Mount Tabor ( he, הר תבור) (Har Tavor) is located in
Lower Galilee The Lower Galilee (; ar, الجليل الأسفل, translit=Al Jalil Al Asfal) is a region within the Northern District (Israel), Northern District of Israel. The Lower Galilee is bordered by the Jezreel Valley to the south; the Upper Galilee to t ...
,
Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
, at the eastern end of the
Jezreel Valley
The Jezreel Valley (from the he, עמק יזרעאל, translit. ''ʿĒmeq Yīzrəʿēʿl''), or Marj Ibn Amir ( ar, مرج ابن عامر), also known as the Valley of Megiddo, is a large fertile plain and inland valley in the Northern Distr ...
, west of the
Sea of Galilee
The Sea of Galilee ( he, יָם כִּנֶּרֶת, Judeo-Aramaic: יַמּא דטבריא, גִּנֵּיסַר, ar, بحيرة طبريا), also called Lake Tiberias, Kinneret or Kinnereth, is a freshwater lake in Israel. It is the lowest ...
.
In the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
(
Joshua
Joshua () or Yehoshua ( ''Yəhōšuaʿ'', Tiberian: ''Yŏhōšuaʿ,'' lit. 'Yahweh is salvation') ''Yēšūaʿ''; syr, ܝܫܘܥ ܒܪ ܢܘܢ ''Yəšūʿ bar Nōn''; el, Ἰησοῦς, ar , يُوشَعُ ٱبْنُ نُونٍ '' Yūšaʿ ...
,
Judges
A judge is an official who presides over a court.
Judge or Judges may also refer to:
Roles
*Judge, an alternative name for an adjudicator in a competition in theatre, music, sport, etc.
*Judge, an alternative name/aviator call sign for a membe ...
), Mount Tabor is the site of the
Battle of Mount Tabor between the
Israelite
The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan.
The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stele o ...
army under the leadership of
Barak
Barak ( or ; he, בָּרָק; Tiberian Hebrew: '' Bārāq''; ar, البُراق ''al-Burāq'' "lightning") was a ruler of Ancient Israel. As military commander in the biblical Book of Judges, Barak, with Deborah, from the Tribe of Ephraim, ...
and the army of the
Canaan
Canaan (; Phoenician: 𐤊𐤍𐤏𐤍 – ; he, כְּנַעַן – , in pausa – ; grc-bib, Χανααν – ;The current scholarly edition of the Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus T ...
ite king of
Hazor,
Jabin
Jabin ( he, יָבִין ''Yāḇīn'') is a Biblical name meaning 'discerner', or 'the wise'. It may refer to:
* A king of Hazor at the time of the entrance of Israel into CanaanJoshua 11:1, whose overthrow and that of the northern chiefs with w ...
, commanded by
Sisera
Sisera ( he, סִיסְרָא ''Sîsərā'') was commander of the Canaanite army of King Jabin of Hazor, who is mentioned in of the Hebrew Bible. After being defeated by the forces of the Israelite tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali under the comm ...
.
In Christian tradition, Mount Tabor is the site of the
transfiguration of Jesus
In the New Testament, the Transfiguration of Jesus is an event where Jesus is transfigured and becomes radiant in glory upon a mountain. The Synoptic Gospels (, , ) describe it, and the Second Epistle of Peter also refers to it ().
In these a ...
.
Etymology
The Hebrew name of the, ''tabor'', has long been connected with the name for "navel", ''ṭabbur'', but this is probably due to
popular etymology
A false etymology (fake etymology, popular etymology, etymythology, pseudo-etymology, or par(a)etymology) is a popular but false belief about the origin or derivation of a specific word. It is sometimes called a folk etymology, but this is also a ...
.
In the
Greek
Greek may refer to:
Greece
Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe:
*Greeks, an ethnic group.
*Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family.
**Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor ...
Septuagint
The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond th ...
's translation of the
Book of Jeremiah
The Book of Jeremiah ( he, ספר יִרְמְיָהוּ) is the second of the Latter Prophets in the Hebrew Bible, and the second of the Prophets in the Christian Old Testament. The superscription at chapter Jeremiah 1:1–3 identifies the boo ...
, the name Itabyrium (, ''Itabýrion'') was used for Mount Tabor.
Josephus
Flavius Josephus (; grc-gre, Ἰώσηπος, ; 37 – 100) was a first-century Romano-Jewish historian and military leader, best known for ''The Jewish War'', who was born in Jerusalem—then part of Roman Judea—to a father of priestly d ...
used the same name in his Greek works.
From the connection with the
Transfiguration of Jesus
In the New Testament, the Transfiguration of Jesus is an event where Jesus is transfigured and becomes radiant in glory upon a mountain. The Synoptic Gospels (, , ) describe it, and the Second Epistle of Peter also refers to it ().
In these a ...
, the mountain has been known in the past as the or . It was the
namesake
A namesake is a person, geographic location, or other entity bearing the name of another.
History
The word is first attested around 1635, and probably comes from the phrase "for one's name's sake",
which originates in English Bible translations ...
of
Tabor light
In Eastern Orthodox Christian theology, the Tabor Light ( grc, Φῶς τοῦ Θαβώρ "Light of Tabor", or "Uncreated Light", "Divine Light"; russian: Фаворский свет "Taboric Light"; Georgian: თაბორის ნათე ...
in
Christian theology
Christian theology is the theology of Christianity, Christian belief and practice. Such study concentrates primarily upon the texts of the Old Testament and of the New Testament, as well as on Christian tradition. Christian theology, theologian ...
