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Jericho ( ; , ) is a city in the , , and the capital of the Jericho Governorate. The city is located in the , with the to the east and to the west.

Jericho is among the oldest cities in the world.

(2025). 9780415018951, Routledge.
Murphy-O'Connor, 1998, p. 288.Freedman et al., 2000, p. 689–671. have unearthed the remains of more than 20 successive settlements in Jericho, the first of which dates back 11,000 years (to 9000 ), almost to the very beginning of the epoch of the Earth's history. Copious springs in and around the city have attracted human habitation for thousands of years.Bromiley, 1995, p. 715 Jericho is described in the as the "city of palm trees".

Following the era of Mandatory Palestine, the West Bank was annexed and ruled by Jordan starting in 1950, then was occupied by Israel in 1967. Administrative control of Jericho was handed over to the Palestinian Authority in 1994.

The city had a population of 20,907 in 2017. In 2023, the archaeological site in the center of the city, known as , was inscribed in 's list as a World Heritage Site in the State of Palestine, and described as the "oldest fortified city in the world".

Etymology
Jericho's name in , Yəriḥo (יְרִיחוֹ) is generally thought to derive from the Canaanite word rēḥ , but other theories hold that it originates in the Canaanite word Yaraḥ or the name of the lunar deity , for whom the city was an early centre of worship.Schreiber, 2003, p. 141.

Jericho's Arabic name, , means and also has its roots in Canaanite rēḥ.Bromiley, 1995, p. 1136.

History and archaeology
The first excavations of the site were carried out by in 1868. and excavated Tell es-Sultan and Tulul Abu el-'Alayiq between 1907 and 1909, and in 1911, and excavated between 1930 and 1936. worked there between 1952 and 1958.

Subsequently, and Nicolò Marchetti excavated in 1997–2000. Since 2009, the Italian-Palestinian archaeological project of excavation and restoration was resumed by Rome ("" University and Palestinian MOTA-DACH) under the direction of Nigro, , and Jehad Yasine since 2015. The Italian-Palestinian Expedition carried out 13 seasons in 20 years (1997–2017), with some major discoveries, like Tower A1 in the Middle Bronze Age southern Lower Town and Palace G on the eastern flanks of the Spring Hill overlooking the Spring of 'Ain es-Sultan dating from Early Bronze III.

Stone Age: Tell es-Sultan and spring
The earliest excavated settlement was located at the present-day (or Sultan's Hill), a couple of kilometers from the current city. In both and Hebrew, tell means "mound"; consecutive layers of habitation built up a mound over time, as is common for ancient settlements in the Middle East and . Jericho is the for the Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA) and Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (PPNB) periods.
(1979). 9780870442544, National Geographic Society. .

Natufian hunter-gatherers,
construction at the site appears to predate the invention of , with the construction of structures beginning earlier than 9000 , the beginning of the epoch in geologic history.

Jericho has evidence of settlement dating back to . During the period of cold and drought, permanent habitation of any one location was impossible. However, the Ein es-Sultan spring at what would become Jericho was a popular camping ground for hunter-gatherer groups, who left a scattering of crescent-shaped microlith tools behind them.

(2025). 9780674019997, Harvard University Press.
Around 9600 BCE, the droughts and cold of the Younger Dryas had come to an end, making it possible for Natufian groups to extend the duration of their stay, eventually leading to year-round habitation and permanent settlement.

Pre-Pottery Neolithic, 9500–6500 BCE
The Pre-Pottery Neolithic eras at Jericho are divided into PPNA and PPNB.

Pre-Pottery Neolithic A (PPNA)
The first permanent settlement on the site of Jericho developed near the Ein es-Sultan spring between 9,500 and 9000 BCE. As the world warmed up, a new culture based on agriculture and sedentary dwelling emerged, which archaeologists have termed PPNA. Its cultures lacked pottery, but featured the following:
  • small circular dwellings
  • burial of the dead under the floor of buildings
  • reliance on hunting of wild game
  • cultivation of wild or domestic cereals

At Jericho, circular dwellings were built of bricks left to dry in the sun, which were plastered together with a mud mortar. Each house measured about across and was roofed with mud-smeared brush. Hearths were located within and outside the homes.

(2025). 9780674019997, Harvard University Press.

