Jerusalem

Jerusalem (/dʒəˈruːsələm/; Hebrew: יְרוּשָׁלַיִם Yerushaláyim; Arabic: القُدس al-Quds or Bayt al-Maqdis, also spelled Baitul Muqaddas) is one of the oldest cities in the world that people have lived in continuously. It is important to many major religions. Jews consider Jerusalem a holy city because it was their religious and political center during Biblical times and was the place where the Temple of God stood. Christians consider Jerusalem holy because many events in the life of Jesus took place there. Muslims believe that Muhammad rose to heaven from Jerusalem, and the Al-Aqsa Mosque is the first Qibla of Muslims after Mecca.

Jerusalem ירושלים (Hebrew) القُدس (Arabic)
City
Old City from the Mount of Olives with Al-Aqsa Mosque (left) and Dome of the Rock (right) on the Temple Mount Tower of David Zion Square Chords Bridge Mamilla Mall Western Wall Shrine of the Book Holy Sepulchre
Flag Coat of arms
Nickname(s):  Ir ha-Kodesh (The Holy City), Bayt al-Maqdis (House of the Holiness)
Jerusalem
Coordinates: 31°47′N 35°13′E
Administered by	Israel
Claimed by	Israel Palestinian Authority
Israeli district	Jerusalem
Gihon Spring settlement	3000-2800 BCE
City of David	c. 1000 BCE
Present Old City walls built	1541
Reunification	1967
Jerusalem Law	1980
Government
• Type	Mayor–council
• Body	Jerusalem Municipality
• Mayor	Nir Barkat (Likud)
Area
• City	125,156 dunams (125.156 km2 or 48.323 sq mi)
• Metro	652,000 dunams (652 km2 or 252 sq mi)
Elevation	754 m (2,474 ft)
Population  (2022)
• City	981,711
• Density	7,800/km2 (20,000/sq mi)
• Metro	1,253,900
Demonyms	Jerusalemite (Yerushalmi) Qudsi/Maqdisi
Demographics (2016)
• Jewish	64%
• Arab	35%
• others	1%
Time zone	UTC+02:00 (IST)
• Summer (DST)	UTC+03:00 (IDT)
Postal code	9XXXXXX
Area code	+972-2
HDI (2017)	0.704 – high
Website	jerusalem.muni.il
UNESCO World Heritage Site
Official name	Old City of Jerusalem and its Walls
Type	Cultural
Criteria	ii, iii, vi
Designated	1981
Reference no.	148
Region	Jerusalem District
Endangered	1982–present

Jerusalem is the capital city of both Palestine and Israel, under their laws. Most other countries disagree. Most countries have their embassies with Israel in Tel Aviv.

Jerusalem is about 40 miles (64 kilometers) east of the Mediterranean Sea. It is a hilly city with many valleys around it.

History

Jerusalem is a very old city. It has great importance for three religions: Judaism, Christianity and Islam. The Bible says King David, the second king of Israel, took this city from pagans and settled his palace there. King Solomon, David's son and the next king, built the Temple of Solomon in Jerusalem. Later, as capital of Judah, Jerusalem was destroyed by Nebuchadnezzar II, the king of Babylon. The Palace of King David and the Temple of Solomon were burned, and the Jews were captured and taken to Babylon. Seventy years later, the Persian King Cyrus allowed them to return to Jerusalem and to rebuild the Temple.

Later the area was occupied by Romans. King Herod the Great, who ruled for the Roman Emperor, made the Temple larger to try and win Jewish favor. The Temple was famous for its greatness and beauty.

Jesus died in Jerusalem around 33 CE. In 70 CE, the Jews rebelled against the Romans, but the Romans destroyed the city and the Temple. Jewish people who lived in Jerusalem were caught and became slaves. The Romans renamed Jerusalem with a Latin name. Since then, the Temple has not been rebuilt, and only a part of its wall remains until today.

After the Roman Empire was split into two, the Byzantine Empire ruled Jerusalem. Later in 636 CE, Muslims took over the city from them. The Muslims believed Muhammad went to heaven from Jerusalem.

Later, the Pope in Rome sent the Crusaders from Western Europe to try and take Jerusalem back. They succeeded for a while, but eventually the city fell again to the Muslims. Until the 20th century, Jerusalem was a part of the Ottoman Empire. There were some Jews in Jerusalem all along, even though they were ruled by other people.

The "New City" of Jerusalem is the part outside the old stone walls. People started building the new city in the 1800s. Mishkenot Sha'annanim, Mea Shearim, and the Bukharan Quarter are some of the first neighborhoods in the new city.

After World War I, the Ottoman Empire had been defeated. In June 1922, the League of Nations approved the British Mandate of Palestine. This gave control of the area to the United Kingdom. The land west of the Jordan River was known as Palestine. It was under direct British control until 1948. The land east of the Jordan River was known as Transjordan, and was governed by the Hashemite family. Transjordan gained independence in 1946.

The mandate in Palestine ended at midnight on 14 May 1948. On the next day, the 1948 Arab–Israeli War began. Israel declared independence, the West Bank was annexed by Jordan, and Egypt took control of the Gaza Strip.

