This article treats of Palestine as a geographical area , for the other uses of the Palestine term, to see Palestine (homonymy).

Palestine (derivative of the Greek: Palaistina , by the Latin form: Palaestina , Arabic: فلسطين '' Filastīn '', in Hebrew: פלשתינה) is an area of the the Middle East, located between the Mediterranean and the desert at the East of the the Jordan. The Juif S name it Eretz Israel (Ground of Israel) and the Chrétiens Holy Land . According to the times, this designation corresponds to a narrower coastal strip or on the contrary also extends beyond the Jordan. She today is mainly inhabited by Arab and Juifs and includes/understands the State of Israel, the Palestinian Territoires and the Kingdom of Jordan.

Uses of the term “Palestine”

History of the use of the term “Palestine”

In the French language, the term “Palestine” has been used for several centuries to indicate the territory located geographically between the sea the Mediterranean and the river of the the Jordan.

The term “Palestine” has a long story and generally indicated - in the Western languages - an administrative or political division of an empire, since the Roman epoch until the Othoman time then under the British mandate, except notable for the time of the Croisades during which it was called “Holy Land” by the crusaders.

In archeology , one employs the word “Palestine” to indicate the whole of the area, independently of the time that one considers (Neolithic, Bronze Ages, ages of iron). One employs, with the same direction, the word “Palestinians” to indicate the whole of the populations of the area. One thus speaks, in archeology, of Syria and Palestine, Syrians and Palestinians.

The historian Felix Abel, father Dominican at the Biblical School of Jerusalem, writes that the name Palestine extended at the time of Hérodote of the coastal strip inhabited by the Philistines with the country inhabited by the Jews " Thus territory of the Philistines, the name of Palestine extended to all the back country which forms Syria Méridionale. By a familiar process with old one applied to the whole country the name of the most accessible tribe nearest and… " I.e. the name Palestine was used first of all by people coming from the Occident, by the Greeks.

Antiquity

The name “Palestine” derives from that of the Philistins , people which lived on part of the coastal strip of the the Mediterranean of south-east, between the end of the Bronze Age and the beginning of the Âge of Iron. The Philistines are known little about, because they did not use the writing. One has references to these people in Egyptian documents (which make of them one of the “Peuples of the sea” invaders of Egypt under Ramsès III) and indicates by “Peleset” (P-l-s-t) the area which they live. The Philistines and their country “Peleshet” (פלשת Pəléšeth) are also mentioned in the Bible (which also speaks about “at the same time former and close Cananéens” compared to the “Philistines”): according to the text, the Hebrew were regularly in war with these people whose main cities were Ashdod, Ashkelon, Ekron, Gath and Gaza.

Those which prefer the name Israel to call this ground, denounce the use of the term “Palestine” in reference to the Philistins like a false history. The biblical reference mentions “Peleshet” only at the time of the wars between Hebrews and Philistines and speaks about these people which live some cities in the surroundings of Ashkelon and not the whole of the ground between the river and the sea which is known like “Pays of Canaan” then “Eretz Israel”. The use of the word “Palestine” would come from the Romans who pointed out the name of the Philistines to baptize this ground “Syria Palæstina”, with an aim of erasing even in the name the memory of the Jews and the Jewish States which were succédé< there! -- “succeeded”: the verb employed intransitively or into transitive direct, never agrees in kind nor of number -->.

Under the Roman domination, the second Jewish revolt (132 - 135) leads to the expulsion of the Jews of Jerusalem (Hadrian). Jerusalem is named “Aelia Capitolina” and the area is integrated in the province of “Syria Palestine” ( Syria Palæstina ), new denomination, is copied on the Greek, of what was called before in Latin Syria Judaea (“Syria Judaea” or “Jewish Syria”). In the nonbiblical texts, the term of “Palestine” ( Palaïstinê ) appears for the first time under the feather of the Greek historian Hérodote , with the O C ( Histoires , 1,105; 2,104; etc). Ptolémée and, later, in Latin, Pline Old the also speaks about “Palestine”, always dependant at the end “Syria”. The term is used in reference to the former people of the Philistines.

After the defeat of the Jewish revolt known as of Bar Kokhba, the Romans changed the name of the province of Judaea into province of “Syria Palaestina” (year 135). I.e., the Roman province of “Syria Palestine” included/understood the old province of Judaea. The geographical use of the term indicated territories in the West and the East of the Jordan. Later, the Arab term (“Filastin”) indicated, of the Arab conquest until the Crusades, part of Roman Palestine that the Romans called Palaestina Prima. After the Crusades, the Empires Mameluke and Othoman did not use the name " Palestine" in any form, but after the First World War, the Powers main allies applied the name to the territory of the Jewish national Hearth (San Remo, 1920) under British Mandat. The name (“Palestine”) perdure, even if it took a political direction and lost part of its neutrality, especially after the creation of the State of Israel in 1948. In particular, certain Israelis and/or Juifs perceive in the use of the term “Palestine” a refusal of the effective existence of the State of Israel on part of this territory, or its legitimacy on this same ground. And the fact of indicating by “Palestine” a possible Arab State future on the occupied Palestinian Territoires increases for them this confusion. However, the continuous Arab part to call Palestine either the area in its entirety, or only the Gaza Strip and the the West Bank, while the term “Palestinians” is adopted to indicate the descendants of the inhabitants of Palestine before the beginning of the Israeli-Arab Conflit, including often the Arab inhabitants of Israeli citizenship and the Jews which go down from the families which lived well in Palestine before the Jewish immigrations of the 20th century (like the Samaritain S, the Jewish residents of Péki' in even theorthodoxe ones affiliated with the Neturei Karta of Jerusalem.

