Damascus is the capital and the second largest city of Syria as well as one of the country's 14 governorates.
Damascusis the capital and the largest city ofSyriaafterAleppoprior to thecivil war. It is commonly known in Syria asash-Sham(Arabic:الشامash-Shām) and nicknamed as theCity ofJasmine(Arabic:مدينة الياسمينMadīnat al-Yāsmīn). In addition to being one of theoldest continuously inhabited citiesin the world,Damascus is a major cultural and religious centre of theLevant.
