century since birth of “Little Paris”: historical story of Qamishlo"

Before 1926, Qamishlo was not a city in the modern urban or administrative sense. The area was part of the Mardin Plain, south of the historic city of Mardin, and was covered by farmland, trees, grass, and reeds, the latter later becoming associated with the city’s name.

Researcher and writer on Kurdish history Bradost Mitani said: “More than 100 years have passed since the founding of Qamishlo. The decision to establish the city was issued in 1925 by the French authorities during the French Mandate in Syria. On August 20, 1926, the project was put into practice, and actual work began on its construction and urban planning.”

How was the city born from the treaties?

Before 1926, Qamishlo did not exist as an independent town or urban entity. The entire area was geographically known as the “Mardin Plain” (Barya Merdini in Kurdish), forming the agricultural and rural southern extension of historic Mardin.

The major turning point came after the collapse of the Ottoman Empire following World War I, the signing of the Sykes-Picot Agreement, and subsequent international treaties defining the borders between the French Mandate in Syria and the newly emerging Turkish Republic, particularly the 1921 Treaty of Ankara.

Under these agreements, the Baghdad Railway part of the Berlin-Baghdad railway line became a strict border between the two states. This division separated historic cities and communities, including Nusaybin from its southern agricultural hinterland.

This created an urgent need for the French to establish an administrative, military, and economic center on the Syrian side to manage the promising Jazira region.

With the project’s implementation in 1926, the city began taking shape opposite Nusaybin, near the Jaqjagh River, marking a new stage in the history of al-Jazira.

Names that preserve the city’s history

The city’s name is associated with the reeds that once grew abundantly in the area. According to Mitani, the region consisted of hills, trees, grass, and reeds. Reed is called “Qamish” in Kurdish and Turkish and “Zalin” in Syriac. Thus, the city became known as Qamishlo among Kurds, while during the Ba’ath era its name was changed to Qamishlo.

The city has several names: “Al-Qamishli” is the official government name, “Qamishlo” is used in Kurdish, some old Mardelli and Mhalmi families use “Al-Qamishliya,” while Syriacs call it “Zalin.” These names reflect the linguistic and social diversity that accompanied the city’s development.

Planned like Paris

Qamishlo was not built randomly. The French authorities developed an urban plan from the city’s earliest days, which Mitani describes as being “designed after the model of Paris, but on a smaller scale.”

In the summer of 1926, following the Battle of Biandur village between French forces and local tribes, the French military authorities decided to move their garrison and establish a permanent military base directly opposite Nusaybin.

The French selected a relatively elevated location near the Jaqjagh River, providing access to water and a clear view of the border.

They also enlisted the Greek architect and civil engineer Charalambos, who designed a modern European-style urban plan characterized by straight, parallel streets forming a precise grid.

The streets were oriented to benefit from prevailing winds and natural cooling during summer, while large areas were allocated for administrative facilities and markets in the city center.

The wide, clean streets led travelers and officials to call Qamishlo “Little Paris,” distinguishing it from older eastern cities characterized by narrow, winding alleys.

A Population mosaic

Population diversity was present from the earliest stages of Qamishlo’s development. The city attracted Kurds, Syriac-Assyrians, Armenians, Arabs, Mardellis, Mhalmis, Jews, and others who contributed to its social fabric.

Mitani notes that Syriacs arrived from various regions, Armenians were displaced from Turkey, and Assyrians were brought by the British. Following the Sheikh Saeed uprising, additional Kurdish waves arrived, while the Arab Tay tribe settled south of the city, in what is now known as the Tay neighborhood.

During the Ba’ath era, further demographic changes occurred as Arabs, particularly those referred to as “the submerged,” were settled in the region as part of policies aimed at Arabization and changing its demographic composition.

The Beginning of municipal administration

Population growth was accompanied by important administrative developments. In April 1927, the first municipal committee was officially established, with Abdul Razzaq Chalabi becoming Qamishlo’s first mayor.

In 1928, Qamishlo railway station was officially connected to the Baghdad Railway, creating a major economic transformation and turning the city into an important transit point for goods and passengers traveling between Aleppo, Mosul, and Baghdad.

