Despite the ongoing controversies about the momentthe emergence of each ancient settlement, there is a more or less harmonized list, which includes the oldest cities in the world, in which life continued continuously, and now they are inhabited.
One of the oldest
This list is headed Jericho, more than oncementioned in the Bible under the name "city of palm trees", although the Hebrew name translates as "moon city". Historians refer to the date of its emergence as a settlement by the 7th millennium BC, although some of the traces of inhabitation found belong to IX. That is, people lived here in the days of the chalcolithic or the ceramic Neolithic. It so happened that the location of Jericho from time immemorial is on the warpath, again in the Bible there is a description of taking the city. He endlessly passed from hand to hand, the last time happened in 1993, when Jericho went to Palestine. Repeatedly for thousands of years, the inhabitants left it, but always came back and rebuilt anew. Now Jericho, 10 km from the Dead Sea, is very popular with tourists, as it is rich in sights (for example, there was a courtyard of King Herod). In addition, this most ancient city on earth is also unique in that it is, if one may say so, the deepest locality, as it is 240 meters below sea level.
Who is older
The second (sometimes challenging the championship) on the list"The oldest cities in the world" is Damascus, the capital of modern Syria. Its origin also refers to prehistoric times, but it becomes a major city after the Aramaic invasion, dating back to 1400 BC. One of the most charming cities in the Middle East, it is full of attractions. What is worth only the Umayyad Mosque, which is included in the list of the world's greatest temples, in which the head of John the Baptist is kept. The city is so ancient that it is believed that the first wall built on the ground after the Flood was the Damascus Wall. The old city, which does not change its appearance for many centuries, is also surrounded by a wall, but it was erected at the time of Ancient Rome.
Also the most ancient
Concludes the first three settlementsof the list "The Oldest Cities of the World" Lebanese Bibl. Needless to say, in some lists it is given the second, and even the first by seniority. These three cities arose long before the Copper Age, but since it was continuously inhabited. Bibl is located in the suburbs of Beirut. The very name of the city says that once it was a biblical city and was called Hebal. Phoenician settlement, in ancient times it was the center of papyrus trade, and now it is a famous tourist site. It is interesting that a small number of inscriptions found on ancient artifacts have not yet been deciphered, because this type of proto-Biblical letter has no gaps. Signs about 100, and inscriptions are few. The date of the next city of Susa is disputed, as well as the largest city of modern Syria, Aleppo - someone believes that in the 7th millennium BC these cities already existed, some did not.
The closing list of the "oldest"
The birth of subsequent cities date 4millennium BC. Not all of the most frequently cited lists under the name "The Oldest Cities of the World" mention Crimean Theodosius, although in Russia it was she who was considered to be "eternal city", since it was founded, according to some sources, in the 6th century BC and was known as Ardabra .
Another ten of the oldest include such populatedpoints like the Lebanese Sidon (4 thousand BC). This same time dates the appearance of the Egyptian Fayoum (Greek Crocodile Field) and the Bulgarian Plovdiv. Turkish Gaziantep and the Lebanese capital Beirut are several centuries younger. Further on the list most often mentioned are the following cities: Jerusalem, Tire, Erbil, Kirkuk, Jaffa. All of them have arisen for many centuries before our chronology and belong to the "oldest".
The oldest in Russia
The most common listings are calledThe “Ancient Cities of the World” does not include Derbent, Zurich, or Ningbo, although they have at least a 6000-year history behind them. So, Derbent (from the Arab Bab al-Abwab - its name - translated as “gate gate” or “big gate”), according to some information, was already a settlement in 4 millennia BC. This southernmost city of the Russian Federation already existed in the Bronze Age. Translated from the Azerbaijani language, its name sounds like “closed gate”. It is located in the isthmus between the Caucasus Mountains and the western shore of the Caspian Sea. This ancient settlement has always been the gateway to caravans, en route from Europe to Asia.
Also "most ancient"
Most people have a concept about ancient Europe.It is associated primarily with Greece. However, the Swiss Zurich is much older. The first settlements on its territory arose in 4430-4230 BC, that is, in the 5th millennium.
