Maaloula or Maʿlūlā is a town in the Rif Dimashq Governorate in Syria. The town is located 56 km to the northeast of Damascus and built into the rugged mountainside, at an altitude of more than 1500 m. It is known as one of four remaining villages where Western Neo-Aramaic is spoken, the other three being the nearby villages of Saidnaya, Jubb'adin and Bakhah.