"Magdalūma, Migdālîm, Magdoloi", and "Majādīl": The Historical Geography and Archaeology of the "Magdalu (Migdāl)"

• Published in: Bulletin of the American Schools of Oriental Research Vol. 346; no. 346; pp. 29 - 57
• Main Author: Burke, Aaron A.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Missoula, MT American Schools of Oriental Research 01.05.2007; American Schools of Oriental Research and Scholars Press
• Subjects: Ancient civilizations of the near east; Archaeological excavation; Archaeological sites; Archaeological surveys; Archaeology; Art and archaeology; Bronze Age; Bronzes; Geography; Historic buildings & sites; Iron Age; Mesopotamia and Near East; Phoenicia; Place names; Towers; Greek antiquity; Bronze age; Iron age; Lebanon; Asia; Levant; Historical geography; Fortified site; Toponymy; Distribution; Evolution; Identification; Tower; Chronology; Levant
• ISSN: 0003-097X; 2769-3600; 2161-8062; 2769-3589
• DOI: 10.1086/BASOR25067009

Several lines of evidence permit us to characterize ancient Levantine settlements whose modern place names include variations of the Arabic term "májdal". It has been suggested for some time that these sites preserve the locations of Bronze and Iron Age watchtowers, though this has not been unequivocally demonstrated. However, textual references to Bronze Age "magdalūma", Iron Age "migdālîm", and Classical "magdoloi", when compared against the locations of "majādīl", indeed support the identification of these sites as Bronze and Iron Age military observation towers. This fact is further supported by archaeological data available from nearly half of these settlements. The distribution of Arabic "majādīl" reveals a logical selection of strategic positions within the Levantine landscape for the establishment of towers that served as part of an integrated defensive network related to the major political centers of the Levant, principally during the Middle and Late Bronze Ages.