Bakhdida (Qarah Qush)

Najat Habash

Bakhdida or as officially known Al-Hamdaniya Municipality is located about 32 km south eastern of the city of Mosul amid agricultural lands, close to the ruins of Nemrod and Neneva.

It is connected to the main city of Mosul( Neneva ) by two main roads. The first runs through the towns of Bertella and Karmlesh which connects to the city of Arbeel too. The second which was gravel until the nineties when it was paved, is direct to Mosul and is only 18 km away.

Agriculture was the main source of living for the people of Bakhdida, It also prospered on handicrafts such as weaving and producing leather coats which are locally known as Farawee made of sheepskin.

Today,  Bakhdida has become a center of trade and business with many roads, shops, houses, buildings and lots of government employees but still agriculture and farming are one of the main sources of living as since the eighties many people own and run chicken farms with modern facilities.

The name Bakhdida is of an Aramaic origin Beth Khodida meaning House of Youth. Some also believe that Bakhdida is from the Aramaic Beth Deta meaning House of the Kite, which made the Ottoman Turks call it Qaraqosh which means The Black Bird in Turkish.

  Most of its inhabitants (around 30,000) follow the Syriac Catholic denomination, while the rest follow the Syriac Orthodox denomination. At present, it is the center of the Al-Hamdaniya Municipality which also includes towns of Bertella and Karamlis and tens of small other villages.