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Arabic is the official language, and Kurdish is also officially recognized; in addition to these, Neo-Aramaic, Turkish, Syriac, Circassian, Chechen, Armenian, Greek, and Domari are all spoken by various communities, a linguistic diversity that reflects Syria's long history as a crossroads."}],["$","p","Islam is the majority religion, ",{"children":"Islam is the majority religion, practiced by the great majority of Syrians, most of them Sunni, alongside Alawite and other Shia communities. 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Music has long been centered on Damascus, home to institutions of classical Arab music, alongside a rich folk tradition built around instruments such as the oud, the ney, and hand drums; well-known Syrian musicians include Asmahan, Farid al-Atrash, and Sabah Fakhri. Literature has a similarly deep tradition, with poets such as Nizar Qabbani among the most celebrated voices in the modern Arabic-language canon."}],["$","p","Dance and festivity are closely ",{"children":"Dance and festivity are closely linked in Syrian life. The dabke, a circle and line dance found across the Levant, is performed at weddings and celebrations throughout the country, with dancers linking arms or hands and stamping out rhythms led by a dancer at the head of the line. 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Since the mid-20th century, petroleum and natural gas, first found in commercial quantities in the northeast in 1956, with major fields near Al-Hasakah and Deir ez-Zor, have been central to the economy, alongside other resources such as phosphate rock, asphalt, marble, and gypsum."}],["$","p","The country's position along his",{"children":"The country's position along historic trade routes also left it with a strong tradition of craftsmanship and small-scale manufacturing, from textiles and soap-making to the metalwork and inlaid woodwork long associated with the workshops of Damascus and Aleppo."}]]}],false]}],"$undefined","$undefined"]}] 25:["$","section","conclusion",{"id":"conclusion","className":"art-sec","aria-labelledby":"conclusion-h","children":[["$","$L19",null,{"children":["$","div",null,{"className":"art-head","children":[["$","span",null,{"className":"art-num","aria-hidden":"true","children":"13"}],["$","h2",null,{"className":"h2","id":"conclusion-h","children":"Conclusion"}]]}]}],"$undefined",["$","div",null,{"className":"art-split","data-flip":"$undefined","data-solo":true,"children":[["$","$L19",null,{"className":"art-text","children":[["$","p","From the Bronze Age archives of ",{"children":"From the Bronze Age archives of Ebla to the covered markets of Aleppo and the colonnades of Palmyra, Syria's landscape is layered with the traces of civilizations that have met, traded, and built upon one another for thousands of years. Its geography, with coastal plain, mountain, river valley, and desert, has shaped a correspondingly varied culture, visible today in the languages spoken, the food served, and the music and dance performed at celebrations across the country. 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