After the population exceeded 10,000, a presidential decree issued on December 15, 1937, legally upgraded Qamishlo’s municipality to the category of a major city.

In 1939, Qamishlo officially entered the era of electric power, following a presidential decree granting the municipality a concession to provide electricity for streets and homes.

Ezra Market: The heart of commerce

As the city grew, trade became one of the main pillars of its economy. The historic Ezra Market emerged as one of Qamishlo’s most important commercial centers.

The market was associated with Jewish families who lived in the city, including merchant Ezra Mir Yaqub. It became a center for trading grain, wheat, cotton, textiles, and other goods arriving from surrounding areas.

Qamishlo’s location also made it an important commercial hub connecting towns and cities across the Jazira, benefiting from its proximity to Nusaybin and its road and railway networks.

The “California of the East”

During the mid-20th century, the introduction of modern agricultural machinery, including tractors and harvesters, encouraged a major agricultural boom in the fertile plains surrounding Qamishlo, particularly in wheat and cotton production.

The American agricultural mission described the city and surrounding region in official reports as the “California of the East,” comparing its agricultural production, rapid economic growth, and investment opportunities to California.

From surrounding villages to city neighborhoods

Urban expansion continued beyond the original French plan. Surrounding villages gradually became incorporated into the city as the population and construction expanded.

Mitani says that neighborhoods including Hilaliya, Antariya, Mahmaqiya, the Assyrian Quarter, Halko, and Jameaya were originally independent villages before becoming part of Qamishlo.

Over the decades, construction expanded beyond the original French plan, creating new neighborhoods and turning Qamishlo into a large urban center.

Oil and urban expansion

In the final quarter of the 20th century, the discovery of large commercial quantities of oil in nearby fields, including Rmeilan, Sweidiya, and Qarah Jogh, brought another major stage of development.

Although the oil facilities were located to the east, Qamishlo became the main residential and service center for engineers, workers, and employees of national and foreign oil companies.

The city’s small military airport was also expanded into an important civilian airport, connecting Qamishlo with Damascus and other destinations and facilitating the movement of traders and expatriates.

A city of culture and diversity

Beyond its commercial importance, Qamishlo developed a prominent cultural and artistic role. Cultural and artistic institutions emerged, producing poets, writers, artists, and musicians, while the city became a meeting place for different languages and cultures.

Mitani describes Qamishlo as “a treasury of culture, with an interconnected and cohesive cultural identity.” He also calls it the “bride of the Jazira” because of its beauty and social, political, and cultural importance.

The Nusaybin-Qamishlo border crossing also played a major role in stimulating commercial and agricultural activity before its closure caused significant economic losses to the region.

Qamishlo in recent decades

During recent decades, the city underwent major political, social, and security changes amid the events that affected Syria and the wider region. During the war years, Qamishlo experienced a series of bombings and attacks targeting civilian areas, institutions, and neighborhoods.

With the establishment of the Autonomous Administration in Rojava, the city entered a new phase of institutional and local administrative development, alongside efforts to document its history and preserve its collective memory.

Despite the challenges and attacks it faced, Qamishlo continued to develop, particularly following the outbreak of the Syrian uprising.

A century of transformation

The reed-covered area along the Jaqjagh River was transformed over a hundred years into a large city with significant economic, cultural, and social importance in the Jazira. Since its establishment in the 1920s and its subsequent expansion, Qamishlo has passed through many stages, each leaving its mark on the city’s shape and identity.

As it reaches its centenary on August 20, 2026, Qamishlo is not only recalling the history of its founding but also the memory of its residents, communities, neighborhoods, markets, streets, and prominent figures a city that has witnessed the major transformations experienced by al-Jazira region over the past century.

Today, Qamishlo carries in its original name the memory of the reeds, in its streets the memory of an entire century, and in its cultural and demographic diversity the legacy of successive historical stages that shaped its character, remaining “Little Paris,” one of the most prominent cities of the Jazira and one of the strongest presences in its modern memory.

ANHA