Towards 390, the term of “Palestine” is re-used to name the three administrative subdivisions of the territory of Palestine:

  • Palestine First ( Palaestina Preceded ) has as a chief town Césarée and includes/understands the Judaea, the Samarie, the Pérée, and the Mediterranean coast;
  • Palestine Second ( Palaestina Secunda ) has as a Scythopolis chief town and includes/understands the Galileo, the low plain of Jézréel, the valley of the the Jordan in the east of Galileo, and the west of Décapole;
  • Palestine Third ( Palaestina Tertia ) has as a chief town Pétra and includes/understands the Negev, the south of the Jordan (detached of the province of Arabia), and the west of the the Sinai.

The Middle Ages

The Arabs divide the province of ash-Sham (Syria) into five districts ( jund ), of which one keeps the name of “Palestine” (فلسطين, Filastīn ) and extends from the the Sinai until Akko (future Saint-Jean-in Acre); its chief town is initially Ludd (Lydda, Lod) then, as of 717, rear-Ramlah (Ramla) and later Jerusalem. The other most important cities are Rafah, Gaza, Jaffa, Césarée, Nablus and Jericho. This district of “Palestine” was bordered in north and the east by that of “Jordan” ( Al-Urdunn ), which had as a capital Tibériade and included Akko and Tyr. The borders between these two districts have several times varied during the history. As from the 10th century, this division started to fall in disuse, to finally make place with the Latin Royaume of Jerusalem.

The name of “Palestine” does not have any more an official value under the government of the Croisés, which create the Latin Kingdom of Jerusalem; Jerusalem becomes again capital of a State. See the article Kingdom of Jerusalem.

After the defeat and the departure of the Cross , with 12th and 13th centuries, the jund (districts) arabo-Moslems are reintroduced, but their borders are unceasingly redefined. At the end of the 13th century, the “Syria” is divided into 9 “kingdoms”, of which kingdoms of Gaza (with Ascalon and Hebron), Karak (with Jaffa), Safed (with Acre, Tyr and Sidon) and Damas (with inter alia, in the south, Jerusalem). In the middle of the 14th century, the system of the districts is re-established and Filastin becomes again the official name of a territory: a district having for chief town Jerusalem (with the towns of Ramla, Ascalon, Hebron, Nablus). Tibériade is the chief town of another district, that of “Hauran”.

Modern time

The name of “Palestine” loses its official value under the Ottoman Empire. The local population continues to use familiarly or semi-officially “ Filastin ” and the term of “Palestine” remains of use in Europe, like geographical term. At the 19th century, the Othoman government starts to use the term of “ground of Palestine” ( Arz-i Filistin ) in its official correspondence, to indicate the zone located between the the Mediterranean and the the Jordan. This use reflects that of the Arab population , which sometimes, seems it, uses Filastin to indicate the only district ( sandjak ) of Jerusalem.

Contemporary time

The Déclaration Balfour (1917) states: the government of Its Majesty favorably considers the establishment in Palestine of a national hearth for the Jewish people . The term of “Palestine” indicated, in the spirit of this declaration, not only current the West Bank, but also Transjordanie. The name of Palestine becomes again however of use under the British mandate then with the plane of division of UNO in 1947, but recovers nothing any more but the grounds ranging between the Mediterranean and the Jordan as from 1920.

Current meanings

  • For the Jewish people , this territory is named Eretz Israel . Certain Jews (in particular Haredim) regard it as a biblical heritage . Others (known as Zionism assert it (in all or partly) to constitute their State there.

  • the fact that the Jewish State in Palestine is called “Israel” (and its inhabitants “Israeli”) led to reserve today the term of “Palestinians” with the population of the State of “Palestine”. On the contrary a small portion of the Israeli and unquestionable Jews Arab of Palestine assert the division of this ground, without reference of religion or ethnic origin.

