Church bells echoed across the rocky slopes of this ancient Syrian town on a cold Sunday morning. But few families remained.

Some 120,000 Christians in Germany speak Aramaic — thought to be the language spoken by Jesus Christ — and efforts are underway to keep the language alive. The Syriac Orthodox Mor Petrus und ...

But few families remained. Maaloula is one of the world’s few places where residents still speak Aramaic, the language that Jesus is believed to have used. The town is also home to Syria’s two ...

Syrian nuns pray at the Greek Orthodox Convent of Saint Thecla in ... Maaloula is one of the world's few places where residents still speak Aramaic, the language that Jesus is believed to have ...

Syrian nuns pray at the Greek Orthodox Convent of Saint Thecla in the town of Maaloula, Syria, Sunday Jan. 12, 2025. (AP Photo/Omar Sanadiki) ...

Syrian nuns pray at the Greek Orthodox Convent of Saint Thecla in ... and their efforts to pass down Christian tradition and the Aramaic language. Many people who had fled the town have not ...