, of the
Czech
Czech may refer to:
* Anything from or related to the Czech Republic, a country in Europe
** Czech language
** Czechs, the people of the area
** Czech culture
** Czech cuisine
* One of three mythical brothers, Lech, Czech, and Rus'
Places
* Czech, ...
sect of the
Taborites
The Taborites ( cs, Táborité, cs, singular Táborita), known by their enemies as the Picards, were a faction within the Hussite movement in the medieval Lands of the Bohemian Crown.
Although most of the Taborites were of rural origin, they ...
, and of numerous other settlements and institutions.
The Arabic form of the name is (, ) or "Mount Tur" (, ''Jebel eṭ-Ṭūr''). The name ''Jabal aṭ-Ṭūr'' is shared with
Sinai
Sinai commonly refers to:
* Sinai Peninsula, Egypt
* Mount Sinai, a mountain in the Sinai Peninsula, Egypt
* Biblical Mount Sinai, the site in the Bible where Moses received the Law of God
Sinai may also refer to:
* Sinai, South Dakota, a place ...
and
Mount Gerizim
Mount Gerizim (; Samaritan Hebrew: ''ʾĀ̊rgā̊rīzēm''; Hebrew: ''Har Gərīzīm''; ar, جَبَل جَرِزِيم ''Jabal Jarizīm'' or جَبَلُ ٱلطُّورِ ''Jabal at-Ṭūr'') is one of two mountains in the immediate vicinit ...
.
Geography
![PikiWiki Israel 2262 Geography of Israel תבור](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f6/PikiWiki_Israel_2262_Geography_of_Israel_%D7%AA%D7%91%D7%95%D7%A8.jpg)
Mount Tabor is shaped almost like half a
sphere
A sphere () is a Geometry, geometrical object that is a solid geometry, three-dimensional analogue to a two-dimensional circle. A sphere is the Locus (mathematics), set of points that are all at the same distance from a given point in three ...
, suddenly rising from rather flat surroundings and reaching a height of 575 metres (1,886 feet), thus dominating by a good 450 metres the town in the plain below,
Kfar Tavor
Kfar Tavor ( he, כְּפַר תָּבוֹר, ar, كفر تافور) is a village in the Lower Galilee region of Northern Israel, at the foot of Mount Tabor. Founded in 1901, it was awarded local council status in 1949. In it had a population ...
.
At the top of the mountain are two Christian monasteries, one Greek Orthodox on the northeast side and one Roman Catholic on the southeast side. The Catholic church at the top is easily visible from afar.
The mountain is a
monadnock
An inselberg or monadnock () is an isolated rock hill, knob, ridge, or small mountain that rises abruptly from a gently sloping or virtually level surrounding plain.
In Southern Africa a similar formation of granite is known as a koppie, a ...
: an isolated hill or small mountain rising abruptly from gently sloping or level surrounding land, and is not volcanic. In spite of its proximity to the
Nazareth
Nazareth ( ; ar, النَّاصِرَة, ''an-Nāṣira''; he, נָצְרַת, ''Nāṣəraṯ''; arc, ܢܨܪܬ, ''Naṣrath'') is the largest city in the Northern District of Israel. Nazareth is known as "the Arab capital of Israel". In ...
mountains, it constitutes a separate geological form.
At the base it is almost fully surrounded by the Arab villages of
Daburiyya
Daburiyya ( ar, دبورية; he, דַבּוּרִיָּה), also ''Deburieh'' or ''Dabburieh'', is an Arab local council around east of Nazareth in Israel's Northern District. Daburriya gained local council status in 1961. Its jurisdiction ...
,
Shibli, and Umm al-Ghanam. Mount Tabor is located off
Highway 65, and its summit is accessible by road via Shibli.
A hiking tracks starts from the Bedouin village
Shibli
Shibli may refer to:
* Abu Bakr Shibli, a 9th and 10th century Sufi mystic
* Ahlam Shibli (born 1970), Palestinian artist
* Shibli Nomani (1857–1914), India Muslim scholar
* Shibli, Iran
Shebli ( fa, شبلي, also Romanized as Sheblī; also ...
and is about five kilometers long.
It is part of the
Israel National Trail
The Israel National Trail ( he, שביל ישראל, ''Shvil Yisra'el'') is a hiking path that was inaugurated in 1995. The trail crosses the entire country of Israel. Its northern end is at Dan, near the Lebanese border in the far north of the co ...
.
History
At the bottom of the mountain was an important road junction:
Via Maris
Via Maris is one modern name for an ancient trade route, dating from the early Bronze Age, linking Egypt with the northern empires of Syria, Anatolia and Mesopotamia — along the Mediterranean coast of modern-day Egypt, Israel, Turkey and Syr ...
passed there from the
Jezreel Valley
The Jezreel Valley (from the he, עמק יזרעאל, translit. ''ʿĒmeq Yīzrəʿēʿl''), or Marj Ibn Amir ( ar, مرج ابن عامر), also known as the Valley of Megiddo, is a large fertile plain and inland valley in the Northern Distr ...
northward towards
Damascus
)), is an adjective which means "spacious".
, motto =
, image_flag = Flag of Damascus.svg
, image_seal = Emblem of Damascus.svg
, seal_type = Seal
, map_caption =
, ...
