JEWS (Heb. _Yehudi_, man of Judah; Gr. [Greek: Ioudaioi]; Lat. _Judaei_), the general name for the Semitic people which inhabited Palestine from early times, and is known in various connexions as "the Hebrews," "the Jews," and "Israel" (see § 5 below). Their history may be divided into three great periods: (1) That covered by the Old Testament to the foundation of Judaism in the Persian age, (2) that of the Greek and Roman domination to the destruction of Jerusalem, and (3) that of the Diaspora or Dispersion to the present day. I.--OLD TESTAMENT HISTORY I. _The Land and the People._--For the first two periods the history of the Jews is mainly that of Palestine. It begins among those peoples which occupied the area lying between the Nile on the one side and the Tigris and the Euphrates on the other. Surrounded by ancient seats of culture in Egypt and Babylonia, by the mysterious deserts of Arabia, and by the highlands of Asia Minor, Palestine, with Syria on the north, was the high road of civilization, trade and warlike enterprise, and the meeting-place of religions. Its small principalities were entirely dominated by the great Powers, whose weakness or acquiescence alone enabled them to rise above dependence or vassalage. The land was traversed by old-established trade routes and possessed important harbours on the Gulf of 'Akaba and on the Mediterranean coast, the latter exposing it to the influence of the Levantine culture. It was "the physical centre of those movements of history from which the world has grown." The portion of this district abutting upon the Mediterranean may be divided into two main parts:--Syria (from the Taurus to Hermon) and Palestine (southward to the desert bordering upon Egypt). The latter is about 150 m. from north to south (the proverbial "Dan to Beersheba"), with a breadth varying from 25 to 80 m., i.e. about 6040 sq. m. This excludes the land east of the Jordan, on which see PALESTINE.