The Holy Land
According to the TorahThe Jewish holy book (bible)., a very small piece of land (smaller than the size of Wales) in the Middle East was promised to Abraham and his descendants by God. This land, then called CanaanThe name of the country now called Israel, in biblical times., is now called Israel.
Jewish people have lived in this land for almost 3,500 years and have always called it their homeland. At various points in this long history, Jews were forcibly thrown out of the land of Israel by ruling empires but there was always a majority who wanted to return.
The land has had different names over thousands of years starting with Canaan. Jews call it Eretz Yisrael (the Land of Israel). The name ‘Israel’ means ‘Struggle with God’ – a name given to Jacob in the Torah.
The land has been ruled by different people over time. In the times of the Babylonian rule and the start of the Roman rule, the land was known as JudeaThe biblical and modern name for the area of land covering much of central Israel including Jerusalem and the Palestinian controlled West Bank. The name originates from the tribe of Judah. and Samaria. Jewish life centred around a TempleA huge complex that stood in Jerusalem. It was the centre of Jewish religious life from about 1200 BCE – 70 CE. in Jerusalem. Around the year 135 CE (after the destruction of the second TempleA huge complex that stood in Jerusalem. It was the centre of Jewish religious life from about 1200 BCE – 70 CE.) the Romans changed the name of the land to ‘Syria Palaestina’. Most (not all) Jews were forced out of the land.
The British government was in charge of the land from 1917 to 1948. It was then given the name British Mandate Palestine (see the Israel Timeline for more details).
Despite all the changes to the land, with changing rulers and cultures in the country, evidence of Jewish life over all this time can be found all over Israel, for example:
The idea that there should be a Jewish state in the Land of Israel is called ZionismThe idea that Jews have the right to rule themselves in their ancient homeland.. Since the 1800s, waves of Zionists have returned to their ancestral homeland, building it up physically and culturally. (See the Timeline of Israel History for an overview of the various waves of immigration.)