The Pre-Sultan ( – 7370 BCE) is sometimes called Sultanian. The site is a settlement surrounded by a massive stone wall over high and wide at the base, inside of which stood a stone tower, over high, containing an internal staircase with 22 stone steps

(2025). 9780674019997, Harvard University Press.
and placed in the centre of the west side of the tell. This tower and the even older ones excavated at in Syria are the oldest towers ever to be discovered.

The wall and tower were built during the PPNA period around 8000 BCE.

(1981). 9780950054230, British School of Archaeology. .
Carbon dates published in 1981 and 1983 indicate that the tower was built around 8300 BCE and stayed in use until . The wall may have served as a defence against water (possibly to prevent the of agricultural soil), with the tower used for ceremonial purposes.
(2025). 9780521796668, Cambridge University Press.
The wall and tower would have taken a hundred men more than a hundred days to construct, suggesting some kind of social organization. The town contained round mud-brick houses, but no street planning. The identity and number of Jericho's inhabitants during the PPNA period is still under debate, with estimates as high as 2,000–3,000 and as low as 200–300. It is known that this population had domesticated , and pulses, and hunted wild animals.

Pre-Pottery Neolithic B (PPNB)
The PPNB was a period of about 1.4 millennia, from 7220 to 5850 BCE (though carbon-14-dates are few and early). The following are PPNB cultural features:
  • Expanded range of domesticated plants
  • Possible
  • Apparent cult involving the preservation of human skulls, with facial features reconstructed using , and eyes set with shells in some cases

After a few centuries, the first settlement was abandoned. After the PPNA settlement phase, there was a settlement hiatus of around five centuries, then the PPNB settlement was founded on the eroded surface of the tell. This second settlement, established in 6800 BCE, perhaps represents the work of an invading people who absorbed the original inhabitants into their dominant culture. Artifacts dating from this period include ten plastered human skulls, painted so as to reconstitute the individuals' features. These represent either or the first example of in , and it is thought that they were kept in people's homes while the bodies were buried.Janson and Janson, 2003.

The architecture consisted of rectilinear buildings made of mudbricks on stone foundations. The mudbricks were loaf-shaped with deep thumb prints to facilitate bonding. No building has been excavated in its entirety. Normally, several rooms cluster around a central courtyard. There is one big room ( and ) with internal divisions; the rest are small, presumably used for storage. The rooms have red or pinkish -floors made of lime. Some impressions of mats made of reeds or rushes have been preserved. The courtyards have clay floors.

Kathleen Kenyon interpreted one building as a . It contained a niche in the wall. A chipped pillar of volcanic stone that was found nearby might have fitted into this niche.

The dead were buried under the floors or in the rubble fill of abandoned buildings. There are several collective burials. Not all the skeletons are completely articulated, which may point to a time of exposure before burial. A cache contained seven skulls. The jaws were removed and the faces covered with plaster; were used as eyes. A total of ten skulls were found. Modelled skulls were found in and as well.

Other finds included flints, such as arrowheads (tanged or side-notched), finely denticulated sickle-blades, burins, scrapers, a few , , and green obsidian from an unknown source. There were also , hammerstones, and a few ground-stone axes made of greenstone. Other items discovered included dishes and bowls carved from soft limestone, spindle whorls made of stone and possible loom weights, spatulae and drills, stylised anthropomorphic plaster figures, almost life-size, and clay figurines, as well as shell and malachite beads.

(2025). 9780199735785, The Oxford Companion to Archaeology. .

In the late 4th millennium BCE, Jericho was occupied during Neolithic 2 and the general character of the remains on the site link it culturally with Neolithic 2 (or PPNB) sites in the West Syrian and Middle Euphrates groups. This link is established by the presence of rectilinear mud-brick buildings and plaster floors that are characteristic of the age.

Chalcolithic
A succession of settlements followed from 4500 BCE onward.

Early Bronze Age
In Early Bronze I, the stratigraphic layers are Sultan IIIA1 village (EB IA, c. 3500 – 3200 BCE) and Sultan IIIA2 rural town (proto-urban, EB IB, c. 3200 – 3000 BCE).Nigro et al 2019

In Early Bronze II, the strategraphic layers are Sultan IIIB1 foritifed town (EB IIA, c. 3000-2850 BCE) and Sultan IIIB2 with added towers and bastions to the fortification (EB IIB, c.2850 – 2700 BCE).

In the Early Bronze IIIA ( – 2500/2450 BCE; Sultan IIIC1), the settlement reached its largest extent around 2600 BCE.

During Early Bronze IIIB (/2450–2350 BCE; Sultan IIIC2) there was a Palace G on Spring Hill and city walls.

