Batanaea or Batanea (the Hellenized/Latinised form of
Bashan
Bashan (; he, הַבָּשָׁן, translit=ha-Bashan; la, Basan or ''Basanitis'') is the ancient, biblical name used for the northernmost region of the Transjordan during the Iron Age. It is situated in modern-day Syria. Its western part, now ...
) was an area of the
Biblical Holy Land, north-east of the
Jordan River
The Jordan River or River Jordan ( ar, نَهْر الْأُرْدُنّ, ''Nahr al-ʾUrdunn'', he, נְהַר הַיַּרְדֵּן, ''Nəhar hayYardēn''; syc, ܢܗܪܐ ܕܝܘܪܕܢܢ ''Nahrāʾ Yurdnan''), also known as ''Nahr Al-Shariea ...
, to the west of
Trachonitis.
History
Bataneaea was one of the four post-
Exile
Exile is primarily penal expulsion from one's native country, and secondarily expatriation or prolonged absence from one's homeland under either the compulsion of circumstance or the rigors of some high purpose. Usually persons and peoples suf ...
divisions of the area of Bashan.
Today, Batanaea is more commonly called Nuqrah, and runs north-south along the east side of the
Lejah (Trachonitis) and the
Hauran
The Hauran ( ar, حَوْرَان, ''Ḥawrān''; also spelled ''Hawran'' or ''Houran'') is a region that spans parts of southern Syria and northern Jordan. It is bound in the north by the Ghouta oasis, eastwards by the al-Safa field, to the s ...
(Auranitis), from
Salkhad
Salkhad ( ar, صَلْخَد, Ṣalḫad) is a Syrian city in the As-Suwayda Governorate, southern Syria.
It is the capital of Salkhad District, one of the governorate's three districts. It has a population of 15,000 inhabitants.
It is located a ...
on the south, to Tells Khaledyeh and Asfar on the north. It is, on average, 12 miles wide, and for 30 miles along it extends the
Gebel Hauran, a range of hills, whose central plateau is 2670 ft. above sea level and whose highest point is 6400 ft. Its highest peak may be the "Hill of Basan" referred to in .
In the 1st century BCE the land was acquired by
Herod the Great
Herod I (; ; grc-gre, ; c. 72 – 4 or 1 BCE), also known as Herod the Great, was a Roman Jewish client king of Judea, referred to as the Herodian kingdom. He is known for his colossal building projects throughout Judea, including his renova ...
. He established a Jewish community there of Jews from Babylon who were brought to Batanaea for the purpose of maintaining order against the banditry of the Trachonites.
Paneas/Caesarea Philippi and the World of the Gospels, John Francis Wilson
/ref> Upon Herod's death in 4 BCE, Batanaea passed to his son Philip
Philip, also Phillip, is a male given name, derived from the Greek (''Philippos'', lit. "horse-loving" or "fond of horses"), from a compound of (''philos'', "dear", "loved", "loving") and (''hippos'', "horse"). Prominent Philips who populariz ...
as part of his inheritance. In some sources Philip is referred to as "Tetrarch of Batanea" with the capital at Caesarea Philippi, though his lands were more extensive than this.
On his death in 34 CE Batanea became briefly part of the Roman province of Syria
Syria ( ar, سُورِيَا or سُورِيَة, translit=Sūriyā), officially the Syrian Arab Republic ( ar, الجمهورية العربية السورية, al-Jumhūrīyah al-ʻArabīyah as-Sūrīyah), is a Western Asian country loc ...
, but in 37 CE was established as a kingdom and passed to king Herod Agrippa I
Herod Agrippa (Roman name Marcus Julius Agrippa; born around 11–10 BC – in Caesarea), also known as Herod II or Agrippa I (), was a grandson of Herod the Great and King of Judea from AD 41 to 44. He was the father of Herod Agrippa II, the ...
, and in 53 CE to his son, king Herod Agrippa II. Following his death, however, it was once again annexed to the Roman province of Syria.
New Testament
D. A. Carson, in his commentary on the Gospel of John
The Gospel of John ( grc, Εὐαγγέλιον κατὰ Ἰωάννην, translit=Euangélion katà Iōánnēn) is the fourth of the four canonical gospels. It contains a highly schematic account of the ministry of Jesus, with seven "sig ...
, says that the " Bethany across the Jordan" of , is actually "Batanaea", transliterated across Aramaic to Greek. Thus it is distinct from the other, more prominent Bethany
Bethany ( grc-gre, Βηθανία,Murphy-O'Connor, 2008, p152/ref> Syriac: ܒܝܬ ܥܢܝܐ ''Bēṯ ʿAnyā'') or what is locally known as Al-Eizariya or al-Azariya ( ar, العيزرية, " laceof Lazarus"), is a Palestinian town in the West ...
in the gospels. This contradicts the general consensus, which is that Bethany across the Jordan is situated on the Jordan River near Jericho
Jericho ( ; ar, أريحا ; he, יְרִיחוֹ ) is a Palestinian city in the West Bank. It is located in the Jordan Valley, with the Jordan River to the east and Jerusalem to the west. It is the administrative seat of the Jericho ...
, on either the east
East or Orient is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from west and is the direction from which the Sun rises on the Earth.
Etymology
As in other languages, the word is formed from the fac ...
or west
West or Occident is one of the four cardinal directions or points of the compass. It is the opposite direction from east and is the direction in which the Sun sets on the Earth.
Etymology
The word "west" is a Germanic word passed into some ...
bank of the river.
Maps
File:Rijk Herodes de Grote.PNG
File:Trachonitis zur Römerzeit.jpg
File:Trachonitis.jpg
File:C+B-Trachonitis-Map.JPG
File:1889 Palestine, geological.jpg
File:1889 Palestine, physical.jpg
File:1889 Palestine in the beginning of the Christian Era.jpg
File:Palestine in the time of Jesus.jpg
File:Near east lrg.jpg
References
{{Reflist
Further reading
Edinburgh New Philosophical Journal
Hebrew Bible regions
Hebrew Bible mountains
New Testament places
Geography of Syria