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There are thirty-four 'municipalities of Libya', known by the Arabic term ''sha'biyat'' (singular ''sha'biyah''). These came recently (in the 1990s to replaced old Baladiyat systam (see below). The Baladiyat system in turn was introduced to replace the system of ''muhafazah'' (governorates or provinces) that existed from the 1960s to the 1970s, more details on that too is in the section on former Baladiyat below.

Contents

''Sha'biyat''

32 Sha'biyat

Former ''Baladiyat''

The old three-governarate system

See also

External links

''Sha'biyat''

''Sha'biyah'' is a neologism exclusive to Libya. The term basically means a municipality (or a top level administrative division). The current system which is comprised of 22 Sha'biya has replaced the 32 Sha'biya system (see below). However, it draws largely upon it.^[1]
The current list is as following:

Arabic	English
البطنان	Al Butnan
درنة	Darnah
الجبل الاخضر	Al Jabal al Akhdar
المرج	Al Marj
بنغازي	Benghazi
الواحات	Al Wahat
الكفرة	Al Kufrah
سرت	Surt
مرزق	Murzuq
سبها	Sabha
وادي الحياة	Wadi Al Hayaa
مصراتة	Misratah
المرقب	Al Murgub
طرابلس	Tarabulus
الجفارة	Al Jfara
الزاوية	Az Zawiyah
النقاط الخمس	An Nuqat al Khams
الجبل الغربي	Al Jabal al Gharbi
نالوت	Nalut
غات	Ghat
الجفرة	Al Jufrah
وادي الشاطئ	Wadi Al Shatii

32 Sha'biyat

The data in this table was taken from the first external link below.

شعبية	''Sha'biyah''	Population	Area	Number
إجدابيا	Ajdabiya	165,839	91,620	1
البطنان	Al Butnan	144,527	83,860	2
الحزام الاخضر	Al Hizam Al Akhdar	108,860	12,800	3
الجبل الاخضر	Al Jabal al Akhdar	194,185	7,800	4
الجفارة	Al Jfara	289,340	1,940	5
الجفرة	Al Jufrah	45,117	117,410	6
الكفرة	Al Kufrah	51,433	483,510	7
المرج	Al Marj	116,318	10,000	8
المرقب	Al Murgub	328,292	3,000	9
النقاط الخمس	An Nuqat al Khams	208,954	5,250	10
القبة	Al Qubah	93,895	14,722	11
الواحات	Al Wahat	29,257	108,670	12
الزاوية	Az Zawiyah	197,177	1,520	13
بنغازي	Benghazi	636,992	800	14
بنى وليد	Bani Walid	77,424	19,710	15
درنة	Darnah	81,174	4,908	16
غات	Ghat	22,770	72,700	17
غدامس	Ghadamis	19,000	51,750	18
غريان	Gharyan	161,408	4,660	19
مرزق	Murzuq	68,718	349,790	20
مزدة	Mizdah	41,476	72,180	21
مصراتة	Misratah	360,521	2,770	22
نالوت	Nalut	86,801	13,300	23
تاجوراء والنواحي الأربع	Tajura Wa Al Nawahi AlArba'	267,031	1,430	24
ترهونة و مسلاته	Tarhuna Wa Msalata	296,092	5,840	25
طرابلس	Tarabulus	882,926	400	26
سبها	Sabha	126,610	15,330	27
سرت	Surt	156,389	77,660	28
صبراته و صرمان	Sabratha Wa Surman	152,521	1,370	29
وادي الحياة	Wadi Al Hayaa	72,587	31,890	30
وادي الشاطئ	Wadi Al Shatii	77,203	97,160	31
يفرن	Yafran	117,647	9,310	32

There are two minicipalities missing from the map, Al Qatrun and Al-Jaghbub.

Former ''Baladiyat''

''Baladiyah'' (singular) or ''Baladiyat'' (plural), are Arabic words used in many Arab countries to denote a type of top-level administrative division (roughly equivalent to municipality). The system consisted of 25 Baladiyat and was introduced in the early 1970s as a substitute to the 3-''Muhafazat'' system (Tripolitania, Cyrenaica and Fezzan). The table hereunder lists the old 25 Baladiyat in alphabetical order with a link to each one. Note that each page linked talk about a "municipality" which means both a Baladiyah and a Sha'biyah. Most Baladiyat remained unchanged in the new Sha'biyat-system and whenever this is not applicable the articles are/will be changed to reflect the new system.

★ 14 Ghadamis ★ 15 Gharyan ★ 16 Misratah ★ 17 Murzuq ★ 18 Sabha ★ 19 Sawfajjin ★ 20 Surt ★ 21 Tarabulus (Tripoli) ★ 22 Tarhunah ★ 23 Tubruq ★ 24 Yafran ★ 25 Zlitan

LibyaNumbered.png

The old three-governarate system

Tripolitania, Cyrenaica (same as Cirenaica) and Fezzan were separate States for most of their history until Libya was unified (first as an Italian colony in 1934). They were in use until the 1970s. The map below shows how each of the three Governarates was divided up into smaller ''Baladiyat''.

See also

★ Subdivisions of Libya

External links

★ Municipalities of Libya in the Website of the General People's Committee of Libya

★ Population data