In Early Bronze IV, the strategraphic layers are Sultan IIID1 (EB IVA; 2300 – 2200 BCE) and Sultan IIID2 (EB IVB; 2200 – 2000 BCE).

Middle Bronze Age
Jericho was continually occupied into the Middle Bronze Age; it was destroyed in the Late Bronze Age, after which it no longer served as an urban centre. The city was surrounded by extensive defensive walls strengthened with rectangular towers, and possessed an extensive cemetery with vertical shaft-tombs and underground burial chambers; the elaborate funeral offerings in some of these may reflect the emergence of local kings.

During the Middle Bronze Age, Jericho was a small prominent city of the region, reaching its greatest Bronze Age extent in the period from 1700 to 1550 BCE. It seems to have reflected the greater urbanization in the area at that time, and has been linked to the rise of the , a class of chariot-using aristocrats linked to the rise of the state to the north. Kathleen Kenyon reported "the Middle Bronze Age is perhaps the most prosperous in the whole history of Kna'an. ... The defenses ... belong to a fairly advanced date in that period" and there was "a massive stone ... part of a complex system" of defenses.

(2025). 9780510033118, Ernest Benn Limited. .
Bronze Age Jericho fell in the 16th century at the end of the Middle Bronze Age, the calibrated carbon remains from its City-IV destruction layer dating to 1617–1530 BCE. Carbon dating 1573 BCE confirmed the accuracy of the stratigraphical dating 1550.

Chronology (Nigro 2016)

  • Middle Bronze IA, Tell es-Sultan IVa1 (c. 2000/1950-1900 BC)
  • Middle Bronze IB, Tell es-Sultan IVa2 (c. 1900-1800 BC)
  • Middle Bronze IIA, Tell es-Sultan IVb1 (c. 1800-1700 BC)
  • Middle Bronze IIB, Tell es-Sultan IVb2 (c. 1700-1650 BC)
  • Middle Bronze IIC/III, Tell es-Sultan IVc (c. 1650-1550 BC)

Late Bronze Age
Decades after the destruction of the Middle Bronze Age city, it recovered again on a smaller scale during the Late Bronze Age (1450–1200 BC), with the previous Middle Bronze city wall being refurbished by adding a on top of its emerging crest.
(2025). 9783579062365, Gütersloher Verlagshaus.
Excavations have found a structure known as the "Middle Building" which apparently served as the residence of the city's local rulers, then vassals of the . Ultimately, the Middle Building was destroyed, although it was later reused in the early . According to Nigro (2023), the Late Bronze IIB layers of the tell were heavily cut by levelling operations during the Iron Age, which explains the scarcity of 13th century BCE materials.
Hebrew Bible narrative
The Hebrew Bible tells the story of the Battle of Jericho led by , leading to the fall of the city, the first one captured by the in the . The historicity of biblical account is not generally accepted by scholars.
(1986). 9780664212629, The Westminster Press. .
(1990). 9780295972619, University of Washington Press.
Lorenzo Nigro suggests that the story might have developed from local memories of the destructions suffered by the Canaanite city in the 3rd and 2nd millennia BCE, which were later used by the biblical writers to create their narrative.

Iron Age
Occupation in Tell es-Sultan appears to have resumed in the 11th century BCE, with the town becoming fortified again in the 10th century. Of this new city not much more remains than a on the eastern slope.
(2025). 9780826413161, Continuum. .
(Snippet view). By the 7th century, Jericho had become an extensive town, but this settlement was destroyed in the Babylonian conquest of Judah in the late 6th century.

Persian and Early Hellenistic periods
After the destruction of the Judahite city by the Babylonians in the late 6th century, whatever was rebuilt in the Persian period as part of the Restoration after the Babylonian captivity, left only very few remains. The tell was abandoned as a place of settlement not long after this period. During the Persian through Hellenistic periods, there is little in terms of occupation attested throughout the region.

Jericho went from being an administrative centre of ("the Province of Judah") under Persian rule to serving as the private estate of Alexander the Great between 336 and 323 BCE after his conquest of the region. In the middle of the 2nd century BCE Jericho was under rule of the , when the General Bacchides built a number of forts to strengthen the defences of the area around Jericho against the revolt by the .1 Maccabees 9:50 One of these forts, built at the entrance to , was later refortified by Herod the Great, who named it Kypros after his mother.Murphy-O'Connor, 1998, pp. 289–291.

