Palestine

Introduction & Top Questions
History of the term
Land
People
History
- The Stone Age and the Copper Age
- The Bronze Age
  - Early Bronze Age
  - Middle Bronze Age
  - Late Bronze Age
- The Iron Age
  - The Israelites in Palestine
  - Assyrian and Babylonian rule
  - The Persian empire
- From Alexander the Great to 70 ce
  - The Ptolemies
  - The Seleucids
  - The Hasmonean priest-princes
  - The Herodian house and the Roman procurators
- Roman Palestine
- From the Arab conquest to 1900
  - The rise of Islam
  - Abbasid rule
  - The Fatimid dynasty
  - The Crusades
  - Ottoman rule
- From 1900 to 1948
  - World War I and after
  - The British mandate
  - The Arab Revolt
  - World War II
  - The early postwar period
  - Civil war in Palestine
- Palestine and the Palestinians (1948–67)
  - The partition of Palestine and its aftermath
  - Diverging histories for Palestinian Arabs
    - Palestinian citizens of Israel
    - West Bank (and Jordanian) Palestinians
    - Palestinians in the Gaza Strip
    - The UNRWA camps
    - Palestinians outside mandated Palestine
  - Resurgence of Palestinian identity
    - The role of camps
    - The role of Palestinians outside formerly mandated Palestine
    - The Palestine Liberation Organization
    - Fatah and other guerrilla organizations
- The Arab-Israeli war of 1967 and its consequences
  - Palestinian citizens of Israel
  - The PLO’s rise as a revolutionary force
  - The PLO’s struggle for Palestinian autonomy
    - Palestinians and the PLO in Jordan
    - Palestinians and the PLO in Lebanon
    - International recognition
    - Palestinians and the civil war in Lebanon
    - The PLO in the occupied territories
- Negotiations, violence, and incipient self-rule
  - The Camp David Accords and the PLO
  - The dispersal of the PLO from Lebanon
  - Years of mounting violence
  - The first intifada
    - Tactics and tolls
    - PLO declaration of independence
  - The move toward self-rule
    - The Oslo Accords
    - The birth of the Palestinian Authority
  - The second intifada
  - Split administration of the West Bank and the Gaza Strip
    - Blockade and 2008 conflict in the Gaza Strip
    - The Palestinian Authority’s bid for statehood recognition
    - 2014 Gaza conflict
    - Political and financial uncertainty

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images, Videos & Interactives

Hill with olive groves

What is the Relationship Between Israel and Palestine?

Ancient Egyptian empire under Thutmose III (reigned 1479–25 bce)

Palestine during the time of David and Solomon

Philistine captives

Why was Cyrus the Great so “great”?

Palestine during the Maccabean period

Palestine during the time of Herod the Great and his sons

Siege of Jerusalem (70 ce)

For Students

Gaza

Palestine summary

Palestine: Facts & Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

Last Updated: Dec 23, 2025

Did You Know?

Jerusalem is considered a holy city by the major Abrahamic religions -- Judaism, Christianity, and Islam.
Virtually all meals in Palestine include pita bread.
Three forms of currency are all accepted in Palestine: the Israeli new shekel, the Egyptian pound, and the Jordanian dinar.
Bethlehem, West Bank, is the probable birthplace of Jesus Christ.

Photos and Videos

Hill with olive groves

Ancient Egyptian empire under Thutmose III (reigned 1479–25 bce)

Palestine during the time of David and Solomon

Philistine captives

Palestine during the Maccabean period

Palestine during the time of Herod the Great and his sons

Siege of Jerusalem (70 ce)

Al-Aqsa Mosque and the Dome of the Rock

Jericho: Hishām's Palace

What is the Relationship Between Israel and Palestine?

Why was Cyrus the Great so “great”?

See All Videos, Images and Interactives →

Topics

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Tomb of Mohammed Bin Ali, Salalah, Oman.

A View of the Middle East