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Sokho (alternate spellings: Sokhoh, Sochoh, Soco, Sokoh; he, שׂוֹכֹה ,שׂוֹכ֖וֹ ,שֹׂכֹ֖ה) is the name given to two ancient towns in the territorial domain of
Judah as mentioned in the
Hebrew Bible
The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;["Tanach"](_blank)
'' Judean hills
The Judaean Mountains, or Judaean Hills ( he, הרי יהודה, translit=Harei Yehuda) or the Hebron Mountains ( ar, تلال الخليل, translit=Tilal al-Khalīl, links=, lit=Hebron Mountains), is a mountain range in Palestine and Israel wh ...
. Both towns were given the name ''Shuweikah'' in
Arabic
Arabic (, ' ; , ' or ) is a Semitic language spoken primarily across the Arab world.Semitic languages: an international handbook / edited by Stefan Weninger; in collaboration with Geoffrey Khan, Michael P. Streck, Janet C. E.Watson; Walter ...
, a diminutive of the Arabic ''shawk'', meaning "thorn". The remains of both have since been identified.
One is located about southwest of
Hebron
Hebron ( ar, الخليل or ; he, חֶבְרוֹן ) is a Palestinian. city in the southern West Bank, south of Jerusalem. Nestled in the Judaean Mountains, it lies above sea level. The second-largest city in the West Bank (after Eas ...
and has been identified with the twin ruins known as ''Khirbet Shuwaikah Fauka'' and ''Tahta'' (Upper and Lower Shuwaikah), southwest of
Eshtamoa in the Hebron Hills district (grid position 150/091
PAL
Phase Alternating Line (PAL) is a colour encoding system for analogue television. It was one of three major analogue colour television standards, the others being NTSC and SECAM. In most countries it was broadcast at 625 lines, 50 fields (25 ...
)().
The other ruin is situated on a hilltop overlooking the
Elah Valley
The Valley of Elah or Ella Valley ("the valley of the terebinth"; from the he, עמק האלה ''Emek HaElah''), called in ar, وادي السنط, Wadi es-Sunt, is a long, shallow valley in Israel and the West Bank best known as the place des ...
between
Adullam
Adullam () is an ancient ruin, formerly known by the Arabic appellation ''ʿAīd el Mâ'' (or ''`Eîd el Mieh''), built upon a hilltop overlooking the Elah Valley, straddling the Green Line between Israel and the West Bank. In the late 19th cent ...
and
Azekah
Azekah ( he, עֲזֵקָה, ''ʿazēqā'') was an ancient town in the Shfela ("lowlands of Judea") guarding the upper reaches of the Valley of Elah, about 26 km (16 mi) northwest of Hebron.
The current '' tell'' (ruin) by that name, ...
(), in the lower stratum of the Judaean foothills (grid position 147/121
PAL
Phase Alternating Line (PAL) is a colour encoding system for analogue television. It was one of three major analogue colour television standards, the others being NTSC and SECAM. In most countries it was broadcast at 625 lines, 50 fields (25 ...
). Today it is a popular tourist attraction better known as Givat HaTurmusim. The site, occupied as early as the
Iron Age
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age ( Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostl ...
, was visited by
Claude Conder in 1881, who writes that it was already a ruin in his days, with two wells in the valley towards the west.
A third town by this name,
Shuwaykah
Tulkarm, Tulkarem or Tull Keram ( ar, طولكرم, ''Ṭūlkarm'') is a Palestinian city in the West Bank, located in the Tulkarm Governorate of the State of Palestine. The Israeli city of Netanya is to the west, and the Palestinian cities of ...
, was located in the Hefer region (), north of
Tulkarm
Tulkarm, Tulkarem or Tull Keram ( ar, طولكرم, ''Ṭūlkarm'') is a Palestinian city in the West Bank, located in the Tulkarm Governorate of the State of Palestine. The Israeli city of Netanya is to the west, and the Palestinian cities o ...