. Its location on the road junction and its bulgy formation above its environment gave Mount Tabor a strategic value and wars were conducted in its area in different periods in history.
Biblical era
The mountain is mentioned for the first time in the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. Hebrew: ''Tān ...
, in , as border of three tribes:
Zebulun
Zebulun (; also ''Zebulon'', ''Zabulon'', or ''Zaboules'') was, according to the Books of Genesis and Numbers,Genesis 46:14 the last of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's tenth son), and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Zebulun. Some ...
,
Issachar
Issachar () was, according to the Book of Genesis, the fifth of the six sons of Jacob and Leah (Jacob's ninth son), and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Issachar. However, some Biblical scholars view this as an eponymous metaphor providing ...
and
Naphtali
According to the Book of Genesis, Naphtali (; ) was the last of the two sons of Jacob and Bilhah (Jacob's sixth son). He was the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Naphtali.
Some biblical commentators have suggested that the name ''Naphtali'' ma ...
. The mountain's importance stems from its strategic control of the junction of the Galilee's north–south route with the east–west highway of the Jezreel Valley.
According to the
Book of Judges
The Book of Judges (, ') is the seventh book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. In the narrative of the Hebrew Bible, it covers the time between the conquest described in the Book of Joshua and the establishment of a kingdom i ...
,
Hazor was the seat of Jabin, the king of Canaan, whose commander,
Sisera
Sisera ( he, סִיסְרָא ''Sîsərā'') was commander of the Canaanite army of King Jabin of Hazor, who is mentioned in of the Hebrew Bible. After being defeated by the forces of the Israelite tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali under the comm ...
, led a Canaanite army against the Israelites.
Deborah
According to the Book of Judges, Deborah ( he, דְּבוֹרָה, ''Dəḇōrā'', " bee") was a prophetess of the God of the Israelites, the fourth Judge of pre-monarchic Israel and the only female judge mentioned in the Bible. Many scholars ...
the Jewish prophetess summoned
Barak
Barak ( or ; he, בָּרָק; Tiberian Hebrew: '' Bārāq''; ar, البُراق ''al-Burāq'' "lightning") was a ruler of Ancient Israel. As military commander in the biblical Book of Judges, Barak, with Deborah, from the Tribe of Ephraim, ...
of the tribe of Naphtali and gave him God's command, "Go and draw toward mount Tabor, and take with thee ten thousand men of the children of Naphtali and of the children of Zebulun" (
Judges
A judge is an official who presides over a court.
Judge or Judges may also refer to:
Roles
*Judge, an alternative name for an adjudicator in a competition in theatre, music, sport, etc.
*Judge, an alternative name/aviator call sign for a membe ...
4:6). Descending from the mountain, the
Israelites
The Israelites (; , , ) were a group of Semitic-speaking tribes in the ancient Near East who, during the Iron Age, inhabited a part of Canaan.
The earliest recorded evidence of a people by the name of Israel appears in the Merneptah Stele o ...
attacked and vanquished
Sisera
Sisera ( he, סִיסְרָא ''Sîsərā'') was commander of the Canaanite army of King Jabin of Hazor, who is mentioned in of the Hebrew Bible. After being defeated by the forces of the Israelite tribes of Zebulun and Naphtali under the comm ...
and the
Canaan
Canaan (; Phoenician: 𐤊𐤍𐤏𐤍 – ; he, כְּנַעַן – , in pausa – ; grc-bib, Χανααν – ;The current scholarly edition of the Greek Old Testament spells the word without any accents, cf. Septuaginta : id est Vetus T ...
ites.
In the
Second Temple period
The Second Temple period in Jewish history lasted approximately 600 years (516 BCE - 70 CE), during which the Second Temple existed. It started with the return to Zion and the construction of the Second Temple, while it ended with the First Jewis ...
(c. 516 BCE – 70 CE), Mount Tabor was one of the mountain peaks on which it was the custom to light
beacon
A beacon is an intentionally conspicuous device designed to attract attention to a specific location. A common example is the lighthouse, which draws attention to a fixed point that can be used to navigate around obstacles or into port. More mode ...
s in order to inform the northern villages of Jewish
holy days
A holiday is a day set aside by custom or by law on which normal activities, especially business or work including school, are suspended or reduced. Generally, holidays are intended to allow individuals to celebrate or commemorate an event or tra ...
and of the beginning of
new months.
Roman era
In 55 BCE, during a
Hasmonean rebellion against the Roman
proconsul
A proconsul was an official of ancient Rome who acted on behalf of a consul. A proconsul was typically a former consul. The term is also used in recent history for officials with delegated authority.
In the Roman Republic, military command, or ' ...
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 ...
,
Aulus Gabinius
Aulus Gabinius (by 101 BC – 48 or 47 BC) was a Roman statesman and general. He was an avid supporter of Pompey who likewise supported Gabinius. He was a prominent figure in the latter days of the Roman Republic.
Career
In 67 BC, when tribune ...
,
Alexander of Judaea
Alexander II ( Gr. , died 48 or 47 BC), or Alexander Maccabeus, was the eldest son of Aristobulus II, king of Judaea. He married his cousin Alexandra Maccabeus, daughter of his uncle, Hyrcanus II. Their grandfather was Alexander Jannaeus, the sec ...
and his army of 30,000 Judeans was defeated in battle at Mount Tabor. As many as 10,000 Jewish fighters were killed in the battle and Alexander was forced to flee, apparently to Syria.
