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Tel Keppe

Coordinates:36°29′22″N43°7′9″E/ 36.48944°N 43.11917°E/36.48944; 43.11917
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Tel Keppe
ܬܸܠ ܟܹܐܦܹܐ
Chaldean Catholics from Tel Keppe
Chaldean Catholicsfrom Tel Keppe
Tel Keppe is located in Iraq
Tel Keppe
Tel Keppe
Coordinates:36°29′22″N43°7′9″E/ 36.48944°N 43.11917°E/36.48944; 43.11917
CountryIraq
GovernorateNineveh
DistrictTel Kaif District
Government
• MayorBasim Bello
Population
(2010)[1]
• Total40,000
Prior to ISIS, August 2014
DemonymAssyrian:Tel-Kepnaya (m)/Tel-Kepnetha (f)Arabic:Tel-Kayfi (m)/Tel-Kayfiya (f)

Tel Keppe(Syriac:ܬܸܠ ܟܹܐܦܹܐTel Kepe,Arabic:تل كيفTall Kayf,alternatively spelledTel Kaif,Tilkepe,orTelkef) is a town in northernIraq.[2][3][4][5]It is located in theNineveh Governorate,less than 8 mi (13 km) northeast ofMosul.[6]

Etymology

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The name Tel Keppe (Syriac:ܬܸܠ ܟܹܐܦܹܐ) is ofAssyrian Aramaicorigin and derives from the wordstilmeaning “hill of”, andkēpēmeaning “stones”. Therefore, the town’s name translates to “hill of stones”.[7][8][9][10]

History

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The first reliable reference to the town is written in the book” The History of Mosul”, by Abu Zakaria Azidi. The book was released in 945 AD and he wrote about the history of Mosul, in which he referenced the town of Tel Keppe. Zakaria also mentioned a different author from the year 749 AD, who also mentions the village Tel Keppe as one of the Mosul’s manysuburbs.

In 1508, Tel Keppe was sacked byMongols.In 1743, Tel Keppe was looted and burned by the armies of thePersianleaderNader Shah.This event took place within the context of theSiege of Mosul,in which the Persian army suffered heavy casualties and resorted to looting the surrounding towns to have some semblance of victory. In 1833, the town was once again sacked, this time by theKurdishGovernor ofRawandizwho also sacked the town ofAlqosh.[6]

Occupation by ISIS

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On 6 August 2014, the town was captured by theIslamic State(ISIS), along with the nearby Assyrian towns ofBakhdida,BartellaandKaramlesh.[11]Upon entering the town, ISIS looted the homes and removed the crosses and other religious objects from the churches. The Christian cemetery in the town was also later destroyed.[12]

Soon after the beginning of theBattle of Mosul,Iraqi troops advanced on Tel Keppe, but the fighting continued into 2017.[13][14]Iraqi forces recaptured the town from ISIS on 19 January 2017.[15]

In 2017, Salman Esso Habba of the "Christian Mobilization" militia - a part of thePopular Mobilization Forces- warned the Arabs to leave, claiming that Tel Keppe’s homes belonged only to Christians in the town, MEMO reported Wednesday. He also said that Christians’ homes and rights could not be taken away.[16]

5 years after the liberation of Tel Keppe and most of the indigenousAssyrianpopulation is yet to return, mostly due to the presence of the non-localBabylon Brigadesmilitia.[17][18]The majority of the towns inhabitants either fled to large cities, or fled Iraq as a whole.[19]Very few Assyrians returned or had any plans to return.[20][21]

Arabization

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Tel Keppe has facedArabizationsince the late 70’s under the rule ofSaddam Hussein.[21][22]Arabsbegan moving to Tel Keppe, while Assyrians began moving to the larger cities inIraq,mainlyBaghdad,BasraandMosul.[citation needed]TheNorthern Iraq OffensivebyISISmade things even worse for theAssyrians.After Tel Keppe was liberated, mostAssyriansfled toBaghdadand theKurdistan Regionor fled Iraq entirely, causing more Arabs to settle in the town. The contested security and presence of Arab-dominated militias in theNineveh Plainshas prevented the return of thousands of Tel Keppe residents.[23]Tel Keppe has a majority ArabMuslimpopulation as of 2021.[24]

Climate

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Tel Keppe has asemi-arid climate(BSh) with extremely hot summers and cool, damp winters, typical to the Nineveh Plains.

