Balaban, Nusaybin

Balaban is a neighbourhood in the municipality and district of Nusaybin, Mardin Province in Turkey. The village is populated by Syriacs and Muslim and Yazidi Kurds of the Mizizex tribe. It had a population of 347 in 2021.

Etymology

The Syriac name of the village is derived from "biro".

History

Bīrgurīya was historically inhabited by Syriac Orthodox Christians. In the Syriac Orthodox patriarchal register of dues of 1870, it was recorded that the village had eight households, who paid thirty-five dues, and did not have a church or a priest. There were 300 Syriacs in 1914, according to the list presented to the Paris Peace Conference by the Assyro-Chaldean delegation. Amidst the Sayfo, all of the Syriacs were murdered by Kurds from Kfar-Gawze. In 1966, the population was 455, including 140 Turoyo-speaking Christians in 20 families. By 2013, there were ten Syriacs in two families and two Yazidi families.