In 66 CE, during the
First Jewish-Roman War
First or 1st is the ordinal form of the number one (#1).
First or 1st may also refer to:
*World record, specifically the first instance of a particular achievement
Arts and media Music
* 1$T, American rapper, singer-songwriter, DJ, and rec ...
, the Galilean Jews retrenched on the mountain under the command of
Yosef Ben Matityahu, better known as Josephus Flavius, the later historian, whence they defended themselves against the Roman assault. ''Itabyrium'', as Josephus calls it, was one of the 19 sites fortified by the rebels in Galilee under his very orders. According to what is written in his book ''
The Wars of the Jews
''The Jewish War'' or ''Judean War'' (in full ''Flavius Josephus' Books of the History of the Jewish War against the Romans'', el, Φλαυίου Ἰωσήπου ἱστορία Ἰουδαϊκοῦ πολέμου πρὸς Ῥωμαίους ...
'',
Vespasian
Vespasian (; la, Vespasianus ; 17 November AD 9 – 23/24 June 79) was a Roman emperor who reigned from AD 69 to 79. The fourth and last emperor who reigned in the Year of the Four Emperors, he founded the Flavian dynasty that ruled the Empi ...
sent an army of 600 riders, under the command of Placidus, who fought the rebels. Placidus understood that he could not reach the top of the steep mountain with his forces, and therefore called the fortified rebels to walk down the mountain. A group of Jewish rebels descended from the mountain, supposedly, in order to negotiate with Placidus, but they attacked him. The Roman forces initially retreated, but while they were in the valley, they returned towards the mountain, attacked the Jewish rebels, killed many of them, and blocked the road for the remaining rebels who tried to flee back to the top of the mountain. Many of the Jewish rebels left Mount Tabor and returned to Jerusalem. The rest of the fortified rebels in the fortress on the mountain surrendered after their water ran out. They then handed over the mountain to Placidus.
After the destruction of the Second Temple, Jewish settlement on Mount Tabor was renewed.
From the late times of the
Roman province Judaea (6–135 CE) and on, the writers of the Christian New Testament relate that Jesus had brought Peter, James, and John his brother into a high mountain apart, and that
Jesus became radiant there. However, none of these accounts identifies the "high mountain" of the scene by name. The earliest identification of the Mount of Transfiguration as Tabor is by
Origen
Origen of Alexandria, ''Ōrigénēs''; Origen's Greek name ''Ōrigénēs'' () probably means "child of Horus" (from , "Horus", and , "born"). ( 185 – 253), also known as Origen Adamantius, was an Early Christianity, early Christian scholar, ...
in the 3rd century. This early speculation is recounted by
St. Cyril of Jerusalem
Cyril of Jerusalem ( el, Κύριλλος Α΄ Ἱεροσολύμων, ''Kýrillos A Ierosolýmon''; la, Cyrillus Hierosolymitanus; 313 386 AD) was a theologian of the early Church. About the end of 350 AD he succeeded Maximus of Jerusalem, ...
and
St. Jerome
Jerome (; la, Eusebius Sophronius Hieronymus; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος Σωφρόνιος Ἱερώνυμος; – 30 September 420), also known as Jerome of Stridon, was a Christian priest, confessor, theologian, and historian; he is com ...
in the 4th century. It is later recounted in the 5th century ''
Transitus Beatae Mariae Virginis''.
Byzantine period
Due to the importance of Mount Tabor in Christian tradition, from the 4th century onward it became a pilgrimage site. According to descriptions of the pilgrims, during the 6th century there were three churches on the top of the mountain.
Early Arab period
During the 8th century there were four churches and a monastery on the mountain. During the
Arab Caliphate period, in 947, a battle occurred on Mount Tabor between different factions over the control of the
Land of Israel
The Land of Israel () is the traditional Jewish name for an area of the Southern Levant. Related biblical, religious and historical English terms include the Land of Canaan, the Promised Land, the Holy Land, and Palestine (see also Isra ...
on behalf of the
Abbasid Caliphate
The Abbasid Caliphate ( or ; ar, الْخِلَافَةُ الْعَبَّاسِيَّة, ') was the third caliphate to succeed the Islamic prophet Muhammad. It was founded by a dynasty descended from Muhammad's uncle, Abbas ibn Abdul-Muttalib ...
.
Crusader, Ayyubid, and Mamluk periods
During the period of the
Crusades
The Crusades were a series of religious wars initiated, supported, and sometimes directed by the Latin Church in the medieval period. The best known of these Crusades are those to the Holy Land in the period between 1095 and 1291 that were in ...
, the mountain changed hands many times between Muslims and Christians. In 1099 the Crusaders fortified the area of the monastery which was on the peak of the mountain, in order to protect the pilgrims from Muslim attacks. In 1101, when Crusaders controlled the area, the
Benedictine
, image = Medalla San Benito.PNG
, caption = Design on the obverse side of the Saint Benedict Medal
, abbreviation = OSB
, formation =
, motto = (English: 'Pray and Work')
, foun ...
monks rebuilt a ruined
basilica
In Ancient Roman architecture, a basilica is a large public building with multiple functions, typically built alongside the town's forum. The basilica was in the Latin West equivalent to a stoa in the Greek East. The building gave its name ...
and erected a fortified abbey.