Climate data for Tel Keppe
Month Jan Feb Mar Apr May Jun Jul Aug Sep Oct Nov Dec Year
Mean daily maximum °C (°F) 12
(54) 		14
(57) 		20
(68) 		26
(79) 		34
(93) 		38
(100) 		43
(109) 		40
(104) 		38
(100) 		30
(86) 		20
(68) 		14
(57) 		27
(81)
Mean daily minimum °C (°F) 2
(36) 		4
(39) 		8
(46) 		11
(52) 		16
(61) 		21
(70) 		25
(77) 		24
(75) 		20
(68) 		14
(57) 		6
(43) 		4
(39) 		13
(55)
Averageprecipitationmm (inches) 39
(1.5) 		69
(2.7) 		51
(2.0) 		9
(0.4) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		0
(0) 		6
(0.2) 		36
(1.4) 		60
(2.4) 		270
(10.6)
Average precipitation days 10 10 11 9 0 0 0 0 0 5 8 12 65
Source: World Weather Online (2000–2012)[25]

Demographics

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In 1768, the town had a recorded population of 2,500. Due to plague and other disasters, the population was around 1,500 in 1882, rising to 2,500 again by 1891. In 1923, the population was recorded as 14,000. In 1933, the population numbered around 10,000. As a result ofemigrationfrom the town to Baghdad and theUnited States,the population shrunk to 7,108 by 1968.

The district of Tel Keppe was approximately 50%Christianin the mid 1900s, the town of Tel Keppe remaining almost exclusively Christian with a population of 6,600 inhabitants.[26]Throughout the late 20th century, the town experienced non-native population growth from the arrival of Arabs, who established residence throughout the town and became the majority after ISIS. By the turn of the century, the population had swelled to close to 30,000.[27]

Some families who settled in Tel Keppe are:

Tel-Kepnayeh today

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Starting in the 1980s, and especially after the1991 Gulf Warand2003 US Invasion of Iraq,manyChaldean Catholicsfrom Tel Keppe fled to other countries, primarily theUnited States.They set up their lives there with new churches and business for their families.[6]By 2001, many Tel-Kepnayeh had moved to major cities in Iraq such asBaghdadorMosul.[29]

Assyrian diaspora in United States

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ManyChaldean CatholicAssyrians in theMetro Detroitarea trace their origins to Tel Keppe. According to the estimates of a priest of Tel Keppe's Sacred Heart Chaldean Rite Catholic Church, there were 10,000 worshippers in the late 1950s, which later decreased to 2,000 around 2004. He said: "Many people don’t want to go from here; they cry that they have to go… but you almost have to leave these days because your family probably already is inDetroit."[30]

Culture

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Chaldean Catholicceremony in Tel Keppe

Tel Keppe was historically the center of theChaldean Catholiccommunity in Iraq. Each family residing in Tel Keppe had one or more plots of farming land located outside Tel Keppe. The land producedbarleyandwheat,and animals raised there includedgoatsandsheep.Natalie Jill Smith, author of "Ethnicity, Reciprocity, Reputation and Punishment: An Ethnoexperimental Study of Cooperation among the Chaldeans and Hmong of Detroit (Michigan) ", wrote that in the reports of the village" everyone was related "and that marriage tended to occur between two people from the same village.[27]

Notable Tel-Kepnayeh

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Deceased

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Living

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See also

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Wikimedia Commons has media related toTel Keppe.

