First there was string. It is estimated that humans developed it for binding fibers and materials as long as 30,000 years ago. Needles had been invented by around 20,000 years ago and relics in grave sites from that time suggest an early knowledge of sewing. By 15,000 years ago, people had learned to strengthen string by twisting it into cordage, although early fibers were very labor-intensive to collect and uncomfortably rough to work with.
As humans moved from hunting and gathering for survival to building small communities based around herding and gardening, textile production evolved alongside the growing of food. Where there was water, cotton and flax could be cultivated. These crops were far easier to prepare for spinning than the tough grasses found along the way by nomads. Sheep were raised for woolen fibers as well as food. By around 10,000 BCE, looms were being used in Eurasia and the Near East to weave cloth.
The city-states of Syria were among the earliest and most advanced civilizations in recorded history. Their ideal locations made the region a major crossroads of trade, linking the Far East with what is now modern Europe. Flax, from which linen is made, and cotton were cultivated, easing the collection of these softer fibers for spinning and weaving into cloth. The shearing of sheep provided the fiber needed for woolen fabric. Silk was eventually introduced from China and became part of cloth production. Thus, Syria’s ancient textile industry was born.
Records from 3,000 years ago indicate that the manufacture of cloth and its ensuing trade employed more people than any other occupation.
Records from 3,000 years ago indicate that the manufacture of cloth and its ensuing trade employed more people than any other occupation. Women made important contributions to the industry, as the nature of spinning and weaving could be integrated into a domestic setting alongside caring for children and households. Techniques and patterns were passed down from mothers to daughters over the centuries.
Syria’s textile industry grew over time. A significant portion of the population, both male and female, was employed in the industry as its products spread worldwide. In the early 1900’s, Japan began producing synthetic materials similar to silk but far less expensive. In response, Syria shifted its emphasis toward cotton. At one point cotton production employed over twenty percent of the population.
Throughout the 20th century, textiles remained one of Syria’s leading non-0il industries. Though much of the industry was nationalized, it continued to grow and by 1964 it employed seventy percent of the industrial workforce. Its economic importance to the country cannot be overstated.
During the revolutionary war that began in 2011, most of the textile industry was destroyed. Many of its workers went into exile or were internally displaced. Despite this, textiles remain one of the country’s core industrial chains, running from domestic cotton cultivation through ginning, spinning, weaving, dyeing and garment production. Aleppo and Damascus continue to be the major textile hubs. Today, however, as the country is recovering from war, factories face a combination of structural, financial, and trade-related obstacles, caused by everything from poor access to raw materials and energy to limited financing, export challenges, and competition in local markets.
The new Syrian government is striving to restore its greatly diminished textile industry
The new Syrian government is striving to restore its greatly diminished textile industry. President al-Sharaa recently met with one of the major Syrian textile industrialists to discuss ways to revitalize the industry. Agriculture Minister Amjad Badr has stated that restoring cotton to its former status will require major improvements which include expanding crop area, increasing yield, shifting to modern irrigation methods, and producing new varieties with characteristics suited to climate change and able to withstand environmental pressures. The plan for 2026 is to cultivate twice as much cotton as in 2025, with the government purchasing the harvest. This will supply raw material for ginning, textile spinning and weaving, as well as vegetable oil and animal feed.
Textiles play another important role in Syria’s life: they are a key element of its intangible heritage. They form part of the living traditions, knowledge, skills and cultural practices passed down through generations. The transference of these ancient traditions is deeper than applying factual knowledge. Intangible heritage carries the sense of connection and community that comes through teaching, learning and doing. A group of women weaving or stitching together, sharing stories of their lives, learning to care about each other through such interactions is another aspect of heritage. Such women’s activities build a sense of shared identity into the collective consciousness, as do fathers teaching their sons and nephews how to use a specific kind of loom.
Intangible heritage in the area of textiles includes specialized techniques that have been refined over centuries, such as specific weaving patterns, dyeing methods using natural materials, embroidery stitches, and construction methods that cannot be fully captured by documentation alone. These skills represent accumulated wisdom, often passed down through oral histories, carrying particular cultural significance. Such wisdom and skills are lost when practitioners of these crafts are unable to pass them on to apprentices.
There is a deep connection between textiles and Syria’s social fabric.
There is a deep connection between textiles and Syria’s social fabric. Textiles can function as markers of identity, distinguishing different regions, tribes, or social groups. The collective knowledge of which patterns are appropriate for particular ceremonial occasions, who is qualified to create certain textiles, and how these objects function within social structures represents an aspect of intangible cultural capital. These identity markers reflect some of Syria’s most ancient traditions, spanning millennia of continuous practice.
The urgency of restoring Syria’s textile industry goes beyond economic revival; it is about preserving irreplaceable connections to the nation’s cultural soul and ensuring that the knowledge, stories, and social practices embedded in textile creation continue to exist for future generations. A Syrian official recently stated at a regional forum in Egypt that linking traditional craft documentation to a country’s development supports economic empowerment, cultural entrepreneurship and job creation, particularly for youth and women. Building these linkages, Syria’s Minister of Social Affairs and Labor has been urging women in rural areas to return to embroidered crafts as a source of income and offering government support to help to market them.
Another of the oldest handicrafts in Syria and an essential part of the country’s cultural legacy is the craft of hand weaving on a loom. The finished products are works of art, as seen in the artistry of a resident of Aleppo, Saleh Abtini, who is still practicing this intricate craft. He, along with several others, hopes to revive the craft and restore appreciation for handmade items.
In Damascus, another ancient craft that is being preserved is Aghabani. This centuries-old tradition is a blending of hand-printed fabrics with intricate silk embroidery. The process uses linen or a blend of cotton and linen. Patterns are hand printed using carved wooden blocks. The embroidery is done by hand using traditional sewing machines. The fabrics are then made into products ranging from tablecloths to traditional garments.
Yet another traditional handicraft is Damascene brocade, a hand-woven luxury silk fabric patterned with metallic gold or silver threads produced on complex looms. Renowned for over a millennium, it was historically used for royal garments, church vestments, and high-end décor. The weaver prepares thousands of individual silk threads for the warp. Patterns are created on special looms that allow the colored and metallic wefts to be woven into intricate motifs while the background weave remains the same. War damage to the looms has reduced production to a handful of workshops but master weavers such as the Mezannar and al-Shamaa families are experimenting with modified looms and new designs in an effort to keep the craft viable.
Starting in 2025 there have been many exhibitions of local handicrafts across Syria, highlighting the nation’s cultural heritage.
Starting in 2025 there have been many exhibitions of local handicrafts across Syria, highlighting the nation’s cultural heritage. Textiles are invariably part of the displays. The 2026 Damascus International Book Fair, a major cultural revival event, hosted a large exhibition of items of intangible heritage, with a focus on crafts as living skills and expressions of Syrian identity. Historian Dr Ghassan Klass, speaking at the event, described intangible heritage as a living memory of the Syrian people and an expression of their social, economic and cultural fabric.
“The arts are essential to any complete national life…The State owes it to itself to sustain and encourage them…Ill fares the race which fails to salute the arts with the reverence and delight which are their due.”
Winston Churchill
April 2026