Hasmonean and Herodian periods
After the abandonment of the Tell es-Sultan location, the new Jericho of the Late Hellenistic or and Early Roman or Herodian periods was established as a garden city in the vicinity of the royal estate at Tulul Abu el-'Alayiq and expanded greatly thanks to the intensive exploitation of the springs of the area. The new site consists of a group of low mounds on both banks of . The Hasmoneans were a dynasty descending from a priestly group () from the tribe of Levi, who ruled over Judea following the success of the until Roman influence over the region brought Herod to claim the Hasmonean throne.Magnusson, Magnus (1977). Archaeology of the Bible. New York: Simon and Schuster. p. 219. .

The rock-cut tombs of a Herodian- and Hasmonean-era cemetery lie in the lowest part of the cliffs between Nuseib al-Aweishireh and Mount of Temptation. They date between 100 BCE and 68 CE.

Herodian period
Herod had to lease back the royal estate at Jericho from , after had given it to her as a gift. After their joint suicide in 30 BCE, assumed control of the Roman Empire and granted Herod absolute rule over Jericho, as part of the new domain. Herod's rule oversaw the construction of a -theatre ( Tell es-Samrat) to entertain his guests and new aqueducts to irrigate the area below the cliffs and reach his winter palaces built at the site of Tulul Abu el-Alaiq (also written ʾAlayiq). In 2008, the Israel Exploration Society published an illustrated volume of Herod's third Jericho palace.Rozenberg, Silvia; Netzer, Ehud (2008). Hasmonean and Herodian palaces at Jericho: final reports of the 1973–1987 excavations. 4, "The decoration of Herod's third palace at Jericho". Jerusalem: Israel Exploration Society & Institute of Archaeology, The Hebrew University of Jerusalem. . WorldCat website

The murder of in a swimming pool at the Hasmonean royal winter palaces, as described by the Roman Jewish historian , took place during a banquet organized by Herod's Hasmonean mother-in-law. After the construction of the palaces, the city had functioned not only as an agricultural center and as a crossroad, but also as a winter resort for 's aristocracy. Jericho – (Ariha) Studium Biblicum Franciscum – Jerusalem.

Herod was succeeded in Judea by his son, , who built a village in his name not far to the north, Archelaïs (modern Khirbet al-Beiyudat), to house workers for his date plantation.

First-century Jericho is described in 's Geography as follows:

In the New Testament
The Christian state that of Nazareth passed through Jericho where he healed blind beggars (), and inspired a local chief named to of his dishonest practices (). The road between Jerusalem and Jericho is the setting for the Parable of the Good Samaritan.

, in his New Testament Notes on this section of Luke's Gospel, claimed that "about twelve thousand and dwelt there, who all attended the service of the temple".Wesley, J. (1754), Notes on The Gospel According to St Luke on chapter X, accessed on 31 March 2025

Smith's Bible Names Dictionary suggests that "Jericho was once more 'a city of palms' when our Lord visited it. Here he restored sight to the blind (; ; ). Here the descendant of did not disdain the hospitality of Zacchaeus the . Finally, between Jerusalem and Jericho was laid the scene of his story of the good Samaritan." Smith's Bible Names Dictionary: Jericho. Retrieved 6 February 2017.

Roman province
After the fall of Jerusalem to Vespasian's armies in the Great Revolt of Judea in 70 CE, Jericho declined rapidly, and by 100 CE it was but a small Roman garrison town. A fort was built there in 130 and played a role in putting down the Bar Kochba revolt in 133.

Byzantine period
Accounts of Jericho by a Christian are given in 333. Shortly thereafter the built-up area of the town was abandoned and a Jericho, Ericha, was built 1600 metres (1 mi) to the east, on which the modern town is centered.Losch, 2005, p. 117–118. took hold in the city during the Byzantine era and the area was heavily populated. A number of monasteries and churches were built, including the Monastery of Saint George of Choziba in 340 CE and a domed church dedicated to . At least two were also built in the 6th century CE. The monasteries were abandoned after the Sasanian invasion of 614.

The Jericho synagogue in the Royal Maccabean winter palace at Jericho dates from 70 to 50 BCE. A synagogue dating to the late 6th or early 7th century CE was discovered in Jericho in 1936, and was named Shalom Al Yisrael Synagogue, or "peace unto Israel", after the central motto in its mosaic floor.

The synagogue, another Byzantine era construction, was discovered on the northern outskirts of Jericho in 1918. While less is known of it than Shalom Al Yisrael, it has a larger mosaic and is in a similar condition.

