Damascus (Arabic:دمشق‎ Dimashq IPA: [ˈdimaʃq]) is the capital and the second-largest city of Syria after Aleppo prior to the civil war. It is now most likely the largest city of Syria, due to the decline of Aleppo because of the ongoing battle for the city. It is commonly known in Syria as ash-Sham (Arabic:الشام‎ ash-Shām) and nicknamed as the City of Jasmine (Arabic:مدينة الياسمين‎ Madīnat al-Yāsmīn). In addition to being one of the oldest continuously inhabited cities in the world, Damascus is a major cultural and religious center of the Levant. The city has an estimated population of 1,711,000 as of 2009.