In 1949, at the end of the first Arab-Israeli War, Jerusalem was divided between Israel and Jordan. Israel controlled the western part of the city. Jordan controlled the eastern section, including the Old City, a walled section of Jerusalem dating from Biblical times. Israel took control of the entire city during the Six-Day War in 1967.

Jerusalem today is claimed by the state of Israeli as its capital. The United Nations does not agree to Israel saying that Jerusalem is the capital of Israel.

Religious significance

The Western Wall, known as the Kotel

The al-Aqsa Mosque, a sacred site for Muslims

Jerusalem has been sacred to Judaism for roughly 3000 years, to Christianity for around 2000 years, and to Islam for approximately 1400 years. The 2000 Statistical Yearbook of Jerusalem lists 1204 synagogues, 158 churches, and 73 mosques within the city. Despite efforts to maintain peaceful religious coexistence, some sites, such as the Temple Mount, have been a continuous source of friction and controversy.

Jewish

According to Jewish tradition, Jerusalem is where God told the patriarch Abraham to sacrifice his son, Isaac, to Him. The Jews built the Temple, the centre of Jewish worship in ancient times, at the site of Abraham's sacrifice on the Temple Mount in the Old City. Two buildings, one after the other, the First Temple and the Second Temple, stood at the site. The First Temple housed the Ark of the Covenant, a sacred box holding the tablets inscribed with the Ten Commandments.

The Western Wall is a part of the Second Temple and Judaism's most sacred shrine. It is a stone wall that strengthened the western side of the Temple Mount in ancient times. The wall is sometimes called the Wailing Wall because of the sad prayers Jewish people said there to mourn the destroyed Temple.

Other sites in the city that are sacred to the Jews include King David's tomb on Mount Zion, and the Jewish Cemetery and the Tombs of the Prophets on the Mount of Olives, a hill just east of the Old City. Many sites associated with Biblical figures are sacred to Christians, too.

Christian

Many monasteries, convents, shrines, and religious seminaries in Jerusalem mark events in the life of Jesus and in the formation of the Christian Church. According to the Bible, Jesus taught in Jerusalem and performed numerous miracles there. The Last Supper supposedly took place in a room known as the Cenacle (also called Coenaculum) on Mount Zion. The Church of the Holy Sepulcher in the Old City is said to be the place of Jesus's Crucifixion (called Calvary or Golgotha), as well as His burial and resurrection. Several Christian sects own the church, which was originally built by Constantine the Great, then rebuilt and dedicated by the Crusaders in 1149 CE. The building stands at the end of the Via Dolorosa (Way of Sorrows), believed to be the path over which Jesus carried His cross to Calvary. Jesus was last seen by His followers on the Mount of Olives before He went up to heaven. All of these sites attract many religious pilgrims each year.

Islamic

Jerusalem is Islam's third holiest city, after Mecca and Medina in Saudi Arabia. According to Muslim tradition, Muhammad originally selected Jerusalem as the qibla: the direction Muslims should face during prayer. However, he later told his followers to face Mecca instead of Jerusalem when praying. Muhammad is said to have gone up to heaven from a stone now covered by a golden-domed shrine called the Dome of the Rock. The Dome of the Rock and the ancient Al-Aqsa Mosque are very important places in the Muslim tradition and are among the holiest sites in Islam. They are the main buildings on the Temple Mount, which Muslims call Haram al-Sharif (Noble Sanctuary).

Architecture

Jerusalem's architecture is a mixture of old and new. The Old City contains architectural examples from each major period in the city's history. Many ancient historical sites and places of worship stand near modern shopping centers and industrial zones. Architecture from the late 1800s and early 1900s shows European influences. Usefulness rather than style characterizes new apartment buildings constructed by the government as housing for immigrants. Many buildings, old and new, have matching exteriors because all construction is required to be faced with a cream-colored limestone called Jerusalem stone, produced by nearby quarries.

Religion in Jerusalem

Belz Beis HaMedrash HaGadol is the largest synagogue in Jerusalem.

Twin towns and sister cities

• New York City, United States (since 1993)
• Prague, Czech Republic

Partner city

• Marseille, France

Other websites

• Official website of Jerusalem Municipality
• Jerusalemp3 Archived 2015-08-01 at the Wayback Machine, offers free virtual tours in mp3 format from the Jerusalem Municipality
• Jerusalem at the Open Directory Project

Government

• The Status of JerusalemPDF (159 KB), United Nations document related to the recent dispute over Jerusalem
• Basic Law: Jerusalem, Capital of Israel, Government of Israel, the Israeli law making Jerusalem the capital of Israel

Culture

• Israel Museum, one of Jerusalem's premier art museums
• Yad Vashem Archived 2016-02-04 at the Wayback Machine, Israeli memorial to victims of The Holocaust

Education

• Hebrew University of Jerusalem, Jerusalem's foremost institution of higher learning
• al-Quds University, the only Palestinian university in Jerusalem

Maps

• Modern-day map of Jerusalem, from City of Jerusalem.
• Ancient Maps of Jerusalem Archived 2006-04-11 at the Wayback Machine, from the Jewish National Library at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem