Arabic Baʽlabakk
City (pop., 1998 est.: 150,000), eastern Lebanon .
In ancient times it was a great city built on the lower western slope of the Anti-Lebanon Mountains . Its identification with the worship of Baal , a Semitic sun-god, gave rise to its Greek name, Heliopolis. It was made a Roman colony by Julius Caesar . In AD 637 it came under Arab control, and was administered by Muslim rulers from Syria until the 20th century. After World War I (1914–18) the French mandatory authorities made it part of Lebanon. The area in and around the city is noted for its extensive ruins, including temples of Jupiter, Bacchus, and Venus, town walls, Roman mosaics, a mosque, and Arab fortifications. The modern city is an administrative and agricultural centre.