In 1212 the mountain was occupied by the
Ayyubid
The Ayyubid dynasty ( ar, الأيوبيون '; ) was the founding dynasty of the medieval Sultan of Egypt, Sultanate of Egypt established by Saladin in 1171, following his abolition of the Fatimid Caliphate, Fatimid Caliphate of Egypt. A Sunni ...
Sultan
Sultan (; ar, سلطان ', ) is a position with several historical meanings. Originally, it was an Arabic abstract noun meaning "strength", "authority", "rulership", derived from the verbal noun ', meaning "authority" or "power". Later, it ...
Al-Adil I
Al-Adil I ( ar, العادل, in full al-Malik al-Adil Sayf ad-Din Abu-Bakr Ahmed ibn Najm ad-Din Ayyub, ar, الملك العادل سيف الدين أبو بكر بن أيوب, "Ahmed, son of Najm ad-Din Ayyub, father of Bakr, the Just K ...
who built a large fortress at its top, which was unsuccessfully besieged by the armies of the
Fifth Crusade
The Fifth Crusade (1217–1221) was a campaign in a series of Crusades by Western Europeans to reacquire Jerusalem and the rest of the Holy Land by first conquering Egypt, ruled by the powerful Ayyubid sultanate, led by al-Adil, brother of Sala ...
in 1217, but in 1229 it was again occupied by the Christians. In 1263, the
Mamluk
Mamluk ( ar, مملوك, mamlūk (singular), , ''mamālīk'' (plural), translated as "one who is owned", meaning " slave", also transliterated as ''Mameluke'', ''mamluq'', ''mamluke'', ''mameluk'', ''mameluke'', ''mamaluke'', or ''marmeluke'') ...
ruler
Baibars
Al-Malik al-Zahir Rukn al-Din Baybars al-Bunduqdari ( ar, الملك الظاهر ركن الدين بيبرس البندقداري, ''al-Malik al-Ẓāhir Rukn al-Dīn Baybars al-Bunduqdārī'') (1223/1228 – 1 July 1277), of Turkic Kipchak ...
occupied the fortress and destroyed the buildings on the mountain.
Ottoman era
![Abbud05C](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Abbud05C.jpg)
In 1799, during the time of
Napoleon Bonaparte's Syrian expedition, in the valley between mount Tabor and the Hill of
Moreh
Givat HaMoreh (Hebrew: גבעת המוֹרֶה), in Arabic: Jebel ed-Duhy, is a hill in northern Israel on the northeast side of the Jezreel Valley. The highest peak reaches an altitude of , while the bottom of the Jezreel Valley is situated at ...
, the
Battle of Mount Tabor was fought in which a French force of about 3,000 soldiers under the command of Napoleon and general
Jean Baptiste Kléber
Jean may refer to:
People
* Jean (female given name)
* Jean (male given name)
* Jean (surname)
Fictional characters
* Jean Grey, a Marvel Comics character
* Jean Valjean, fictional character in novel ''Les Misérables'' and its adaptations
* Jean ...
won against an
Ottoman force of about 35,000 soldiers.
At the end of the 19th and the beginning the 20th century, the Bedouin tribe Arab Al-Sabehi settled on the mountain. It was one of the strongest tribes in that region.
State of Israel
During the
1948 Arab–Israeli War
The 1948 (or First) Arab–Israeli War was the second and final stage of the 1948 Palestine war. It formally began following the end of the British Mandate for Palestine at midnight on 14 May 1948; the Israeli Declaration of Independence had ...
members from the Arab Al-Sabehi tribe participated in the army of the
Arab Liberation Army
The Arab Liberation Army (ALA; ar, جيش الإنقاذ العربي ''Jaysh al-Inqadh al-Arabi''), also translated as Arab Salvation Army, was an army of volunteers from Arab countries led by Fawzi al-Qawuqji. It fought on the Arab side in th ...
of
Fawzi al-Qawuqji
Fawzi al-Qawuqji ( ar, فوزي القاوقجي; 19 January 1890 – 5 June 1977) was a leading Arab nationalist military figure in the interwar period.The Arabs and the Holocaust: The Arab-Israeli War of Narratives, by Gilbert Achcar, (NY: Hen ...
and amongst others killed seven members of the
kibbutz
A kibbutz ( he, קִבּוּץ / , lit. "gathering, clustering"; plural: kibbutzim / ) is an intentional community in Israel that was traditionally based on agriculture. The first kibbutz, established in 1909, was Degania. Today, farming h ...
Beit Keshet
Beit Keshet ( he, בֵּית קֶשֶׁת, ''lit.'' House of the Bow) is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located to the east of Nazareth, it falls under the jurisdiction of Lower Galilee Regional Council. As of its population was . It is located ...
.
At the start of May 1948 the
Golani Brigade
The 1st "Golani" Brigade ( he, חֲטִיבַת גּוֹלָנִי) is an Israeli military infantry brigade that is subordinated to the 36th Division and traditionally associated with the Northern Command. It is one of the five infantry brigade ...
occupied Mount Tabor. Most members of the tribe were forced out to
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 ...
and to the Kingdom of
Jordan
Jordan ( ar, الأردن; tr. ' ), officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan,; tr. ' is a country in Western Asia. It is situated at the crossroads of Asia, Africa, and Europe, within the Levant region, on the East Bank of the Jordan Rive ...
, except for one branch of the tribe, the clan of Shibli, whose members refused to leave their land. After the war their village was established, Arab Al-Shibli, which is nowadays part of the village
Shibli-Umm al-Ghanam.
