Syria as a country is still relatively young, but people have been living in the region known as Syria since ancient times. During the classical eras of human history, Syria itself has been controlled by a wide variety of peoples. Some of the most common examples include the Babylonians, the Egyptians, the Hittites, and the Sumerians. All of them are considered to have left their mark on Syria, but they are largely looked at as separate from the history of Syria as a country. It is believed that people have lived in Syria for tens of thousands of years, but not everyone left behind a written history, which means that we are left to postulate what happened in Syria based on the information from archaeological digs.
During the history of Syria, its land has been controlled by some of the biggest empires on Earth. For example, the Persians controlled the land on which Syria sits today for a number of years. The influence of Persia can still be seen in the culture of Syria to this day. In addition, the Greeks controlled Syria when they were at the height of their power, and the country was a part of the empire of Alexander the Great. Finally, Syria was also controlled by the Romans. Eventually, during the 5th century AD, the empire of Rome would fall, and the empire would lose its grip on Syria as well, leading to a tumultuous era in its history.
Syria, as a modern country, is considered to have started in 1945. In October of that year, the United Nations Charter was signed by the Syrian government. Prior to this time, France was in control of Syria; however, following the end of World War II, France was at the whims of the United States, which had led the allies to victory, and the United States would be supporting France during the Cold War. The United States was pushing for independence and self-determination, which meant that the USA was pushing France to give up control of its overseas territories, which includes Syria.
For a short time, Syria merged with Egypt to create the United Arab Republic. This took place in 1958, but Syria decided that it was not going to work, and the country changed its mind in 1961. The end result was that Syria and Egypt became split again. Since 1963, the Baath party has been in control of Syria. This means that the Assad family has been the de facto ruler of Syria itself since 1970. Right now, Syria is in the midst of a bloody Civil War, and it is one of the most dangerous places in the world. It is widely believed that there have been a number of human rights violations committed during the war, and both the United States and Russia have tried to intervene.
The country of Syria is 78 years old, founded in the year 1946.