Jerusalem is an ancient Middle Eastern city located on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean and the Dead Sea; it is today the capital of Israel and the center of many religions During its long history, Jerusalem has been destroyed at least twice, besieged 23 times, captured and recaptured 44 times, and attacked 52 times. As one of the oldest cities in the world, it is today considered holy to each of the three major Abrahamic religions—Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. Both Israel and the Palestinian Authority claim Jerusalem as their capital, as Israel maintains its primary governmental institutions there and the State of Palestine ultimately foresees it as its seat of power; however, neither claim is widely recognized internationally Variations of the name abound, both linguistic and historical; lists have been compiled of 72 different names in Jewish scripture. Today, Jerusalem is called "Yerushalayim" in Hebrew and "Al-Quds" in Arabic. Its earliest form is "Urusalim" which is a Sumero-Akkadian name that is variously etymologised to mean "foundation of [by] the god Shalim" (from West Semitic 'to found, to lay a cornerstone'), and Shalim, the Canaanite god of the setting sun and the nether world, as well as of health and perfection Long an object of veneration and conflict, the holy city of Jerusalem has been governed, both as a provincial town and a national capital, by an extended series of dynasties and states. In the early 20th century the city, along with all of historic Palestine, became the focus of the competing national aspirations of Zionists and Palestinian Arabs. This struggle often erupted in violence. The United Nations (UN) attempted to declare the city a corpus separatum (Latin: "separate entity")-and, thus, avert further conflict-but the first Arab-Israeli war in 1948, left Jerusalem divided into Israeli (west Jerusalem) and Jordanian (east Jerusalem) sectors. The following year Israel declared the city its capital. During the Six-Day War of 1967, the Jewish state occupied the Jordanian sector and shortly thereafter expanded the city boundaries-thereby annexing some areas of the West Bank previously held by the Jordanians-and extended its jurisdiction over the unified city. Although Israel's actions were repeatedly condemned by the UN and other bodies, Israel reaffirmed Jerusalem's standing as its capital by promulgating a special law in 1980. The status of the city remained a central issue in the dispute between Israel and the Palestinian Arabs, who claim east Jerusalem as the capital of a future Palestinian state The earliest traces of human settlement in the city area, found on a hill to the southeast, are from the late Chalcolithic Period (the Copper Age) and Early Bronze Age (c. 3000 BC). Excavations have revealed that a settlement existed on a site south of the Temple Mount, and a massive town wall was found just above the Gihon Spring, which determined the location of the ancient settlement The name is probably of western Semitic origin and apparently means "Foundation of Shalem (God)." The city and its earliest rulers, the Egyptians, are mentioned in the Egyptian Execration Texts (c. 1900–1800 BC) and again in the 14th-century Tell el-Amarna correspondence, which contains a message from the city's ruler, Abdi-Kheba, requiring his sovereign's help against the invading Hapiru (Habiru, Apiru) A biblical narrative mentions the meeting of the Canaanite Melchizedek, said to be king of Salem (Jerusalem), with the Hebrew patriarch Abraham. A later episode in the biblical text mentions another king, Adonizedek, who headed an Amorite coalition and was vanquished by Joshua According to biblical accounts, Jerusalem, on the frontier of Benjamin and Judah and inhabited by a mixed population described as Jebusites, was captured by David, founder of the joint kingdom of Israel and Judah, and the city became the Jewish kingdom's capital. This has been dated to about 1000 BC. David's successor, King Solomon, extended the city and built his Temple on the threshing floor of Araunah (Ornan) the Jebusite. Thus Jerusalem became the place of the royal palace and the sacred site of a monotheistic religion On King Solomon's death, the northern tribes seceded and in bout 930 BC the Egyptian pharaoh Sheshonk I sacked the city, to be followed by the Philistines and Arabians in 850 BC and Joash of Israel in 786 BC. After Hezekiah became king of Judah, he built new fortifications and an underground tunnel, which brought water from Gihon Spring to the Pool of Siloam inside the city, but he succumbed to the might of Sennacherib of Assyria, who in 701 BC forced payment of a heavy tribute In 612 BC Assyria yielded its primacy to Babylon. Eight years later Jerusalem was despoiled, and its king was deported to Babylon In 587/586 BC the city and Temple were completely destroyed by Nebuchadrezzar II (Nebuchadnezzar), and the Hebrew captivity began. It ended in 538 BC when Cyrus II (the Great) of Persia, who had overcome Babylon, permitted the Jews, led by Zerubbabel, of the Davidic house, to return to Jerusalem. The Temple was restored (515 BC) despite Samaritan opposition, and the city became the centre of the new statehood. Its position was strengthened when Nehemiah (c. 444 BC) restored its fortifications Hellenistic and Hasmonean periods ======================= With the coming of Alexander the Great and his victory at Issus in 333 BC, Jerusalem fell under Greek influence. After Alexander's death, Palestine fell to the share of his marshal Ptolemy I Soter, son of Lagus, who had occupied Egypt and had made Alexandria his capital. In the year 198 BC Jerusalem was acquired by the northern dynasty, descended from Seleucus I Nicator, another of Alexander's marshals, which ruled from Antioch (now in Turkey) The growth of Greek influence (pagan) affronted the orthodox Jews, whose hostility burst into armed rebellion in 167 BC after the Seleucid Antiochus IV Epiphanes deliberately desecrated the Temple. The revolt was led by Mattathias, son of Hasmoneus (Hasmon), and was carried on by his son Judas, known as the Maccabee (Maccabeus). The Hasmoneans succeeded in expelling the Seleucids, and Jerusalem regained its position as the capital of an independent state ruled by the priestly Hasmonean dynasty Sources; each of these has extensive information for research and understanding… https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Jerusalem https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Names_of_Jerusalem https://www.britannica.com/place/Jerusalem