The Bedouin village was admitted as a tourist village by the Israeli government.
Many tribes in the region, like Arab-Al Hieb, began their military cooperation with the Jewish underground forces before the
establishment of the state, in the late 1930s.
Since the late 1960s many of the tribesmen joined the Israeli security forces (such as IDF, Border Guarding Unit and police).
In April each year, the
regional council of Lower Galilee holds a 12-kilometre race around Mount Tabor in memory of
Yitzhak Sadeh
Yitzhak Sadeh ( he, יצחק שדה, born Izaak Landoberg, August 10, 1890 – August 20, 1952), was the commander of the Palmach and one of the founders of the Israel Defense Forces at the time of the establishment of the State of Israel.
...
, the first commander of the
Palmach
The Palmach (Hebrew: , acronym for , ''Plugot Maḥatz'', "Strike Companies") was the elite fighting force of the Haganah, the underground army of the Yishuv (Jewish community) during the period of the British Mandate for Palestine. The Palmach ...
and one of the founders of the
Israel Defense Forces
The Israel Defense Forces (IDF; he, צְבָא הַהֲגָנָה לְיִשְׂרָאֵל , ), alternatively referred to by the Hebrew-language acronym (), is the national military of the Israel, State of Israel. It consists of three servic ...
at the time of the establishment of the
State of Israel
Israel (; he, יִשְׂרָאֵל, ; ar, إِسْرَائِيل, ), officially the State of Israel ( he, מְדִינַת יִשְׂרָאֵל, label=none, translit=Medīnat Yīsrāʾēl; ), is a country in Western Asia. It is situated ...
.
Landmarks
Church of the Transfiguration
Between 1919 and 1924 a
Roman Catholic
Roman or Romans most often refers to:
*Rome, the capital city of Italy
*Ancient Rome, Roman civilization from 8th century BC to 5th century AD
*Roman people, the people of ancient Rome
*'' Epistle to the Romans'', shortened to ''Romans'', a lette ...
church of the
Franciscan
The Franciscans are a group of related Mendicant orders, mendicant Christianity, Christian Catholic religious order, religious orders within the Catholic Church. Founded in 1209 by Italian Catholic friar Francis of Assisi, these orders include t ...
order named "
Church of the Transfiguration
The Church of the Transfiguration ( he, כנסיית ההשתנות) is a Franciscan church located on Mount Tabor in Israel. It is traditionally believed to be the site where the Transfiguration of Jesus took place, an event in the Gospels in w ...
" was built on the peak of Mount Tabor. The architect who designed the church was
Antonio Barluzzi
Antonio Barluzzi (26 September 1884 – 14 December 1960) was an Italian architect who became known as the "Architect of the Holy Land" by creating, among many others, the pilgrimage churches at the Garden of Gethsemane, on Mount Tabor (considere ...
. The church was built upon the ruins of a
Byzantine
The Byzantine Empire, also referred to as the Eastern Roman Empire or Byzantium, was the continuation of the Roman Empire primarily in its eastern provinces during Late Antiquity and the Middle Ages, when its capital city was Constantinopl ...
church from the fifth or sixth century and a Crusader church from the 12th century. In the upper part of the church, above the altar, is a
mosaic
A mosaic is a pattern or image made of small regular or irregular pieces of colored stone, glass or ceramic, held in place by plaster/mortar, and covering a surface. Mosaics are often used as floor and wall decoration, and were particularly pop ...
which depicts the Transfiguration. On the
Feast of the Transfiguration
The Feast of the Transfiguration is celebrated by various Christian communities in honor of the transfiguration of Jesus. The origins of the feast are less than certain and may have derived from the dedication of three basilicas on Mount Tabor.'' ...
, celebrated on August 6, it is illuminated by sunbeams which are reflected by a glass plate on the floor of the church.
A rock near the entrance of the church has an engraving in ancient Greek and beside it there is an engraving of a cross. Nearby there are the remains of the 12th-century Benedictine abbey.
[
]
Greek Orthodox monastery
The main church of the Greek Orthodox
The term Greek Orthodox Church (Greek language, Greek: Ἑλληνορθόδοξη Ἐκκλησία, ''Ellinorthódoxi Ekklisía'', ) has two meanings. The broader meaning designates "the Eastern Orthodox Church, entire body of Orthodox (Chalced ...
monastery is dedicated to the Transfiguration. The construction was started by a Romanian
Romanian may refer to:
*anything of, from, or related to the country and nation of Romania
**Romanians, an ethnic group
**Romanian language, a Romance language
***Romanian dialects, variants of the Romanian language
**Romanian cuisine, traditional ...
monk, Irinarh Rosetti, in 1859, the year of his death, and finished by his disciple, Nectarie Banul, in 1862. Northeast of the Church of the Transfiguration is the Church of the Prophet Elijah
Elijah ( ; he, אֵלִיָּהוּ, ʾĒlīyyāhū, meaning "My God is Yahweh/YHWH"; Greek form: Elias, ''Elías''; syr, ܐܸܠܝܼܵܐ, ''Elyāe''; Arabic: إلياس or إليا, ''Ilyās'' or ''Ilyā''. ) was, according to the Books of ...
.
Northwest of the main church is a small cave-church named after Melchizedek
In the Bible, Melchizedek (, hbo, , malkī-ṣeḏeq, "king of righteousness" or "my king is righteousness"), also transliterated Melchisedech or Malki Tzedek, was the king of Salem and priest of (often translated as "most high God"). He is f ...
