Nazareth
This article is about the city in Israel. For other meanings, see Nazareth (disambiguation).
Nazareth (Hebrew נָצְרַת [naːts'raθ]; Arabic الناصرة, DMG an-Nāṣira; Aramaic ܢܵܨܪܲܬ ['naːtsraθ]) is a city in the northern district of Israel in the historic Galilee. The town is best known for its Christian tradition. It is mentioned several times in the New Testament; the spelling varies: ancient Greek Ναζαρέτ Nazarét and ancient Greek Ναζαρέθ Nazaréth are best attested in manuscripts. The ecumenical spelling in German-language Bibles is Nazaret; the Luther Bible has the traditional spelling Nazareth.
Nazareth is today the city with the largest community of Arab Israelis in Israel. In the Old City area, the city consists mainly of small alleys with an Arab market. Together with its sister city Nof HaGalil, until 2019 Nazareth-Illit ("Upper Nazareth"), both cities have a population of 118,233 (as of 2018); of which Nof HaGalil has 41,169 residents, and Nazareth 77,064. Nazareth is a very old city and is now inhabited primarily by Muslims and Christians. Nof HaGalil is much younger and is inhabited primarily by Jews. Nazareth and Nof HaGalil are two independent cities and have separate administrations.
Meaning
The place is mentioned neither in the Tanakh nor in the Talmud. Its special importance lies until today in the fact that for Christians it is considered the hometown (Lk 4,16 EU) and father city (Mk 6,1 EU par. Mt 13,54 EU) of Jesus (Mt 2,23 EU; 4,13 EU; 21,11 EU; 26,71 EU; Mk 1,24 EU; 16,6 EU; Joh 1,45f EU etc.). According to the gospels his parents Mary and Joseph lived here (Lk 1,26 EU; 2,4.39 EU).
The earliest non-Christian reference to Nazareth is an inscription from Caesarea Maritima in the late 3rd or early 4th century, in which the place is mentioned as the seat of one of 24 orders of priests.
Today Nazareth is one of the most important pilgrimage sites in the Holy Land. On the site where, according to tradition, Mary's house stood and the angel of the Annunciation came to her, rises the Roman Catholic Basilica of the Annunciation, consecrated in 1969. It bears the inscription "Hic verbum caro factum est" - "Here the Word became flesh".
Geography
The old town of Nazareth lies in a hollow in the terrain. The hollow is just under 100 m lower than the range of hills that surround the town in a horseshoe shape. The slopes rise moderately steeply. Today they are almost completely built over.
Nazareth is located on the long-distance hiking trail Israel National Trail, which is about 1100 kilometers long, as well as on the Jesus Trail. Around Nazareth, day hikers can also discover culture and historical impressions, e.g. following the Israel Trail to Mount Arbel.
