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Philistia [a] was a confederation of five main cities or pentapolis in the Southwest Levant, made up of principally Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, Gath, and for a time, Jaffa (part of present-day Tel Aviv).
This is the land that still remains: all the regions of the Philistines and all those of the Geshurites from Shihor, which is east of Egypt, northward to the boundary of Ekron. Joshua 13:13 counts it the border city of the Philistines and seat of one of the five Philistine city lords, and Joshua 15:11 mentions Ekron's satellite towns and villages.
The population of the area associated with Philistines is estimated to have been around 25,000 in the 12th century BC, rising to a peak of 30,000 in the 11th century BC. [151] The Canaanite nature of the material culture and toponyms suggest that much of this population was indigenous, such that the migrant element would likely constitute less ...
The term Levant appears in English in 1497, and originally meant 'the East' or 'Mediterranean lands east of Italy'. [23] It is borrowed from the French levant 'rising', referring to the rising of the sun in the east, [23] or the point where the sun rises. [24] The phrase is ultimately from the Latin word levare, meaning 'lift, raise'.
Following the Muslim conquest of the Levant in the 630s, the military district of Jund Filastin was established. While Palestine's boundaries have changed throughout history, it has generally comprised the southern portion of regions such as Syria or the Levant.
Gath was a common placename in ancient Israel and the surrounding regions. Various cities are mentioned in the Bible with such names as Gath of the Philistines, Gath-Gittaim, and Gath Carmel (Ginti-kirmil).
Anatomically modern Homo sapiens are demonstrated at the area of Mount Carmel [8] in Canaan during the Middle Paleolithic dating from c. 90,000 BC.These migrants out of Africa seem to have been unsuccessful, [9] and by c. 60,000 BC in the Levant, Neanderthal groups seem to have benefited from the worsening climate and replaced Homo sapiens, who were possibly confined once more to Africa.
By the beginning of the 12th century BCE, the Philistines, generally thought to have been one of the Sea Peoples, ruled the city. During their reign, the city prospered and was a member of the Philistine Pentapolis ('five cities'), [14] which included Ashkelon and Gaza on the coast and Ekron and Gath farther inland, in addition to Ashdod.