, the King of Salem. According to the Christian tradition, this cave was the place where Abraham
Abraham, ; ar, , , name=, group= (originally Abram) is the common Hebrew patriarch of the Abrahamic religions, including Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. In Judaism, he is the founding father of the special relationship between the Jew ...
met the king of Salem. The cave was known to pilgrims and local Christians during the Middle Ages
In the history of Europe, the Middle Ages or medieval period lasted approximately from the late 5th to the late 15th centuries, similar to the post-classical period of global history. It began with the fall of the Western Roman Empire a ...
. An all-night vigil The All-night vigil is a service of the Eastern Orthodox and Byzantine Catholic churches consisting of an aggregation of the canonical hours of Compline (in Greek usage only), Vespers (or, on a few occasions, Great Compline), Matins, and the First H ...
is held at the church every year on the Orthodox Feast of the Transfiguration
The Feast of the Transfiguration is celebrated by various Christian communities in honor of the transfiguration of Jesus. The origins of the feast are less than certain and may have derived from the dedication of three basilicas on Mount Tabor.'' ...
on August 19 (which corresponds to August 6 according to the Julian Calendar
The Julian calendar, proposed by Roman consul Julius Caesar in 46 BC, was a reform of the Roman calendar. It took effect on , by edict. It was designed with the aid of Greek mathematicians and astronomers such as Sosigenes of Alexandr ...
).
Al-Tujjar Caravansarai
The ruins of the al-Tujjar Caravansarai are located on the slopes of Mount Tabor, opposite the entrance to Beit Keshet
Beit Keshet ( he, בֵּית קֶשֶׁת, ''lit.'' House of the Bow) is a kibbutz in northern Israel. Located to the east of Nazareth, it falls under the jurisdiction of Lower Galilee Regional Council. As of its population was . It is located ...
. The caravanserai was established by Grand Vizier Sinan Pasha
Koca Sinan Pasha ( tr, Koca Sinan Paşa, "Sinan the Great"; c. 1506 - 3 April 1596) was an Albanian-born Ottoman Grand Vizier, military figure, and statesman. From 1580 until his death he served five times as Grand Vizier. In a Ragusan documen ...
around 1581.Khan al-Tujjar
Archnet Digital Library.[Sharon, 1999, p]
230
/ref> The reason given for its establishment was that the place was insecure for merchants and people making pilgrimage, and it was argued that if a khan was built, the place would become "inhabited and cultivated."
Flora and fauna
Mount Tabor was covered with vegetation typical of northern Ancient Israel until the reign of the Ottoman Empire, during which period most of the trees were felled. The trees were felled for use in the charcoal industry.[ As part of the ]Jewish National Fund
Jewish National Fund ( he, קֶרֶן קַיֶּימֶת לְיִשְׂרָאֵל, ''Keren Kayemet LeYisrael'', previously , ''Ha Fund HaLeumi'') was founded in 1901 to buy and develop land in Ottoman Syria (later Mandatory Palestine, and subseq ...
's efforts to recreate the landscapes of the country, during the 1960s and 1970s the area was reforested with trees which are similar to its original vegetation. Today, most of Mount Tabor is covered with trees such as Mount Tabor Oak (''Quercus ithaburensis
''Quercus ithaburensis'', the Mount Tabor oak, is a tree in the beech family.
It is found in Southeastern Europe, from southeastern Italy, southern Albania and Greece, and in southwestern Asia from Turkey south through Lebanon, Israel, Syria, ...
'') and Palestine oak (''Quercus calliprinos
''Quercus calliprinos'' is an oak classified as part of the ''Ilex'' section of the genus growing in the Mediterranean climate zone, mainly on limestone, in mid-elevations, often dominating the flora, alongside terebinths (''Pistacia terebinthu ...
''). Up to 400 plant species have been found on the Mount including large yellow crocuses (''Sternbergia clusiana
''Sternbergia clusiana'' is a bulbous flowering plant in the family Amaryllidaceae, subfamily Amaryllidoideae,Stevens, P.F. (2001 onwards"Asparagales: Amaryllidoideae" ''Angiosperm Phylogeny Website'', retrieved 2014-12-27 which is sometimes used ...
''), the Persian lily ('' Fritillaria persica'') rain-bells flowers ('' Muscari parviflorum''), black-eyed red tulips (''Tulipa agenensis
''Tulipa agenensis'' is a Middle Eastern species of flowering plant in the family Liliaceae. It is native to Turkey, Iran, Cyprus, the Aegean Islands, Syria, Lebanon, Israel, Jordan, and Palestine, and naturalized in the central and western Me ...
''), orchids, irises (including ''Iris haynei
''Iris haynei'', the Gilboa iris, is a plant species in the genus ''Iris (plant), Iris'', subgenus ''Iris subg. Iris, Iris'' and Section (botany), section ''Oncocyclus''. It is a rhizomatous perennial plant, perennial, from the shrublands and mou ...
'') and yellow asphodel (''Asphodeline Lutea
''Asphodeline lutea'' (king's spear, yellow asphodel) is a perennial plant native to southeastern Europe, northern Africa, the Caucasus and the Levant. It is grown as a landscaping plant.
It has been associated with the Asphodel of the underw ...
