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Beit She'an
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Ancient city and modern regional center in the Northern District of Israel
OverviewAI-generated
Beit She'an is a city in Israel’s Northern District, situated at an elevation below sea level. The settlement, which dates back to 4000 BCE, has at various times been part of the Kingdom of Jerusalem, the Byzantine Empire, and the Mamluk Sultanate of Egypt. It is named after the Beth Shean Valley and is connected to Highway 90. The city’s official name is בית שאן, and it is designated as a Tentative World Heritage Site.
The urban area covers 7.33 square kilometers and has a population of 18,200. Hebrew is the primary language spoken, and Judaism is the predominant religion. Beit She'an is twinned with Cleveland and Tarascon. Its postal code is 19150, and it falls within the Asia/Jerusalem time zone.
Synthesized by Vinony from 53 facts across 7 sources: Wikidata, Openweathermap, Open Meteo, OpenStreetMap, GeoNames, Vinony graph, Geo. Generated from structured data (not the Wikipedia text) and checked against those facts — may still contain errors.
Weather now
cached 4h ago7-day forecast
via Open-Meteo
Place details
- Locality
- בית שאן
- Region
- מחוז הצפון
- Country
- ישראל
- Population
- 16,800
- Timezone
- Asia/Jerusalem
via OpenStreetMap · GeoNames
Key facts
- Iso 259
- Beit Šˀan
- Translit
- Bet Šəʼan
- Also spelled
- Bet She'an (official), Beth Shean (unofficial)
- Country
- Israel
- District
- Northern
- Founded
- 6th–5th millennia BCE (Earliest settlement) , Bronze Age ( Canaanite town)
- Mayor
- Noam Juma'a
- Total
- 7,330 dunams (7.33 km ; 2.83 sq mi)
- Density
- 2,760/km (7,160/sq mi)
- Name meaning
- House of Tranquillity
- Website
- http://www.bet-shean.org.il
via Wikipedia infobox
Wikidata facts
- Instance of
- city
- Named after
- Beth Shean Valley
- Official name
- בית שאן
- Languages spoken
- Hebrew
- Religion
- Judaism
- Country
- Byzantine Empire
- Population
- 5180
- Area
- 7.33
- Elevation
- -125
- Time zone
- Israel Standard Time
- Main subject
- biblical archaeology
- Official website
- www.bet-shean.org.il
- Image
- 110132 beit-shan landscapes PikiWiki Israel.jpg
- Connects with
- Highway 90
Show 13 more facts
- twinned administrative body
- Tarascon
- Commons category
- Bet She'an
- topic's main category
- Category:Beit She'an
- postal code
- 19150
- inception
- 4000-00-00
- described by source
- Jewish Encyclopedia of Brockhaus and Efron
- category of associated people
- Category:People from Beit She'an
- P12749
- Isaac Brock
- native label
- בית שאן
- public transport stop
- Beit She'an Railway Station
- present in work
- First Book of Chronicles
- located on street
- Highway 90
- architectural style
- Romanesque architecture
via Wikidata · CC0
Travel guide
Understand
Beit She'an has been inhabited since Biblical times, and the city is mentioned several times in the Bible. Later, it became a major city in the Hellenistic and Roman periods. Today, there are several archaeological sites from different time periods.
The Beit She'an Valley is below sea level, so it gets very hot and humid in summer. On the positive site, it has numerous springs and water sources that you can cool off in on a hot day. For that reason, many Israelis travel here to relax in the springs or during hot summer days. The valley was even nicknamed the "gateway to heaven" in Jewish sources.
Though considered by many to be an extension of the neighboring Jezreel Valley region, the Beit She'an Valley really does possess its own unique geography and character. The Gilboa mountain range borders the Beit She'an Valley in the southwest.
Get around
Hitchhiking is relatively common here, and considered safer than in other parts of Israel. Without a car, it can be the only way of getting to some of the more remote communities. Stand in a safe place by the side of the road (like a bus stop) and point your index finger outward. To indicate that you want to go somewhere close by, you can point towards the ground.
See
thumb|right|200px|"Sakhne", flowing through different Kibbutzim from the Gilboa mountain to Jordan river. thumb|right|300px|Natural spring in the northern part of the valley
Do
Smoke Hooker/Nagilah (water pipe with flavored tobacco) – You're bound to see old men or young teenagers in Beit She'an relaxing while smoking Nagilah. You can rent one from many small shops for around ₪10. They will set it up for you with the coal and tobacco, all you have to do is breathe in, feel the flavor and remember it's one of the few things that both young adults and old men enjoy doing.
Buy
Beit She'an Flea Market – there is a flea market on Wednesdays which has many nice fruits and vegetables, and a small selection of cheap clothes.
Sleep
Not many budget options exist in Beit She'an. It is probably best to stay in the surrounding areas and visit the Beit She'an Valley for a day trip.
Stay safe
This area is mostly below sea level, so it gets hot and humid in the summer. Be sure to drink lots of water!
Go next
The Sea of Galilee, the Golan Heights, the Lower Galilee with Nazareth and the West Bank are close by destination worth a visit. Jordan is only 10 min away by car, passing through the nearby border crossing.
Travel guide from Wikivoyage (CC BY-SA 4.0)
~39 min read
Encyclopedic overview
Archaeological excavation at Tell Beth Shean in 1937. The town is seen at the top half of the picture
Beit She'an (Hebrew: בֵּית שְׁאָן Bēṯ Šəʾān), also known as Beisan (Arabic: بيسان Bisān), or Beth-shean, is a city in the Northern District of Israel. The town lies at the Beit She'an Valley about 120 m (394 feet) below sea level. In 2022, 98% of the population was Jewish and 2% was counted as other.
Excerpted from Wikipedia’s “Beit She'an” article, available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 licence.