A Palestinian city is one of the oldest cities in the world

Jericho is the oldest city in the world

Jericho is one of the oldest cities in the history of all mankind, and some disagree about the title of the oldest city in the world. Some historians tend to think that it is Jericho, and some attribute this title to the Syrian city of Damascus, but this difference does not negate anything from the splendor of Jericho, its history, and its extended civilizations. Throughout history, let’s get to know more about Jericho.

Jericho site and the origin of its name

Jericho is a Palestinian city located west of the Jordan River, near the north of the Dead Sea and about 16 kilometers from it, at a level of 250 meters below sea level. Jericho is the eastern front of Palestine and connects to the Amman-Jerusalem road, 38 kilometers from Jerusalem to the north, and from the city of Hebron 70 km.

The origin of the name of the city is due to the origin of Sami, it was named after Jericho bin Malik bin Arnakhshid bin Sam bin Noah, and in the language of the Canaanites the word Jericho means the moon, and in the language of southern Arabia means a month or moon, and it is derived from the verb Yehruh or Jericho, but in The Syriac language means the smell or fragrance, and was mentioned in the Torah in the name of Jericho as the oldest city in the world.

Jericho History

Jericho is originally a Canaanite city, dating back to the estimate of archaeologists 10-10 thousand years ago, that is, before the eighth millennium BC.
In the beginnings of the civilization of Jericho, the culture of agriculture and the construction of stable housing appeared, and was characterized by small houses in a circular shape, and its inhabitants relied on hunting and growing grains, and they were known to bury the dead on the floors of buildings.

Between 1750-1600 B.C., the Hyksos attacked Jericho, and the Israelites attacked it at the hands of Joshua bin Nun in 1188 B.C., and burned it and eliminated its inhabitants, until Moabis came and drove the Jews out of it under the leadership of King Ajlun.

Later the Crusaders invaded Palestine, subjected Jericho to their rule, and it was the center of the Crusader royal army, but they left it when they heard of the coming of Saladin and his army.

Christianity was spreading in Jericho in the fourth century AD, and in the seventh century AD, Jericho became subject to the Umayyads under the rule of Muawiyah bin Abi Sufyan, and the period of Umayyad rule followed by the invasions of the Seljuk Turks and the Crusaders, until Salah al-Din al-Ayyubi was defeated in 1187 CE and expelled the Crusaders after a victory Muslims in the battle of Hattin, as was the rule of the Ottomans as well.

The city of Jericho recently

At the end of the First World War, Jericho became under the British Mandate, and in 1948 AD, the Jordanian kingdom liberated Jericho and annexed it to Jordan at the popular request for the unity of the two banks in 1950.

Then Jericho fell under the Israeli occuAl Bahahn in 1967 AD, and in 1994 AD it was the first Palestinian city to be handed over to the Palestinian National Authority in accordance with the Oslo agreements.

In 2001, the Israeli occuAl Bahahn of Jericho was repeated, but it returned to the rule of the Palestinian National Authority.

Jericho monuments and monuments

• Sultan Hill: It is the oldest district in Jericho.
• Sugar mills.
• Hisham’s Palace: It was built by the Umayyad Caliph Hisham bin Abdul Malik.
• The shrine of the Prophet Moses, peace be upon him.