The name Jerusalem first appears in Egyptian Execration texts from the 19th century BCE as Rušalimum. Archaeological evidence points to a settlement near the Gihon Spring dating back to the 4th millennium BCE. During the Canaanite period of the 14th century BCE, ancient tablets referred to the city as Urusalim. This name likely means City of Shalem after a Canaanite deity named Shalem who was the god of dusk. The ending -ayim suggests the dual nature of the city sitting on two hills. King David captured the Jebusite fortress around 1000 BCE and renamed it the City of David. Significant construction activity began during the Iron Age II in the 10th century BCE. By the 9th century BCE the city had become the religious center of the Kingdom of Judah.
Religious Significance Across Faiths
Jerusalem has been sacred to Judaism for roughly three thousand years since King David proclaimed it his capital. The Temple Mount remains the holiest site in Judaism where Jews throughout the world turn towards during prayer. The Western Wall attracts over ten million visitors each year as a remnant of the Second Temple. Christianity reveres the city for its Old Testament history and the life of Jesus. Golgotha marks the site of crucifixion while the Church of the Holy Sepulchre houses the empty tomb believed by Christians to be where Jesus rose from death. Islam considers Jerusalem the third-holiest city after Mecca and Medina. Muhammad made his Night Journey there in 621 CE ascending to heaven according to Islamic tradition. The Al-Aqsa Mosque stands on the Temple Mount commemorating this event. The city contains 1204 synagogues, 158 churches, and 73 mosques within its boundaries.Sieges And Military History
Throughout its long history Jerusalem has been destroyed at least twice and besieged twenty-three times. It was captured and recaptured forty-four times and attacked fifty-two times according to Eric H. Cline's tally. The Babylonians destroyed the First Temple in 586 BCE leading to the exile of the Jewish population. Pompey captured the city in 63 BCE bringing it under Roman Republic rule. Herod the Great expanded the Second Temple making it one of the largest sanctuaries in the ancient world. The Romans destroyed Jerusalem and the Second Temple during the siege of 70 CE. A few decades later the city was rebuilt as the Roman colony Aelia Capitolina dedicated to Jupiter. Jews were banned from the city following the Bar Kokhba Revolt between 132 and 136 CE. The Crusaders captured Jerusalem in 1099 before Saladin recaptured it in 1187. Israel occupied East Jerusalem from Jordan during the Six-Day War in 1967.