Hussrum: 40 Sunni members

Hussrum is an Arabic word denoting those small, green and sour round berries before they ripen into sweet grapes. It is widely used in popular sayings and versicles.

The Hussrums make up a small Beirutian family, not exceeding 40 members all of whom professing the Sunni sect. They are mainly present in Dar El-Mraisseh and in fewer numbers in Ras Beirut and Msaytbeh.

Batteekh: 275 Sunni and Maronite members

Batteekh is the Arabic equivalent of ‘watermelon’. The family consists of 275 members distributed mainly in Akkar and Beirut, with Sunni constituting a majority of its members and Maronites a smaller community.

Sunni: 210 members

• Akkar El-Atiqa, Akkar: 175
• Mqaybleh, Akkar: 35

Maronite: 65 members

• Al-Qbayyat, Akkar: 45
• Mdawwar and Marfa, Beirut: 20

Al-Teen: 45 Protestant and Greek Orthodox members

In Arabic, ‘Al-Teen’ means figs, a summer fruit most preferred by nightingales. This family consists of 45 members only, some of whom are Protestants and some are Greek Orthodox.