How old do you think your city is?
There are hundreds of cities that hold many treasures from decades ago that tell stories of civilizations and beliefs that our ancestors had, and we always get so excited to discover them all, explore them, and try to understand them.
However, there are a few cities that are older than the “old” we know, and maybe your city is one of them. If you are interested to travel through time to the past, these cities will probably help you experience that.
Beirut, Lebanon
The earliest inhabitants of Beirut were in 3000 BC, and today, it is the capital, administrative, cultural, and economic center of Lebanon. This city’s history stretches back into more than 5000 years, and that can make you guess how many civilizations have already got there, been there, and left their stories there for us to explore.
In fact, excavations in the city have discovered Roman, Phoenician, Hellenistic, Ottoman, and Arab remains. Plus, it was mentioned in many letters in the 14th century BC to the Pharaoh of Egypt.
After the civil war ended in Beirut, it became a lovely, modern, gorgeous city with tourists coming from everywhere.
Gaziantep, Turkey
The earliest inhabitants of Gaziantep were in 3650 BC, and it is found close to the border with Syria (Southern Turkey). The history of this city extends so far back to when the Hittites were figuring out ways to make people’s life easier.
However, there are many other civilizations discovered in Gaziantep like Roman mosaics, while the Ravanda Citadel (restored in the 6th century by the Byzantines) was found in the center of the city.
Plovdiv, Bulgaria
The earliest inhabitants of Plovdiv were in 4000 BC, and today, it is the second largest in Bulgaria. This gorgeous city used to be a Thracian settlement, and then became one of Roman’s major cities.
As years went by, Plovdiv has been owned by Ottoman and Byzantine, and then later became a part of Bulgaria. Plovdiv is a major cultural center that boasts hundreds of ancient remains, including Ottoman baths, aqueduct, and the Roman amphitheater.
Sidon, Lebanon
The earliest inhabitants of Sidon were in 4000 BC, and it is considered as the oldest Phoenician cities. Sidon is 40 km (25 miles) south Beirut, and it is where the great Mediterranean empire of Phoenician grew. In the historical books, it says that St Paul, Alexander the Great, and Jesus have visited this glorious city. In fact, Alexander the Great captured the city in 333 BC.
Faiyum, Egypt
The earliest inhabitants of Faiyum were in 4000 BC, and it is settling a part of Crocodilopolis, which is an old Egyptian city when people used to worship Petsuchos (it is a sacred crocodile). However, the Faiyum of today has a lot of bazaars, baths, and mosques.
Meanwhile, the Hawara and Lehin pyramids can be found close to the city. Faiyum is an amazing destination for tourists where they can explore many odd and epic things about the Pharaoh culture.
Susa, Iran
The earliest inhabitants of Susa were in 4200 BC, and it used to be the capital of the Elamite Empire. It got captured by the Assyrians, then under Cyrus the Great, it was taken over by the Achaemenid Persian. Basically, it was the setting of The Persians, which is an Aeschylus’s Athenian tragedy and the oldest surviving play in the history of theatre.
Today, you can still breathe the ancient air that can make you feel like you traveled in a time machine. All the walls and culture are still there with a fresh a gasp of those old civilizations.
Damascus, Syria
The earliest inhabitants of Damascus were in 4300 DC, and according to some sources, it is the world’s oldest inhabited city (it got inhabited as early as 10,000 BC), but it is still debatable. After the arrival of Aramaeans, Damascus became an important settlement for them.
They established a network of canals, which by the way, are still the basis of water networks today. This city is another victory of Alexander the Great. However, Damascus gained its historical wealth after it has been the Roman, Ottoman, and Arab possession, which made it a popular tourist destination until the recent struck…
Aleppo, Syria
Another old city from the land of history and culture! The earliest inhabitant of Aleppo was in 4300 BC, and it is the most populated city of Syria (4.4 million). The city was controlled by the Hittite until 800 BC, and that’s when it got handled by Assyrian, Greek, and Persian hands.
Later on, Aleppo was occupied by Byzantines, Romans, Mongols, Ottomans, and Arabs. Basically, this city is the center of all ancient civilizations that left an unfaded fingerprint for all of us to explore and appreciate.
Byblos, Lebanon
The Middle East is the land of all history and glory as it appears. The earliest inhabitants of Byblos were in 5000 BC, and it was founded by the Phoenicians as Gebal. Then the Greeks came along, and gave it the name “Byblos”, which derived the word “Bible”.
However, this city has amazing tourist sites, including Byblos castle, ancient Phoenician temples, the old Medieval City Wall, and St John the Baptist church that was built in the 12th century.
Jericho, Palestinian Territories
Here is the oldest city in the world, and as expected, it is also located in the Middle East. The earliest inhabitants of Jericho were in 9000 BC, and the best part is the fact that it has been inhabited since then.
According to archaeologists, there are remains of 20 successive settlements in the city that were from 11,000 years ago. Jericho is located near the Jordan River, and it is home to more than 20,000 people. Impressive!