Ashdod Colony

Ashdod is a coastal city located on the Mediterranean Sea, originally built by the Canaanites who inhabited historic Palestine around 3000 BCE. Ashdod is considered the sixth largest city by population, with 224,628 residents according to statistics from December 2018. It falls within the Southern District under the Israeli administrative division. Its port is the most important in Israel, handling approximately 60% of the country’s imported goods. The city is situated 32 km (20 miles) south of Tel Aviv, 20 km (12 miles) north of Ashkelon, and 53 km (33 miles) west of Jerusalem. Ashdod is also an important regional industrial center. As a result of the 1948 war, most of its Arab inhabitants migrated to Gaza and other areas.

Modern Ashdod encompasses the lands of two ancient twin cities—one inland and one on the coast—which, throughout most of their history, were separate entities closely connected to each other. This document addresses these historical cities, including nearby ancient sites, as well as modern Ashdod.

The earliest documented urban settlement in Ashdod dates back to the Canaanite culture in the 17th century BCE. Ashdod is mentioned 13 times in the Bible. Throughout its history before 1956, the city was inhabited by the Philistines, Israelites, Greek settlers who arrived after Alexander’s conquests, Romans, Byzantines, Arabs, Crusaders, and Ottoman Turks.

Modern Ashdod was founded in 1956 on the sandy hills near the site of ancient Ashdod and was incorporated as a city in 1968. Covering approximately 60 square kilometers (23 square miles), Ashdod was developed as a planned city, following a major development plan that facilitated traffic flow and prevented air pollution in residential areas despite population growth. According to the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics, Ashdod’s population was 224,628 in 2018, with a land area of 47,242 dunams (47.242 km² / 18.240 square miles).

Today, Ashdod is home to the largest Moroccan Jewish community in occupied Palestine, the largest Kurdish Jewish community, and the largest Georgian Jewish community worldwide.

Sources:
Due to the scarcity of Arabic sources, Hebrew sources were used: the settlement’s Hebrew website / the Israeli Central Bureau of Statistics.
The village of Ashdod from the Palestine Remembered website.