History of Palestine

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Maps of Ottoman Palestine showing the Kaza subdivisions.

Part of a series on the
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)
Islamic rule Muslim conquest Rashidun (Jund Filastin, Jund al-Urdunn) Umayyad Abbasid Fatimid Crusader Ayyubid Mamluk Ottoman
Modern era Mandatory Palestine Nakba All-Palestine Jordanian West Bank Egyptian Gaza Strip Israel State of Israel Military Governorate Israeli Civil Administration State of Palestine (Palestinian enclaves; Palestinian Authority; West Bank; Gaza Strip)
v t e

Strategically situated between three continents, the region of Palestine (also known as the Land of Israel and the Holy Land) has a tumultuous history as a crossroads for religion, culture, commerce, and politics. Palestine is the birthplace of Judaism and Christianity, and has been controlled by many kingdoms and powers, including Ancient Egypt, Ancient Israel and Judah, the Persian Empire, Alexander the Great and his successors, the Hasmoneans, the Roman Empire, several Muslim caliphates, and the crusaders.

In modern times, the area was ruled by the Ottoman Empire, then the British Empire. Since 1948 it has been divided into Israel, the West Bank, and the Gaza Strip.