Ischilo
A Greek colony, now disappeared, near Babylon[1]
Inhabitants or natives[edit | edit source]
Calipio the camel driver
Description[edit | edit source]
During a stop at Gerasa, a camel driver confides to Jesus: "I have nine children in Ischilo... the work is hard. Me here, the children over there. Far away..."[2]. The city must be distant, since the camel driver Calipio only returns there once a year. His name (Kallipos) indicates a Greek origin. His presence in the caravan of the wealthy merchant from Babylon, Alexander Misace, suggests that the city of Ischilo is to be found near Babylon.
Its name[edit | edit source]
Ischilo, Hirah, Al Hillah. The name "Al-Hilla" (Arabic: الحلة) is derived from the Arabic word "al-ḥilla," which means "the camping place" or "the resting place." Historically, this region was a place of rest and camping for travelers and caravans crossing Mesopotamia.
Where is it mentioned in the work?[edit | edit source]
EMV 289.
Learn more about this place[edit | edit source]
The site seems to have completely disappeared. But it could be the last Greek colony, mainly commercial in vocation, founded by Alexander the Great shortly before his death, near the canal connecting the Euphrates to Lake Rahemah, south of Babylon. This fact is mentioned by many ancient authors: Herodotus, Xenophon, Strabo, Pliny, and especially Arrian, who indicates that the city was fortified and populated by Greek mercenaries and veterans. Pliny specifies that the city was first named Alexandria[3]. Destroyed and rebuilt several times, it changed its name each time (Antioch, then Spasinou Charax around 125 BC). It is no longer mentioned afterward. Did it change its name again? Several authors associate it with an ancient village named Hirah[4]. This village of Hirah, also disappeared today, was still shown west of the current Kufa on a survey from 1820.
Ischilo (Aïschylos, from dRamah (Judea) Greek Eschyle) could therefore designate, at the beginning of the first century, one of the last Greek colonies founded by Alexander the Great, near the Pallacopas Canal[5], 60 km south of Babylon.
The tomb of Ezekiel, prophet of the Old Testament, is located in a nearby village. According to the Bible, Ezekiel was a priest of the Temple of Jerusalem who lived in the 6th century BC. He was deported to Babylon at the time of the capture of Jerusalem.
Explore[edit | edit source]
Probable hypothesis
- 31° 58’ 31’’ N / 44° 19’ 00’’ E /
- +20m
Notes and references[edit | edit source]
- ↑ Article partially written based on the Geographical Dictionary of the Gospel, J.-F. LAVÈRE.
- ↑ EMV 289.2.
- ↑ See for example G. Gillies, Storia della Grecia Antica, 1823, vol. VIII, p. 87 and 279 and J. Playfair, A system of Geography : Ancient and modern, Vol. 5 page 118
- ↑ Gathzel M. Cohen, The Hellenistic Settlements in the East from Armenia and Mesopotamia 2013 pages 109-124.
- ↑ Charles-A.-LYess de Barentin de Montchal Historical and Ancient Geography, Volume 1 p. 29-30, 1823. Art. Pallacopa.