Philistia

Philistia
1175 BC–604 BC
Philistia in red, and neighbouring polities, circa 830 BC, after the Hebrew conquest of Jaffa, and before its recapture by the Philistines circa 730 BC.
Common languages	Philistine Canaanite Aramaic (from the 6th c. BC)
Religion	Canaanite religion
Demonym(s)	Philistine
Government	Confederation
Historical era	Iron Age
• Late Bronze Age collapse	1175 BC
• Babylonian conquest of the Levant	604 BC
Preceded by Succeeded by Canaanites Neo-Assyrian Empire
Today part of	Israel  Palestine  Egypt

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Early history Prehistoric Levant Kebaran Mushabian Natufian Harifian Yarmukian Lodian Nizzanim Ghassulian Canaan Retjenu Habiru Shasu Late Bronze Age collapse
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History of Palestine
Prehistory Natufian culture Pre-Pottery Tahunian Ghassulian Jericho
Ancient history Canaan Phoenicia Egyptian Empire Ancient Israel and Judah (Israel, Judah) Philistia Philistines Neo-Assyrian Empire Neo-Babylonian Empire Achaemenid Empire
Classical period Seleucus Antigonus Hasmonean dynasty Herodian kingdom Province of Judea Syria Palaestina Byzantine Empire (Palaestina Prima / Secunda)
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Philistia (Hebrew: פְּלֶשֶׁת, romanized: Pəlešeṯ; Koine Greek (LXX): Γῆ τῶν Φυλιστιείμ, romanized: gê tôn Phulistieím) was a confederation of five main cities or pentapolis in the Southwest Levant, made up of principally Gaza, Ashkelon, Ashdod, Ekron, and Gath, and for a time, Jaffa.^[1][2]

Scholars believe the Philistines were made up of people of an Aegean background that from roughly 1200 BC onwards settled in the area and mixed with the local Canaanite population,^[3][4] and came to be known as Peleset, or Philistines. At its maximum territorial expansion, its territory may have stretched along the Canaanite coast from Arish in the Sinai (today's Egypt) to the Yarkon River (today's Tel Aviv), and as far inland as Ekron and Gath. Nebuchadnezzar II invaded Philistia in 604 BC, burned Ashkelon, and incorporated the territory in the Neo-Babylonian Empire; Philistia and its native population the Philistines disappear from the historic record after that year.