Israel

The land called Canaan, which includes what is now known as Israel. This area is about 70 miles wide and 150 miles long—between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River. It is about the size of the state of Vermont. The history of the people started with the time of Abraham, about 2000 BC. Abraham, his son Isaac, and Isaac’s son Jacob are the ancestors or founders of the Israelites. Israel became known as the northern kingdom between 930 and 722 BC, after separating from the tribes of Judah and Benjamin after the death of Solomon. This kingdom, which included ten of the original twelve tribes, was also called Ephraim—the name of one of the strongest tribes. The northern and southern kingdoms had separate kings and sometimes fought each other. Its capital was Samaria.

Although all of Israel is hilly, the northern part has the most rugged hills. The central part has the best farmland. There are fertile valleys between the hills, and the climate is good for farming. Much of southern Israel has so little rainfall that it is barely usable for grazing sheep and camels. There is some land around wells that can be farmed.