Early Muslim period
Jericho, by then named "Ariha" in Arabic variation, became part of ("Military District of Palestine"), part of the larger province of . The Arab Muslim historian Musa b. 'Uqba (died 758) recorded that Umar ibn al-Khattab exiled the Jews and Christians of to Jericho (and Tayma).Several hadith collections: e.g. Bukhari, Sahih as translated Muḥammad Muḥsin Khân, The Translation of the Meanings of Sahih al-Bukhari (India: Kitab Bhavan, 1987) 3.39.531 and 4.53.380, and Muslim Sahih trans. Abdul Hamid Siddiqui (Lahore: Kazi Publications, 1976) 10.3763.

By 659, that district had come under the control of Mu'awiya, founder of the Umayyad dynasty. That year, an earthquake destroyed Jericho. The Maronite Chronicle, written during Mu'awiya's caliphate. For propaganda reasons it dates the earthquake to the wrong year: Andrew Palmer, The Seventh Century in the West-Syrian Chronicles (Liverpool: Liverpool University Press, 1993), 30, 31, 32. A decade later, the pilgrim visited Jericho and found it in ruins, all its "miserable Canaanite" inhabitants now dispersed in shanty towns around the Dead Sea shore."The Pilgrimage of Arculf in the Holy Land", De Locis Sanctis as translated by Rev. James Rose MacPherson (W. London: BD. 24, Hanover Square, 1895), ch. I.11.

A palatial complex long attributed to the tenth Umayyad caliph, Hisham ibn Abd al-Malik (r. 724–743) and thus known as Hisham's Palace, is located at Khirbet al-Mafjar, about 1.5 kilometres (1 mi) north of Tell es-Sultan. This qasr/" itemprop="url" title="Wiki: Desert castle">Desert castle was more likely built by Caliph (r. 743–744), who was assassinated before he could complete the construction.Jerome Murphy-O'Connor, The Holy Land: An Oxford Archaeological Guide from Earliest Times to 1700, Oxford University Press 2008, pp. 342–344. The remains of two mosques, a courtyard, mosaics, and other items can still be seen in situ today. The unfinished structure was largely destroyed in an earthquake in 747.

Umayyad rule ended in 750 and was followed by the caliphates of the and dynasties. Irrigated agriculture was developed under Islamic rule, reaffirming Jericho's reputation as a fertile "City of the Palms".Shahin, 2005, p. 285. , the Arab geographer, wrote in 985 that "the water of Jericho is held to be the highest and best in all . are plentiful, also dates and flowers of fragrant odor".Shahin, 2005, p. 283. Jericho is also referred to by him as one of the principal cities of Jund Filastin.al-Muqaddasi quoted in Le Strange, 1890, p. 39

Crusader period
In 1179, the Crusaders rebuilt the Monastery of St. George of Koziba, at its original site 10 km (6 mi) from the center of town. They also built another two churches and a monastery dedicated to John the Baptist, and were credited by 19th-century authors with introducing production to the city,Hull, 1855. although now scholars date it to the pre-Crusader, Early Arab period. The Crusaders, however, have raised sugar production to the level of a large-scale industry. The site of Tawahin es-Sukkar (lit. "sugar mills") holds remains of a Crusader sugar production facility. In 1187, the Crusaders were evicted by the forces of after their victory in the Battle of Hattin and the town slowly went into decline.

Ayyubid and Mamluk periods
In 1226, Arab geographer said of Jericho, "it has many palm trees, also sugarcane in quantities, and bananas. The best of all the sugar in the land is made here." In the 14th century, writes that there are mines in Jericho, "the only ones in Palestine".al-Hamawi and Abu-l Fida quoted in Le Strange, 1890, p. 397

Ottoman period
16th century
Jericho was incorporated into the in 1517 with all of Palestine, and in 1545 a revenue of 19,000 Akçe was recorded, destined for the new for the Haseki Sultan Imaret of Jerusalem.Singer, 2002, pp. 50, 52 The villagers processed as one source of revenue, using a cauldron specifically for this purpose that was loaned to them by the Ottoman authorities in Jerusalem.Singer, 2002, p. 120 Later that century, the Jericho revenues no longer went to the Haseki Sultan Imaret.Singer, 2002, p. 126

In 1596 Jericho appeared in the under the name of Riha, being in the of Al-Quds in the liwa of . It had a population of 51 households, all . They paid a fixed tax-rate of 33.3% on agricultural products, including wheat, barley, summer crops, vineyards and fruit trees, goats and beehives, water buffaloes, in addition to occasional revenues; a total of 40,000 Akçe. All of the revenue still went to a Waqf.Hütteroth and Abdulfattah, 1977, p. 114

17th century
The French traveller Laurent d'Arvieux described the city in 1659 as "now desolate, and consists only of about fifty poor houses, in bad condition ... The plain around is extremely fertile; the soil is middling fat; but it is watered by several rivulets, which flow into the Jordan. Notwithstanding these advantages only the gardens adjacent to the town are cultivated."Graham, 1836, p. 122

19th century
In the 19th century, European scholars, archaeologists and missionaries visited often. At the time it was an oasis in a poor state, similar to other regions in the plains and deserts.Ben-Arieh, Yehoshua. "The Sanjak of Jerusalem in the 1870s" . In Cathedra, 36. Jerusalem: Yad Yitzhak Ben Zvi. 1985. pp. 80–82 Edward Robinson (1838) reported 50 families, which were about 200 people,Robinson and Smith, 1841, vol. 2, p. 280 (1854) reported some 30 poor huts, whose residents paid a total of 3611 kuruş in tax., Topographie von Jerusalem und seinen Umgebungen, Berlin, 1853–1854, p. 642 Abraham Samuel Herschberg (1858–1943) also reported after his 1899–1900 travels in the region of some 30 poor huts and 300 residents. At that time, Jericho was the residence of the region's Turkish governor. The main water sources for the village were a spring called Ein al-Sultan, lit. "Sultan's Spring", in Arabic and Ein Elisha, lit. "Elisha Spring", in Hebrew, and springs in .

J. S. Buckingham (1786–1855) describes in his 1822 book how the male villagers of er-Riha, although nominally sedentary, engaged in -style raiding, or ghazzu: the little land cultivation he observed was done by women and children, while men spent most of their time riding through the plains and engaging in "robbery and plunder", their main and most profitable activity.

(2025). 9781317543473, Routledge.

An village list from around 1870 showed that Riha, Jericho, had 36 houses and a population of 105, though the population count included men only.Socin, 1879, p. 159Hartmann, 1883, p. 124, noted 34 houses

The first excavation at Tell es-Sultan was carried out in 1867.

20th century
In Jericho and the Jordan Valley, the Greek Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem acquired estates that supported agricultural development and served as symbols of its renewed presence in the countryside.Papastathis, Konstantinos and Ruth Kark. "The Politics of Church Land Administration: The Orthodox Patriarchate of Jerusalem in Late Ottoman and Mandatory Palestine, 1875–1948." Byzantine and Modern Greek Studies 40, no. 2 (2016): 264–282. The Greek Orthodox monasteries of St. George of Choziba and John the Baptist were refounded and completed in 1901 and 1904, respectively.

British Mandate period
After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire at the end of World War I, Jericho came under British rule, as part of Mandatory Palestine.

According to the 1922 census of Palestine, Jericho had 1,029 inhabitants (931 Muslims, 92 Christians, and six Jews).Barron, 1923, Table VII, Sub-district of Jericho, p. 19 The Christian population consisted of 45 Orthodox, 12 Roman Catholics, 13 Greek Catholics (Melkite Catholics), 6 Syrian Catholic, 11 Armenians, four Copts and one Church of England.Barron, 1923, Table XIV, p. 45

In 1927, an earthquake struck and affected Jericho and other cities. Around 300 people died, but by the 1931 census the population had increased to 1,693 inhabitants (1,512 Muslims, 170 Christians, seven Druze, and four Jews), in 347 houses.Mills, 1932, p. 45

In the 1938 statistics, Jericho lists a population of 1,996 people (including five Jews).

In the 1945 statistics, Jericho's population was 3,010 (2,570 Muslims, 260 Christians, 170 Jews, and 10 "other"Department of Statistics, 1945, p. 24) and it had jurisdiction over 37,481 of land.Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 57 Of this, 948 dunams were used for citrus and bananas, 5,873 dunams were for plantations and irrigable land, 9,141 for cereals,Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 102 while a total of 38 dunams were urban, built-up areas.Government of Palestine, Department of Statistics. Village Statistics, April, 1945. Quoted in Hadawi, 1970, p. 153

During World War II The British built fortresses in Jericho with the help of the Jewish company , and bridges were rigged with explosives in preparation for a possible invasion by German allied forces.Friling and Cummings, 2005, p. 65.

