The Archaeology of Palestine

1949

Brasch DS111 AA63

Harmondsworth, Middlesex: Penguin

Palestine is a geographic region, usually considered to include the Gaza Strip, the West Bank, Israel, and in some definitions, parts of western Jordan. Throughout history, the boundaries have changed, and because of this, and the influx of various people, there was some language variation. About 1400 B.C. Babylonian cuneiform was the language of official documents in Palestine. Around Petra (originally Raqmu, southern Jordan), about the time of Jesus Christ, inscriptions were in standard Aramaic, yet Arabic was spoken. Indeed, somewhat simplistically, the succession goes: Hebrew, Aramaic, then Arabic. In Canaanite, Bethlehem was ‘The Temple of the God Lakhmu’; in Hebrew and Aramaic ‘House of Bread’; and in Arabic ‘House of Flesh’. The chart on display offers comparative symbols, hieroglyphics and letters showing the development of the alphabet.