(grid position 153/194
PAL
Phase Alternating Line (PAL) is a colour encoding system for analogue television. It was one of three major analogue colour television standards, the others being NTSC and SECAM. In most countries it was broadcast at 625 lines, 50 fields (25 ...
).
[ (original Hebrew edition: 'Land of Israel in Biblical Times - Historical Geography', ]Bialik Institute
Bialik Institute ( he, מוסד ביאליק, ''Mosad Bialik'') is a research institution and publishing house, mostly dealing with the history and culture of the Hebrew language. It was established in 1935 by the World Zionist Executive and the ...
, Jerusalem (1962))
Antiquity
Although it is listed in as being a city in the plain, Socho is actually partly in the hill country and partly in the plain. The biblical account states that the
Philistines
The Philistines ( he, פְּלִשְׁתִּים, Pəlīštīm; Koine Greek (LXX): Φυλιστιείμ, romanized: ''Phulistieím'') were an ancient people who lived on the south coast of Canaan from the 12th century BC until 604 BC, whe ...
encamped between Sokho and Azekah in the
Valley of Elah
The Valley of Elah or Ella Valley ("the valley of the terebinth"; from the he, עמק האלה ''Emek HaElah''), called in ar, وادي السنط, Wadi es-Sunt, is a long, shallow valley in Israel and the West Bank best known as the place de ...
before
Goliath's historic encounter with
David
David (; , "beloved one") (traditional spelling), , ''Dāwūd''; grc-koi, Δαυΐδ, Dauíd; la, Davidus, David; gez , ዳዊት, ''Dawit''; xcl, Դաւիթ, ''Dawitʿ''; cu, Давíдъ, ''Davidŭ''; possibly meaning "beloved one". w ...
, the son of Jesse (). David slew the Philistine giant with a stone slung from a shepherd's sling.
Rehoboam fortified the place (), but it is not clear which of the two sites is referred to. Socho was one of the cities occupied temporarily by the Philistines in the time of
Ahaz
Ahaz (; gr, Ἄχαζ, Ἀχάζ ''Akhaz''; la, Achaz) an abbreviation of Jehoahaz II (of Judah), "Yahweh has held" (; akk, 𒅀𒌑𒄩𒍣 ''Ya'úḫazi'' 'ia-ú-ḫa-zi'' Hayim Tadmor and Shigeo Yamada, ''The Royal Inscriptions of Tiglath ...
().
The word "Sokho" appears on certain
LMLK seals during the
Judean monarchy. It is believed by many scholars to be one of four cities that acted in some administrative capacity.
The
Mishnaic
The Mishnah or the Mishna (; he, מִשְׁנָה, "study by repetition", from the verb ''shanah'' , or "to study and review", also "secondary") is the first major written collection of the Jewish oral traditions which is known as the Oral Torah ...
Rabbi
A rabbi () is a spiritual leader or religious teacher in Judaism. One becomes a rabbi by being ordained by another rabbi – known as ''semikha'' – following a course of study of Jewish history and texts such as the Talmud. The basic form of ...
Antigonus of Sokho, mentioned in ''Ethics of the Fathers'' (
Pirkei Avot
Pirkei Avot ( he, פִּרְקֵי אָבוֹת; also transliterated as ''Pirqei Avoth'' or ''Pirkei Avos'' or ''Pirke Aboth''), which translates to English as Chapters of the Fathers, is a compilation of the ethical teachings and maxims from ...
1:3), likely came from the Hebron-region town. Rabbi Levi Sukia, of the first generation of
Amoraim, also came from Sokho (Jerusalem Talmud, Eruvim).
In
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 ...
times,
Eusebius
Eusebius of Caesarea (; grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος ; 260/265 – 30 May 339), also known as Eusebius Pamphilus (from the grc-gre, Εὐσέβιος τοῦ Παμφίλου), was a Greek historian of Christianity, exegete, and Chris ...
described Sokho (Σοκχωθ) as a double village at the ninth milestone between
Eleutheropolis
Eleutheropolis (Greek, Ἐλευθερόπολις, "Free City"; ar, إليوثيروبوليس; in Hebrew, בית גוברין, Beit Gubrin) was a Roman and Byzantine city in Syria Palaestina, some 53 km southwest of Jerusalem. After the Mu ...
