Deir al-Bukht
village in Syria
Deir al-Bukht (Arabic: دير البخت, also spelled Deir al-Bukhit or Dayr al-Bakht) is a town in southern Syria, administratively part of the al-Sanamayn District of the Daraa Governorate located north of Daraa. It is situated about 63 kilometers south of the capital Damascus. Nearby localities include al-Sanamayn to the south, Kafr Shams to the southwest, Deir al-Adas to the west, Ghabaghib to the northeast, Muthabin to the east and Jabab to the southeast. In the 2004 census by the Syria Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Deir al-Bukht had a population of 5,381.
History
The name 'Deir al-Bukht' is Arabic for 'Convent of the Bactrian Camel'. According to early 13th-century Syrian geographer Yaqut al-Hamawi, Deir al-Bukht had previously been known as 'Deir Mikhail', a monastery dedicated to Saint Michael. It received its current name as a result of early 8th-century Umayyad caliph Abd al-Malik's habit of having a Bactrian camel saddled at the monastery.
An ancestor of the Abbasid dynasty, Ali ibn Abd Allah ibn al-Abbas, maintained a garden at Deir al-Bukht for recreation during the reign of Abd al-Malik's successor, al-Walid. Ali was accused of killing his adopted brother Salit in Deir al-Bukht, but the caliph's brother Sulayman ibn Abd al-Malik and Ubayd Allah ibn Ziyad interjected on Ali's behalf, persuading al-Walid to spare his life. Ali was imprisoned instead.
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Deir al-Bukht” as village in Syria. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as village in Syria. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Place names and jurisdictional language are key evidence: both can reveal earlier catalogue descriptions and overlooked record series. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 20, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q5252530. Authority coordinates are 33.147, 36.190. 1 of 1 selected statements include explicit references; 0 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 2004.
A single description cannot reconcile every naming convention, rebuilding phase or administrative transfer associated with a place. The lead is largely declarative, so disagreement and counter-evidence require a deliberate search beyond the opening account. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Deir al-Bukht”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Deir al-Bukht primary sources, Deir al-Bukht archive and Deir research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Deir al-Bukht”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Deir al-Bukht” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.