Damascus has the reputation of being the oldest continuously inhabited city in the world. There is firm There is no real knowledge, however, of what Damascus was like in the third millennium. It is unclear what role it played, how prominent it was, and what the lifestyle of its peoples was. The documented history of Damascus starts half-way through the second millennium B.C., in the Amorite period. At the end of the second millennium, the city became the capital of a small, Aramaean principality. The Aramaeans, who were a semi-nomadic people who spoke a northern Arabian dialect of Arabic called Syriac, originated in the Arabian peninsula. They moved northwards in search of new prosperity and settled in the Fertile Crescent in successive waves. The abundant water supplies, moderate climate, and fertile soil made Syria an ideal place for settlement and the Aramaeans established small principalities throughout the area. Being a natural oasis irrigated by the river Barada, Damascus became a focal point for the Aramaean kingdoms, as documented in the Old Testament. They say it was known as “Dar Mesheq” (a well-watered place) and from this time onwards its size and importance increased. The Assyrian nation to the east became a threat to the Aramaean kingdoms in the middle of the first millennium. Political relations between all the neighboring Aramaean kingdoms were good, and a federation was set up to counter the hostile advances of the Assyrians. The names of most of the Aramaean kings of Damascus who led their armies in the defense of the city are known. Ben Hadad II, allied with Hama, managed to conquer the armies of Salmanesar III (r. 858-824 B.C.) in the battle of Quarquar in 853 B.C. Ben Hadad’s successor, Hazael, could not stand up to Salmanesar’s armies as effectively and as a result the Assyrian army reached the Syrian-Phoenician coast in 841 B.C. After repeated Assyrian incursions, Damascus was besieged and taken by Hadad Nirari III. It is most probable that the remains of the Aramaean city lie buried under the western part of the present day walled city. This is true because the western part of the city is notably raised compared to the eastern part, forming a rough tell (a mound which has evolved due to repeated settlement throughout the centuries). Excavation of the area is impossible because of the architectural value of the buildings now situated on top of the Aramaean site. Consequently, information about the layout of the city is sparse. The major buildings of the Aramaean city were the celebrated Temple of Hadad and the Royal Palace. The French scholar Sauvaget has mapped a likely plan of the city in the Aramaean period, showing that most of its main thoroughfares ran on lines similar to those of the present day Old City. The temple was built on the site that is now occupied by the great Omayad Mosque, and was dedicated to the storm god, Hadad.
evidence that in the third millennium Damascus was a population center of a civilization that was considerably prosperous and economically influential. The earliest reference to the city was found in Ebla (Tall Mardikh) in 1975: on one of the clay tablets discovered in the record depository of this site was the name “Dimaski.”