  • the political direction of the term appeared with the proclamation of a “State of Palestine” by PLO with Algiers in 1988; only certain States recognized it. But this name is taken again to indicate today the State always asserted by the Palestinians. For some of them, it will be about a State which will extend on the “occupied Palestinian Territoires” by Israel (Gaza and the West Bank, including Jerusalem-Is). For others, the goal of this State would be to cover the whole of geographical “Palestine”. This State is envisaged by the United Nations and should be born in several stages at the conclusion of negotiations and concessions of the two parts, which were defined by the “Roadmap for peace”. Certain Israeli currents refuse a new partition of Jerusalem and the withdrawal of Israel of the totality of what they recall as being the ancient Judaea-Samarie. The “Palestinian autonomous territories” and the “Palestinian Autorité” which manages them would constitute the starting point for the formation of this future State. Taken in this recent direction, the term received an official recognition with the United Nations since a seat of observer was allotted under the denomination of “Palestine” to the Liberation organization of Palestine as an organization representing the Palestinian people.

  • In a religious context , this same territory is also called “Holy Land” by the Christians or “Erets Israel” by the Jews and recovers the whole of the territories described by the Bible. This area is known in the text under the name of Pays of Canaan then of Ground of Israel. This territory also known in Coran and among Moslems under the name of is crowned.

History

For a detailed chronology and indications, to see the article History of Palestine

Hinge between the valley of the the Nile and the “ground between the rivers” (Mésopotamie), the country was inhabited since of the millenia and knew the presence of many dominations of empires and mixing of people. Chronologically, he knew the domination of: (Philistines) Cananéen S, Hebrew X, Assyrian S, Persian S, Greek S, Roman, Byzantine, Arab S, Cross, Othoman and British. It is the stake of a conflict which has extended for one century between Juifs and Arabs, which implies the three religions monotheists which see in this country a “Holy Land”.

Some big steps

  • the period cananéenne goes from the beginning of the OJ at the end of the

  • the Hebrew period goes from the beginning of to 587 av. J. - C. (taken Jerusalem and destruction of the 1st Temple by Nabuchodonosor II).
  • the Babylonian period then Perse goes from 587 av. J. - C. with 333 av. J. - C. which begin with the deportation from the Jews towards Babylon.
  • the period of the independent Judaea hasmonéenne goes from -140 to 36 av. J. - C.
  • the Roman period followed Byzantine period (as of 324), goes from 63 av. J. - C. to 638, marked by the birth of the Christianisme and by the destruction of the Temple (and by the expulsion of the Jews).
  • the first Moslem period goes from 638 to 1099.
  • the period of the Croisades goes from 1099 to 1291.
  • the Othoman period goes from 1291 to 1917, including the Napoleonean bracket.
  • the British period (mandate as of 1920) goes from 1917 to 1948.
  • the contemporary period is marked by the creation of the State of Israel in 1948, the occupation of the the West Bank and Gaza by the Transjordanie and the Egypt (of 1948 with 1967) then by Israel since 1967. See more generally the israélo-Palestinian Conflict .

Geography

See also: occupied Palestinian Territories

Demography

Part of the population, of Arab origin, which lived in Palestine before the beginning of the Israeli-Arab Conflit took, in the modern history, the name of “Palestinian people”, in reference to this name, although a Palestinian state with properly never spoke existed.

Part of the population is Israeli today, and includes/understands in addition to Arab Juifs, , and among them, of the groups of various religious confessions.

More:

  • Zionism
  • a selection of texts on Israel and Palestine

Ground of religions

Palestine is the cradle of three great religions monotheists, the Judaism, Christianity and Islam. Since centuries, all cross and are found on the ground of Palestine, ground highly crowned and responsible for symbols for these three great religions. Places of worship and veneration are scattered on all this historical territory: Jerusalem, Hebron, Bethlehem, Safed, Jericho, the Lac of Tibériade are as many names of cities and places which make vibrate religious fiber of hundreds of million people in the world.

See too

Palestine (area, terminology, general history)

Palestine (Arab)

Israel

Israeli-Arab and “israélo-Palestinian” Conflict

External bonds

  • Gaza: life out of cage Internet site of the reports carried out by the journalists Jerome Equer and Herve Kempf on the daily life of the inhabitants of Gaza.
  • Research on the frontier relations of which a part in the Middle East
  • Palestine and Palestinians a series of documentary and films on Palestine, its history and the life with the daily newspaper of its people.
  • Psychoanalysis of Palestinian violence
    • protection-Palestinian
  • CCIPPP
  • a selection of texts on Israel and Palestine

Bonds sources

  • the Palestinian refugees throughout the world

  • the israélo-Palestinian conflict and Jerusalem
  • Situation of the women in Palestine
  • the United Nations and the question of Palestine, booklet published by the Department of the information of UNO
  • Paul Berthoud, Palestine ravaged active former executive of the United Nations to the Middle-East, Paul Berthoud delivers his reflections over these 7 last years of the conflict, in particular since the prospect for the history and the international law.
  • Israel and Palestine: On the way towards peace? Video online of a debate between four academics montréalais, in particular on the convergent of the public opinions Israeli and Palestinian evolution.
  • Reportage of the ORTF on the origin of the conflict Files televised INA going back to 1963.
  • the history of the names of Palestine, Ground of Israel, Judaea, etc (in English).

Be-X-old: Палестына Simple: Palestine Zh-min-nan: Filastiniyya Zh-yue: 巴勒斯坦

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