago, 15,000 people lived in Maaloula. According to the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics, Maaloula had a population of 2,762 in the 2004 census. However, during summer, it increases to about 10,000, due to people coming from Damascus for holidays. Religiously, the population consists of both Christians (mainly members of the Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch and the Melkite Greek Catholic Church) and Muslims. For the Muslim inhabitants, the legacy is all the more remarkable given that they didn't fully switch to Arabic, which holds special significance in Islam, unlike other Syrians who were Islamised over the centuries. Language With two other nearby towns, al-Sarkha (Bakhah) () and Jubb'adin (), Maaloula is the only place where a Western Aramaic language is still spoken, which it has been able to retain amidst the rise of Arabic due to its distance from other major cities and its isolating geological features. However, modern roads and transportation, as well as accessibility to Arabic-language television and print media – and for some time until recently, also state policy – have eroded that linguistic heritage. As the last remaining area where Western Neo-Aramaic is still spoken, the three villages represent an important source for anthropological linguistic studies regarding first century Western Aramaic. According to scholarly consensus, the language of Jesus was also Western Aramaic (more specifically, the Galilean variety of Jewish Palestinian Aramaic). Monasteries There are two important monasteries in Maaloula: the Melkite Greek Catholic Church Mar Sarkis and Greek Orthodox Church of Antioch Convent of Saint Thecla. Saint Sarkis Monastic Complex The Saint Sarkis