Coordinates: 32°26′02″N 35°24′52″E

Mount Gilboa
Mount Gilboa (Hebrew: ‫ הר הגלבוע‬,‫הַ ר הַ גִּ ְלבּ ַֹע‬, Har HaGilboa),
sometimes called the Mountains of Gelboe, is a mountain range overlooking
the Jezreel Valley in northern Israel. The meaning of the name Gilboa is
boiling springs; bubbling fountains; agitated pools; water bursting from the
rock, which makes it similar to the Arabic name "JebelFaqqua" ("jebel" means
mountain, "faqqa" means burst, split).[1]

Mount Gilboa
Contents
In the Bible
History
Geography
Flora and fauna
See also
References

In the Bible
In the Bible, King Saul, Israel's first King, led a charge against the Philistines
at Mount Gilboa (1 Samuel 28:4).[2] The battle ends with the king falling on
his own sword and Saul's sons, Jonathan, Abinadab, and Melchishua being
killed in battle (1 Samuel 31:1-4). King David, who hears about the tragedy
after the battle, curses the mountain:

Ye mountains of Gilboa, let there be no dew nor rain

upon you, neither fields of choice fruits; for there the Scenery on Mount Gilboa
shield of the mighty was vilely cast away, the shield
of Saul, not anointed with oil (2 Samuel 1:21).

History
A minor battle between the army of theCrusader Kingdom of Jerusalemand Sultan Saladin took place at the foot of Mount Gilboa in
1183.

The 1260 Battle of Ain Jalut was fought at the foot of Mount Gilboa. The success of the Muslim Mamluks against the Mongols
marked the end of the westward push of the Asian empire and ensured the survival of Muslim
Egypt.

Geography
The formation has the shape of a boomerang, extending north from the highlands of Samaria on the West Bank and turning northwest
at about half its length, thus separating the southeastern end of the Jezreel Valley from the Beit She'an and Ein Harod valleys. The
Green Line between Israel and the West Bank runs south and west of the ridge. The range's highest peak rises 1629 feet above sea
level.
Flora and fauna
In 1976 and 1977, it was counted to have about 170 plant species, including Pinus
halepensis (on the rocky slopes) andPistacia lentiscus (the shrub layer).[3]

Every year from late February until late March the purple Hayne's Iris, known in
Hebrew as the Gilboa Iris (Irus ha-Gilboa), blooms on the mountain.[4] Two nature
reserves have been declared on the ridge: the Gilboa Iris nature reserve in 1970,
covering 7,280 dunams (728 ha), and the eastern Gilboa reserve in 2005, covering
18,290 dunams (1,829 ha).[5]

It also has a very diverse in animal species range, with 14 reptile, 7 rodent, 31 bird Gilboa iris (iris haynei)
and 13 isopod species.[6]

See also
Gilboa Regional Council
Ma'ale Gilboa - a religious kibbutz on Mount Gilboa
Malkishua - a drug rehabilitation centre on Mount Gilboa
Meirav - a religious kibbutz on Mount Gilboa

References
1. Metaphysical meaning of Gilboa (mbd)(http://www.truthunity.net/texts/mbd/gilboa)
2. Julie Baretz The Bible on Location: Off the Beaten Path in Ancient and Modern Israel
(https://books.google.com/boo
ks?id=0q4eCAAAQBAJ&pg=PA78), p. 78, at Google Books
3. G. M. Woodwell The Earth in Transition: Patterns and Processes of Biotic Impoverishment (1990)(https://books.goo
gle.com/books?id=CSHInNHPc_0C&pg=P A287), p. 287, at Google Books
4. Samantha Wilson, Israel (https://books.google.com/books?id=kY_v3QF
AqqwC&pg=PA203), p. 203, at Google
Books
5. "List of National Parks and Nature Reserves"(https://web.archive.org/web/20091007095221/http://parks.org.il/sigalit/
muchrazim.pdf) (PDF) (in Hebrew). Israel Nature and Parks Authority. Archived from the original (http://parks.org.il/si
galit/muchrazim.pdf) (PDF) on 2009-10-07. Retrieved 2010-09-27.
6. Zev Nave Transdisciplinary Challenges in Landscape Ecology and Restoration Ecology, an Anthology (2007) (https://
books.google.com/books?id=hVlaJ6ZzLWEsC&pg=PA148), p. 148, at Google Books

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This page was last edited on 20 February 2018, at 12:47.

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