In the book titled 'History of Our Lady of Hakleh Monastary', by Father
Antonious Hattouni ( 1986, Imprimerie Byblos, Jbeil, Lebanon), the author describes the history of this monastary,
and, at the same time, the history of the Dib family, and its legacy in that monastary. Father Hattouni says "the Dib family tree of
Dlebta has long branches, coronated by flowers. Its roots are still in
Aakoura and is very old".
The family originated in Aakoura in the mountains of the Jbeil (Byblos) region in Lebanon and later, in the year
1610, settled in Dlebta in the Kesrewan region. Belonging to to this Dib family, according to Father Hattouni,
are the families "Zouein" and "Douein", and also there are
"Dib" branches in Dlebta, and "Mhanna" in Becheeli and Lehfed
(Jbeil) and Tripoli, and Bhennes and Edde (Batorun), and Mazzraat Kfer Zebian, and Hrajel, and Kleiaat, and Haret Sakhr
and Ghadir, and Sarba, and Baskenta, and Deir el Ahmar, and Hoch Bardt, etc.. and from it, the family of
"Sabounji" in Belat (Jbeil ?).
From this great Dib Mhanna family descend many priests, monks, and nuns, and most recently Boutros Dib
, the late Maronite Bishop of Cairo, Egypt (1881-1965). This family, according to Father Hattouni, has a branch that settled in Tripoli, Lebanon. Khoury Hanna (Fares) Dib of Tripoli, used to say that in his family there were more than 40 priests, monks, and nuns. The Hanna Dib family of Tripoli had only two priests, so we can infer that Khoury Hanna was talking about the Dib Mhanna family as his extended family. In addition to the Maronite Hanna Dib family of Tripoli, the marriage records of St Michael church in Koubbeh, Tripoli,show that there was in Koubbeh some Abdallah son of Ibrahim Mhanna, whose daughter Susan married in 1912, to a Michael son of Youssef Ibrahim from Memneh, Akkar. This is the only reference I found about a Mhanna in Koubbeh, could it be that this was also a Dib Mhanna from Dlebta ?