Closer to our chronology, it was conqueredCelts, then the settlement became part of the Roman Empire, and in these times it was already mentioned under the name Turikum. The Chinese city of Ningbo, which is directly related to the Hemuda culture that existed in the 5th millennium BC, according to some allegations, was already inhabited in the Neolithic era. Archeology does not stand still, and new names will be included in the list of the most ancient cities on the planet.
Closer to our chronology
The “Ancient Cities of the World” list is much broader than"The most ancient", because 2 millennium BC belong to many civilizations. The location of the settlements that emerged in these centuries goes beyond the Middle East. In Europe, it is primarily the city of ancient Greece and ancient Rome. On this territory, the list of "Constantly inhabited cities of the ancient world" Athens is at the top. Notes about this city-state also begin with the words that these places were inhabited in the Neolithic era. But Athens is described in detail since the Late Helladic period, that is, from 1700-1200 BC. The golden age for this powerful polis began in the middle of the 1st millennium, during the reign of Pericles. Legendary monuments, known to the whole world, were built during this period, which is rather well studied and described by ancient Greek classics. Such historical evidence, as written on papyrus works by Wackhelid, Hyperides, Menander and Herod, has been preserved to this day. The works of the later, world-famous Greek authors formed the basis of the popular “Myths and Legends” by N. Kuhn. Ancient Greek philosophy, science, culture are the foundation of modern knowledge.
Extensive list
The names of the ancient cities of the world areA very extensive list occupying more than one page, because the period of Antiquity ends in our calendar, has a specific date - 476 AD, which marks the fall of the Western Roman Empire. This period is well studied, and the existence of many cities is documented.
Поэтому из всего громадного списка можно назвать several localities, known literally to everyone. The cities that disappeared from the face of the earth, but remained in historical evidence or the memory of descendants, will also enter it. These include such great cities of the Ancient World as Babylon and Palmyra, Pompeii and Thebes, Chichen Itza and Ur, Pergamum and Cusco, ancient Greek Knossos and Mycenae, many cities of Asia and other continents. The mysteries of the ruins of these cities have yet to be solved. For example, the mysterious Angkor, lost in the jungle, is the stone heart of Cambodia, rediscovered for the world in the middle of the 19th century, although its history dates back to the second century of our era. Or located at the top of the mountain, located at an altitude of 2450 meters above sea level, not less mysterious Machu Picchu. This ancient "city in the sky" is located on the territory of Peru.
Highlight of the city
Древний город Демре в сравнении с приведенными above settlements just yun. The first mention of it dates back to the V century (not a millennium) BC. But this is a legend city. Known in ancient times under the name of Mira, he is famous not only for the extraordinary architectural monuments, but primarily for the fact that Saint Nicholas, also Nicholas Ugodnik, the Wonderworker, also Saint Nicholas and Santa Claus, studied, lived and became famous. The most wonderful tradition of giving New Year gifts came from this city. The initiator was Saint Nicholas, the first bishop of Mira. The ancient city of Demre is a very popular tourist destination.
The “Demre-Mira-Kekova” route is very much in demand.The city has preserved a beautiful ancient Roman theater, the dimensions of which make it possible to judge the significance of this large seaside center in antiquity. Kekova is an island. It is remarkable that its shores are a continuation of the walls of the city sunken by an earthquake. Very good is the modern city of Demre, which is the center of the eponymous province of Turkey.
Very short list
Mysterious and beautiful ancient cities of the world.The most famous list is: Bible, Jericho and Aleppo, followed by Susa, Damascus, El-Fayoum and Plovdiv. It is fair to indicate Derbent and Zurich, the "eternal city" of Rome, as well as several settlements of ancient China (Ningbo, Changsha, Changzhou and others).
Vanished Babylon, Palmyra, Pompeii, Ur andMycenae complement this more than modest list of cities of antiquity. Unique sights can boast of Persian Persian. At one time it was the capital of the Achaemenid Empire, which in the 6th-5th centuries BC founded a huge state, later conquered by Alexander the Great. All the ancient cities are surrounded by legends, which is very interesting to see.
