EARLY HISTORY

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The Early History of Palestine (Before World War I)

Some of the earliest known civilizations sprang up in the Middle. The land area of Palestine was the site of ancient human habitation even before Biblical times. On this page, we will cover many of the "origin" questions about the situation in Palestine before the modern era. Here is an index of the topics on this page:

• Where did the name Palestine come from?
• What was the extent of Palestine in Biblical times?
• What is the evidence for the antiquity of Israel?
• Who were the original inhabitants of Palestine?
• When did the Jews come to Palestine?
• What do the names Judea and Samaria refer to?
• What is the Arab history in Palestine?
• When did Islam come to Palestine?
• What was the history of Palestine between Biblical times and the modern era?
• What is the significance of Jerusalem to Jews and Muslims?
• What is Zionism and who are the Zionists?
• What is Aliyah?
• Who, besides Jews, supported the Zionist's ideas?
• Who were the inhabitants of Palestine before the Zionists?
• What about Christians in Palestine?
• How did the Zionists acquire land in Palestine?
• What was the impact of the Zionists on Palestine?

Biblical and Koranic references may be checked using these marvelous resources from the Electronic Text Center at the University of Virginia Library:

• Holy Bible, Revised Standard Version
• Holy Bible, King James Version
• The Koran

For more information about the geography and population facts of Palestine, see the Geography and Population Basics topic page.

Sources and additional reading on this topic:

• Rights of the Jewish People to a Sovereign State in their Historic Homeland - Dore Gold and Jeff Helmreich
• Cornell University Library Middle East & Islamic Studies Collection.
• History of Israel, from 1850-present
• Brief History of Israel and the Jewish People
• The God that did not fail
• A Brief History of Palestine