As we’ve been discussing Israel’s war on “Palestine”, some say that Palestine does not exist. My research indicates that the concept and reality of Palestine have existed as long as Judaism.

5th century BCE: the historian Herodotus wrote about a ‘district of Syria, called Palaistine between Phonicia and Egypt.

He applied this term to both the coastal and inland from the Judean Mountains to the Jordan Rift Valley. This is sounding a lot like, from the river to the sea, isn’t it?

Later Greek writers also called this land thus, followed by Roman writers amd Roman Judean writers from the 4th century BCE to its 1st century.

Others have noted the renaming of the Roman province of Judaea by Syria Palaestina after Jewish-Roman wars, and triggered by the rebellion. It seems to have been intended to sever Jews from the land.

Perhaps this was at least part of the reason for the Jewish diaspora.

The name followed through the Muslim conquest around 400 AD under the Byzantine empire which used Arabic as its official language. Ottoman Syria Palaestina included Jerusalem, Hebron, Jaffa, Gaza and Beersheba. It was the seventh most populated region of the 36 provinces of the Ottoman Empire. It became an independent Ottoman province in 1872.

The British of the period called the area Palestine and the Ottomans separated Jerusalem to accommodate Christian pilgrims. The population was 84% Muslim Arabs, farmers, merchants, artisans, landowners and money-lenders. There were ecclesiastical leaders, wealthy landowners and high rank civil servants.

Just like anywhere.

Daddy, there is a Palestine…

Daddy, where is Palestine?

Texas.