Liwan

Liwan (Arabic: ليوان, līwān, from Persian eyvān) is a long narrow-fronted hall or vaulted portal in ancient and modern Levantine homes that is often open to the outside. An Arabic loanword to English, it is ultimately derived from the Persian eyvān, which preceded by the article al ("the"), came to be said as līwān in Arabic, and later, English. In its simplest form, the history of the liwan dates back more than 2,000 years, when the liwan house was essentially a covered terrace, supported by re...