(Bet Guvrin) and Jerusalem (Eusebius, ''
Onomasticon'' 156:18 ff.), which would correspond to the Elah Valley location. The 6th-century
Madaba Map also depicts Sokho (Σωκω).
Givat HaTurmusim
The hill of Tel Sokho is now known as ''Givat HaTurmusim'', or "Hill of the
Lupines". In late March, the entire hill is covered with wild blue mountain lupines (''
Lupinus pilosus'') and becomes a popular outing destination for Israeli families.
The hill is surrounded by precipitous slopes on its north side, making it almost impassable. Trails ascend the mountain on its northwestern and southeastern sides. The Elah Valley runs in a westerly-easterly direction on its north side, the hilltop affording a good view of the valley below.
On the elevated plateau, one can see the foundations of ancient dwellings carved into the bedrock with individual chambers divided by broken stone protuberances. Caves and grottoes dot the landscape, and cisterns are carved deep into the rock. Oak trees, fig trees, and terebinths grow on the mountainside and piles of large ashlar boulders, covered with lichen, attest to the presence of a defensive wall around the city in antiquity. According to the biblical narrative, when
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 ...
captured the city from the Canaanites, the city and environs became the inheritance of Judah.
Archaeology
A survey of the site in the Elah Valley was conducted in 2010 by Joseph Garfinkel on behalf of the
Hebrew University
The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; he, הַאוּנִיבֶרְסִיטָה הַעִבְרִית בִּירוּשָׁלַיִם) is a public research university based in Jerusalem, Israel. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Dr. Chaim Weiz ...
's Institute of Archaeology and by Michael Gerald Hasel on behalf of
Southern Adventist University
Southern Adventist University is a private Seventh-day Adventist university in Collegedale, Tennessee. It is owned and operated by the Southern Union Conference of Seventh-day Adventists. It was founded in 1892 in Graysville, Tennessee, as G ...
. Excavations at the foot of the northern slope exposed a Byzantine building from the 5th to 6th centuries. Remains dating to
Iron Age II
The Iron Age is the final epoch of the three-age division of the prehistory and protohistory of humanity. It was preceded by the Stone Age ( Paleolithic, Mesolithic, Neolithic) and the Bronze Age (Chalcolithic). The concept has been mostly a ...
were uncovered in another dig at the foot of the northern slope, and walls dating to the Middle Bronze Age were discovered in probe trenches. Potsherds dating to the Late Bronze Age and later periods were gathered, along with a terracotta figurine of reddish-brown clay depicting a naked woman.
The discovery of a pre-exilic stamp with the imprint ''
La-melekh'' (למלך), and in which Sokho is named with another three cities, has led archaeologists to conclude that Sokho may have served as an administrative or storage center. One of the wells to the west in the valley, mentioned by Claude Conder, was destroyed with explosives by Arab infiltrators (''mistanenim'') in 1956, never being rebuilt. An intensive survey conducted in 2010 included an examination of Middle Bronze and Iron Age burial caves, as well as slag from a pottery workshop (which probably dates to the Crusader/Mamluk period).
See also
*
Levantine archaeology
Levantine archaeology is the archaeological study of the Levant. It is also known as Syro-Palestinian archaeology or Palestinian archaeologyDavis, 2004, p. 146.Dever, 2001, p. 61. (particularly when the area of inquiry centers on ancient Palesti ...
References
External links
Pictures of Tel SokhoJebel Shuweikeh Forest Reserve, 1926 British Mandate document, designating forest as State Domain
{{Authority control
Canaanite cities
Archaeology of Palestine (region)
Archaeological sites in Israel
Archaeological sites in the West Bank
Ancient Israel and Judah
Former populated places in the State of Palestine
Former populated places in Israel
Hebrew Bible cities
Establishments in the Kingdom of Judah
Tells (archaeology)
Kingdom of Judah
Biblical geography
Valley of Elah