Miss Syria

ملكة جمال سوريا
Formation	1952
Type	Beauty pageant
Headquarters	Aleppo
Location	Syria
Membership	Miss World Miss Earth
Official language	Arabic

Miss Syria (Arabic: ملكة جمال سوريا) is a national beauty pageant in Syria. Beginning one year after the inauguration of Miss World, the competition was halted in the mid-1960s until its re-introduction in the 21st century. The competition has introduced two contestants in Miss World competitions, in 1965 and 1966.

Miss Syria began shortly after the inauguration of Miss World in 1951; the competition did not face any opposition from the government of the Second Syrian Republic nor any religious figures.^[1] In 1952, Leila Tabriz Tuma, aged 18, won the first version of Miss Syria held in Damascus.^[1] However, she did not participate in any international competition due to private reasons which prevented her from travelling abroad.^[2] The following year, a Christian woman of Greek descent named Betchamer Minnie won the title.^[1]

Syria would be absent from the Miss World competition until 1965,^[2] when Raymonde Doucco was the contestant to represent Syria.^[3] The following year, a television presenter named Feryelle Jalal was awarded Miss Syria and took part in the 1966 competition.^[4] In 1967, Maha Bayrakdar was crowned the title, after which the competition stopped for many years.^[1] In an interview from her later years, Bayrakdar stated that she didn't like remembering the competition and felt ashamed about it.^[5][6]

In 2015, model Sarah Nakhla won the competition and represented Syria in that year's edition of Miss Arab World.^[7] In 2016, Nilay Noufal won the Miss Syria competition; however, she received criticism from viewers who described her as "ordinary" and undeserving of the title.^[8] In 2019, Yasmine al-Hawari won the contest.^[9]

In 2020, Syria made its debut in Miss Earth with the entry of model Tia Alkerdi, who won Miss Earth Syria.^[10] The country would be placed in the 2021 competition through the entry of Sanaa Atia.^[11]

Year	Miss World Syria	Placement at Miss World	Special Awards	Notes
Did not compete since 1967—present
1967	Maha Bayrakdar	Did not compete
1966	Feryelle Jalal	Unplaced
1965	Raymonde Doucco	Unplaced
Did not compete between 1954—1964
1953	Betchamer Minnie	Did not compete
1952	Leila Teresa Tuma	Did not compete

Year	Miss Earth Syria	Placement at Miss Earth	Special Awards	Notes
Did not compete since 2022—present
2021	Sanaa Atia	Unplaced
2020	Tia Alkerdi	Unplaced