''), spontaneous barley (''Hordeum spontaneum
''Hordeum spontaneum'', commonly known as wild barley or spontaneous barley, is the wild form of the grass in the family Poaceae that gave rise to the cereal barley (''Hordeum vulgare''). Domestication is thought to have occurred on two occasio ...
''), Mt. Tabor larkspur, a rather rare perennial grass with blue spring flowers (''Delphinium ithaburense
''Delphinium'' is a genus of about 300 species of annual and perennial flowering plants in the family Ranunculaceae, native throughout the Northern Hemisphere and also on the high mountains of tropical Africa. The genus was erected by Carl Linn ...
''), sweet cicely ('' myrrhoides nodosa''), a very rare plant of the family Umbelliferae, Galilean alkanet ('' Alkanna galilaea'') and parsley-piert (''Aphanes arvensis
''Alchemilla arvensis'' (syn. ''Aphanes arvensis''), known as parsley-piert, is a sprawling, downy plant common all over the British Isles where It grows on arable fields and bare wastelands, particularly in dry sites. The short-stalked leaves h ...
'').[
The woodland vegetation provides a habitat for wolves and ]jackals
Jackals are medium-sized canids native to Africa and Eurasia. While the word "jackal" has historically been used for many canines of the subtribe canina, in modern use it most commonly refers to three species: the closely related black-backed ...
, foxes, porcupines
Porcupines are large rodents with coats of sharp spines, or quills, that protect them against predation. The term covers two families of animals: the Old World porcupines of family Hystricidae, and the New World porcupines of family, Erethiz ...
, hyraxes
Hyraxes (), also called dassies, are small, thickset, herbivorous mammals in the order Hyracoidea. Hyraxes are well-furred, rotund animals with short tails. Typically, they measure between long and weigh between . They are superficially simil ...
, mongooses
A mongoose is a small terrestrial carnivorous mammal belonging to the family Herpestidae. This family is currently split into two subfamilies, the Herpestinae and the Mungotinae. The Herpestinae comprises 23 living species that are native to ...
and the broad-toothed field mouse ( Apodemus mysticanus). In a cave at the top of the Mount, long-fingered bats ('' Myotis capaccini''), can be found roosting. Various reptiles can also be found including; the Greek tortoise ('' Testudo graeca''), the hardun lizard (''Laudakia stellio
''Laudakia stellio '' is a species of agamid lizard.Baig KJ et al. (2012)"A morphology-based taxonomic revision of ''Laudakia'' Gray, 1845 (Squamata: Agamidae)".''Vertebrate Zoology'' 62 (2): 213–260. (''Stellagama'', new genus, p. 222). also ...
''), the Lebanon lizard ('' Phoenicolacerta laevi'') and the red whip snake (''Platyceps collaris
The red whip snake or collared dwarf racer (''Platyceps collaris'') is a species of snake in the family Colubridae. Native to the Middle East, its natural habitats are Mediterranean-type shrubby vegetation, rocky areas, arable land, pastureland ...
''). The woodland is also a good habitat for various birds including jays (''Garrulus
''Garrulus'' is a genus of Old World jays, passerine birds in the family Corvidae.
Taxonomy and systematics
The genus was established by French zoologist Mathurin Jacques Brisson in 1760. The type species is the Eurasian jay (''Garrulus glandari ...
''), Syrian woodpeckers (''Dendrocopos syriacus
The Syrian woodpecker (''Dendrocopos syriacus'') is a member of the woodpecker family, the Picidae.
Taxonomy
The Syrian woodpecker was first described as ''Picus syriacus'' by Wilhelm Hemprich and Christian Gottfried Ehrenberg in 1833, from ...
''), Sardinian warblers ('' Sylvia melanocephala''), Eurasian hobbies ('' Falco subbuteo''), great tits ('' Parus major''), great spotted cuckoos (''Clamator glandarius
The great spotted cuckoo (''Clamator glandarius'') is a member of the cuckoo order of birds, the Cuculiformes, which also includes the Geococcyx, roadrunners, the ani (bird), anis and the coucals.
It is widely spread throughout Africa and the Med ...
'') and snake eagles (''Circaetus
''Circaetus'', the snake eagles, is a genus of medium-sized eagles in the bird of prey family Accipitridae. They are mainly resident African species, but the migratory short-toed snake eagle breeds from the Mediterranean basin into Russia, the M ...
'').[
]
See also
* Jebel Quruntul, the Mount of Temptation
Mount of Temptation, in Palestinian Arabic ( ar, جبل لقرنطل), is a mountain over the town of Jericho in the Judean Desert, in the West Bank. Ancient Christian tradition identifies it as the location of the temptation of Jesus describe ...
References
{{DEFAULTSORT:Tabor
Hebrew Bible mountains
Mountains of Israel
National parks of Israel
New Testament mountains
Basilica churches in Israel
Northern District (Israel)
Castles and fortifications of the Knights Hospitaller
Lower Galilee
Book of Joshua
Book of Judges
Inselbergs of Asia
Tabor
Tabor may refer to:
Places
Czech Republic
* Tábor, a town in the South Bohemian Region
** Tábor District, the surrounding district
* Tábor, a village and part of Velké Heraltice in the Moravian-Silesian Region
Israel
* Mount Tabor, Galilee ...
Tabor
Tabor may refer to:
Places
Czech Republic
* Tábor, a town in the South Bohemian Region
** Tábor District, the surrounding district
* Tábor, a village and part of Velké Heraltice in the Moravian-Silesian Region
Israel
* Mount Tabor, Galilee ...