Like other areas of the Middle East, Lebanon has a heritage almost as old as the earliest demonstrate of mankind. Its geographic position as a crossroads linking the Mediterranean Basin with the great Asian hinterland has conferred on it a cosmopolitan character and a multicultural legacy.

Its proximity to the sea has ensured that throughout its history Lebanon has held an valuable position as a trading center. This tradition of commerce began with the Phoenicians and continued through many centuries, remaining almost unaffected by foreign rule and the worst times of internal strife. Lebanon has an Arab culture colored by Western determines. Although Lebanon traditionally considered itself the only Christian nation in the Arab world, by the 1970s the Muslim population was greater than that of the Christians, a situation that led to sectarian unrest and fights for political and economic power.