References

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  1. ^هل كانت تلكيف بلدة آشورية قديمة؟Archived2012-03-17 at theWayback Machine,فؤاد يوسف قزانجي
  2. ^"Mayor of Tel Keppe Reinstated After Unlawful Dismissal by KDP".Assyrian Policy Institute.2018-08-09.
  3. ^McDonald, Shalle' (2016-03-31)."Assyrian Christians' Mideast fate tied to world powers' agendas, expert says".JNS.org.Retrieved2022-04-20.
  4. ^Totiyapungprasert, Priscilla."'He was never afraid': Remembering the Gilbert liquor store owner who died of COVID-19 ".The Arizona Republic.Retrieved2022-04-20.
  5. ^Poulson, Stephen C. (2017-01-01),"Patterns of Violence Directed against Civilians in Small Ethnic Enclaves during War in Iraq (2003–2009)",Non-State Violent Actors and Social Movement Organizations,Research in Social Movements, Conflicts and Change, vol. 41, Emerald Publishing Limited, p. 77,doi:10.1108/S0163-786X20170000041014,ISBN978-1-78714-191-9
  6. ^abcWelcome to Tel Keppe at ChaldeansOnlinehttp:// chaldeansonline.org/telkeppe/Archived2011-07-19 at theWayback Machine
  7. ^Coghill, Eleanor.The Neo-Aramaic Dialect of Telkepe.p. 235.
  8. ^Spurlock, Charles (2010).From the Tigris to the Rouge An Exploratory Study of Chaldean Gendered Ethnicity and Gender Transition.Michigan State University. Department of Sociology. p. 3.
  9. ^Zaken, Mordechai (2007).Jewish subjects and their tribal chieftains in Kurdistan: a study in survival.Jewish identities in a changing world. Leiden; Boston: Brill. p. 7.ISBN978-90-474-2212-9.OCLC646789877.
  10. ^Ibrahim, Raymond (2015-12-30)."Muslims" Have Nothing Whatsoever to do with Terrorism "".Gatestone Institute.Retrieved2022-10-01.
  11. ^Barack Obama Approves Airstrikes on Iraq, Airdrops Aid
  12. ^"Aiding the Assyrians Fight Against ISIS".The Huffington Post.2015-04-15.Retrieved2016-05-02.
  13. ^Alkhshali, Hamdi; Smith-Spark, Laura; Lister, Tim (22 October 2016)."ISIS kills hundreds in Mosul area, source says".CNN.Retrieved22 October2016.
  14. ^"Iraqi residents flee Islamic State-held town of Tel Keyf".YouTube.Reuters.10 January 2017.Archivedfrom the original on 2021-12-21.Retrieved12 January2017.
  15. ^Griffis, Margaret (19 January 2017)."Militants Execute Civilians in Mosul; 101 Killed Across Iraq".Antiwar.Retrieved20 January2017.
  16. ^"Christian War on Muslims? Iraqi Christian Militia Leader Threatens Sunni Arabs, Asks Them to Leave Assyrian Town".International Business Times.10 February 2017.
  17. ^"Contested Control: The Future of Security in Iraq's Nineveh Plain".Assyrian Policy.Retrieved2022-04-11.
  18. ^"Mayor of Tel Keppe Reinstated After Unlawful Dismissal by KDP".assyrianpolicy.org.9 August 2018.Retrieved2022-04-11.
  19. ^"Fear and Renewal; A Town is Liberated from ISIS | Free Burma Rangers".freeburmarangers.org.Retrieved2022-04-11.
  20. ^"Iraq's Stolen Election: How Assyrian Representation Became Assyrian..."Assyrian Policy.Retrieved2022-04-11.
  21. ^ab"For Iraq's Christians, this year might be their last".UnHerd.2019-12-25.Retrieved2022-04-20.
  22. ^Poulson, Stephen C."Patterns of violence direct against civilians in small ethnic enclaves during war in Iraq (2003-2009)"(PDF).
  23. ^"Mayor of Tel Keppe Reinstated After Unlawful Dismissal by KDP".9 August 2018.
  24. ^"Death by Emigration: Two Years After ISIS, Catholics Are Still Fleeing Iraq".27 March 2020.
  25. ^"Tel Kaif, Ninawa Monthly Climate Average, Iraq".World Weather Online.Retrieved22 January2017.
  26. ^Khadduri, Majid (1956).Area Handbook on Iraq – Volume 58 of Human Relations Area Files.Johns Hopkins University. p. 76.Retrieved21 October2016.
  27. ^abSmith, Natalie Jill. "Ethnicity, Reciprocity, Reputation and Punishment: An Ethnoexperimental Study of Cooperation among the Chaldeans and Hmong of Detroit (Michigan)" (PhD dissertation).University of California, Los Angeles,2001. p. 61. UMI Number: 3024065.
  28. ^Aprim, Fred (19 August 2004)."The Town of Tel-Kepe".Atour.
  29. ^Smith, Natalie Jill. "Ethnicity, Reciprocity, Reputation and Punishment: An Ethnoexperimental Study of Cooperation among the Chaldeans and Hmong of Detroit (Michigan)" (PhD dissertation).University of California, Los Angeles,2001. p. 62. UMI Number: 3024065.
  30. ^"Arab, Chaldean, and Middle Eastern Children and Families in the Tri-County Area."(Archive)From a Child's Perspective: Detroit Metropolitan Census 2000 Fact Sheets Series.Wayne State University.Volume 4, Issue 2, February 2004. p. 2/32. Retrieved on November 8, 2013."Archived copy"(PDF).Archived fromthe original(PDF)on December 26, 2010.Retrieved2013-11-09.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link)
  31. ^"The British Betrayal of The Assyrians"(PDF).aina.org Yusuf Malek.Retrieved9 May2024.
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