Jordanian period
Jericho came under control after the 1948 Arab–Israeli War. The Jericho Conference, organized by King Abdullah and attended by over 2,000 Palestinian delegates in 1948 proclaimed "His Majesty Abdullah as King of all Palestine" and called for "the unification of Palestine and Transjordan as a step toward full unity". In mid-1950, Jordan formally annexed the West Bank and Jericho residents, like other residents of West Bank localities became Jordanian citizens.Benvenisti, 1998, pp. 27–28.

In 1961, the population of Jericho was 10,166,Government of Jordan, 1964, p. 13 of whom 935 were Christian, and the rest were Muslim.Government of Jordan, Department of Statistics, 1964, pp. 115–116

1967 and aftermath
Jericho has been occupied by Israel since the of 1967 along with the rest of the West Bank. It was the first city handed over to Palestinian Authority control in accordance with the . The limited Palestinian self-rule of Jericho was agreed on in the Gaza–Jericho Agreement of 4 May 1994. Part of the agreement was a "Protocol on Economic Relations", signed on 29 April 1994. The city is in an enclave of the Jordan Valley that is in Area A of the West Bank, while the surrounding area is designated as being in Area C under full Israeli military control. Four roadblocks encircle the enclave, restricting Jericho's Palestinian population's movement through the West Bank.

The Jericho synagogue was controlled by Israel after the Six-Day War, but after the handover to Palestinian Authority control per the Oslo Accords, it has been a source of conflict. On the night of 12 October 2000, the synagogue was vandalized by Palestinians who burned holy books and relics and damaged the mosaic.

In response to the 2001 and , Jericho was re-occupied by Israeli troops. A deep trench was built around a large part of the city to control Palestinian traffic to and from Jericho.ARIJ & LRC, 20 March 2001, The Tightening of the Siege on Jericho: Israel Employs a New Policy of Trench Digging

On 14 March 2006, the Israel Defense Forces launched Operation Bringing Home the Goods, raiding a Jericho prison to capture the PFLP general secretary, Ahmad Sa'adat, and five other prisoners, all of whom had been charged with assassinating the Israeli tourist minister in 2001. Israel holds militant after siege 14 March 2006

After Hamas assaulted a neighborhood in Gaza mostly populated by the Fatah-aligned , in response to their attack that killed six Hamas members, the Hilles clan was relocated to Jericho on 4 August 2008. Jerusalem Post 4 August 2008 IDF: Hilles clan won't boost terrorism Yaacov Katz And Khaled Abu Toameh

In 2009, Palestinian Authority Prime Minister and U.S. Assistant Secretary of State for International Narcotics and Law Enforcement Affairs David Johnson inaugurated the Presidential Guard Training Center in Jericho, a $9.1 million training facility for Palestinian Authority security forces built with U.S. funding. In 2024, a Jericho street was named after , a U.S. soldier who self-immolated in support of Palestine.

The city had a population of 20,907 in 2017.

Geography and environment
Jericho is located below in an in in the Jordan Valley, which makes it the lowest city in the world.
(2006). 9781586402761, Broadman & Holman. .
The nearby spring of Ein es-Sultan produces 3.8 m3 (1,000 gallons) of water per minute, irrigating some through multiple channels and feeding into the , away.Ring et al., 1994, p. 367–370.

Important Bird Area
A site encompassing the city of Jericho and its immediate surrounds has been recognised as an Important Bird Area (IBA) by BirdLife International because it supports populations of , , , and Dead Sea sparrows.

Climate
Annual rainfall is , mostly concentrated in the winter months and into early spring. The average temperature is in January and in July. According to the Köppen climate classification, Jericho has a hot desert climate ( BWh). Rich alluvial soil and abundant spring water have made Jericho an attractive place for settlement.

Demographics
In the first census carried out by the Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS), in 1997, Jericho's population was 14,674. Palestinian refugees constituted 43.6% of the residents or 6,393 people. Palestinian Population by Locality and Refugee Status Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS). The gender make-up of the city was 51% male and 49% female. Jericho has a young population, with nearly half (49.2%) of the inhabitants being under the age of 20. People between the ages of 20 and 44 made up 36.2% of the population, 10.7% between the ages of 45 and 64, and 3.6% were over the age of 64. Palestinian Population by Locality, Sex and Age Groups in Years (PCBS). In the 2007 census by the PCBS, Jericho had a population of 18,346. 2007 PCBS Census . Palestinian Central Bureau of Statistics (PCBS).

In a 1945 land and population survey by , 3,010 inhabitants is the figure given for Jericho, of which 94% (2840) were Arab and 6% (170) were Jews.Hadawi, 1970, p.57 Today, the overwhelming majority of the population is . The Christian community makes up around 1% of the population. A large community of black Palestinians lives in Jericho.

Economy
In 1994, Israel and Palestine signed an economic accord that enabled Palestinians in Jericho to open banks, collect taxes and engage in export and import in preparation for self-rule. Agriculture is another source of income, with banana groves ringing the city.

The Jericho Agro-Industrial Park is a public-private enterprise being developed in the Jericho area. Agricultural processing companies are being offered financial concessions to lease plots of land in the park in a bid to boost Jericho's economy.

Tourism
In 1998, a $150 million casino-hotel was built in Jericho with the backing of Yasser Arafat. The casino is now closed, though the hotel on the premises is open for guests.

In 2010, Jericho, with its proximity to the Dead Sea, was declared the most popular destination among Palestinian tourists.

Biblical and Christian landmarks
Christian tourism is one of Jericho's primary sources of income. There are several major Christian pilgrimage sites in and around Jericho.
  • , known as the Spring of Elisha to Jews and Christians;
  • on the Jordan River, across from , traditionally identified as the location of the baptism of Jesus;
  • Mount of Temptation (Jebel Quruntul), traditionally identified as the location of the Temptation of Jesus;
  • The Greek Orthodox Monastery of the Temptation halfway up the mountain, beside a cave said to be the location where Jesus fasted for 40 days. It is connected to Jericho by a cable car;
  • 2 sycamore trees, both identified as the one mentioned in relation to ;
  • , the monastery of St. Gerasimos in the Jordan Valley near Jericho;
  • Saint George Monastery in above Jericho.

Archaeological landmarks
  • Stone, Bronze and Iron Age cities at Tell es-Sultan;
  • Hasmonean and Herodian winter palaces at Tulul Abu el-'Alayiq;
  • Byzantine-period synagogues at Jericho (Shalom Al Yisrael Synagogue) and ;
  • Umayyad palace at Khirbet al-Mafjar known as Hisham's Palace;
  • Crusader sugar production facility at Tawahin es-Sukkar (lit. "sugar mills");
  • , the and shrine claimed to be the resting place of ("Prophet Musa" to the Muslims)

Schools and religious institutions
In 1925, Christian friars opened a school for 100 pupils that became the Terra Santa School. The city has 22 state schools and a number of private schools.

Health care
In April 2010, the United States Agency for International Development (USAID) held a groundbreaking ceremony for the renovation of the Jericho Governmental Hospital. USAID is providing $2.5 million in funding for this project.

Sports
The sports team plays association football in the West Bank First Division. They play home games in the 15,000-spectator Jericho International Stadium.

Twin towns and sister cities
Jericho is with:

  • , Italy (2004)
  • , Brazil (2001)
  • , Hungary (2013)
  • Estación Central, Chile (2007)
  • Fez, Morocco (2014)
  • Foz do Iguaçu, Brazil (2012)
  • Iași, Romania (2003)
  • Ilion, Greece (1999)
  • , Serbia (2011)
  • Lærdal, Norway (1998)
  • , Italy (2000)
  • San Giovanni Valdarno, Italy (2004)
  • Santa Bárbara, Brazil (1998)
  • Al-Shuna al-Shamalyah, Jordan (2016)

Notable people

See also
  • Ancient underground quarry, Jordan Valley, some north of Jericho
  • al-Auja, Jericho, a Palestinian village north of Jericho
  • Battle of Jericho, biblical story
  • Cities in the Book of Joshua
  • Hasmonean royal winter palaces, actually Hasmonean and Herodian, at Tulul Abu al-'Alayiq south of Jericho proper
  • History of pottery in Palestine
  • Jawa, Jordan, the oldest proto-urban settlement from Jordan (late 4th millennium BC – Early Bronze Age)
  • Mevo'ot Yericho, Israeli settlement just north of Jericho
  • Tower of Jericho, the Neolithic stone tower, c. 10,000 years old, excavated at Tell es-Sultan
  • Wall of Jericho, the Neolithic stone wall, c. 10,000 years old, excavated at Tell es-Sultan

Citations
General and cited references

External links

: , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , ,
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