Gilead

---

title: "Gilead" type: doc version: 1 created: 2026-02-28 author: "Wikipedia contributors" status: active scope: public tags: ["gilead", "ammon", "hebrew-bible-regions", "regions-of-jordan", "book-of-numbers-people", "moab", "tourism-in-jordan", "founders-of-biblical-tribes", "tribe-of-reuben", "transjordan-(region)"] description: "Northern part of the region of Transjordan, also the name of several biblical figures" topic_path: "general/gilead" source: "https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gilead" license: "CC BY-SA 4.0" wikipedia_page_id: 0 wikipedia_revision_id: 0

::summary Northern part of the region of Transjordan, also the name of several biblical figures ::

::data[format=table title="Infobox landform"]

Field	Value
name	Gilead
other_name	גִּלְעָד, جلعاد
type	Region
photo	File:Landscape of Jordan.JPG
photo_caption	Gilead around river Zarqa, biblical River Yabok
map	Jordan
relief	1
label	Gilead
coordinates
location	Irbid Governorate, Jordan
highest_point	Mount Maqta' al Qurmeya
highest_elevation	1,200 m
area
geology
website
::

| name = Gilead | other_name = גִּלְעָד, جلعاد | type = Region | photo = File:Landscape of Jordan.JPG | photo_caption = Gilead around river Zarqa, biblical River Yabok | map = Jordan | relief = 1 | label = Gilead | label_position = | coordinates = | range = | location = Irbid Governorate, Jordan | highest_point = Mount Maqta' al Qurmeya | highest_elevation = 1,200 m | length = | width = | area = | depth = | drop = | formed_by = | geology = | age = | orogeny = | volcanic_arc/belt = | volcanic_arc = | volcanic_belt = | volcanic_field = | eruption = | last_eruption = | topo = | operator = | designation = | free_label_1 = | free_data_1 = | free_label_2 = | free_data_2 = | free_label_3 = | free_data_3 = | website = | embedded = Gilead or Gilad (, ; Gilʿāḏ, , Jalʻād) is the ancient, historic, biblical name of the mountainous northern part of the region of Transjordan, present-day Jordan. The region is bounded in the west by the Jordan River, in the north by the deep ravine of the river Yarmouk and the region of Bashan, and in the southwest by what were known during antiquity as the "plains of Moab", with no definite boundary to the east. In some cases, "Gilead" is used in the Bible to refer to all the region east of the Jordan River. Gilead is situated in modern-day Jordan, corresponding roughly to the Irbid, Ajloun, Jerash and Balqa Governorates.

Etymology

Gilead is explained in the Hebrew Bible as derived from the Hebrew words gal‛êd, which in turn comes from gal ('heap, mound, hill') and ‛êd ('witness, testimony'). If that is the case, Gilead means 'heap [of stones] of testimony'. There is also an alternative theory that it means 'rocky region'.

From its mountainous character, it is called the Mount of Gilead (; ). It is called also the Land of Gilead (, ) in many translations, and sometimes simply Gilead (; ; ), also mentioned in .

History

Hebrew Bible

The name Gilead first appears in the biblical account of the last meeting of Jacob and Laban (). In Book of Genesis, Gilead was also referred to by the Aramaic name Yegar-Sahadutha, which carries the same meaning as the Hebrew Gilead, namely "heap [of stones] of testimony" ().

According to the biblical narrative, during the Exodus, "half Gilead" was possessed by Sihon, and the other half, separated from it by the river Jabbok, by Og, king of Bashan. After the two Amorite kings were defeated, the region of Gilead was allotted by Moses to the tribes of Gad, Reuben, and the eastern half of Manasseh (; ).

In the Book of Judges, the thirty sons of the biblical judge Jair controlled the thirty towns of Gilead (), and later the biblical judge Jephthah defeated the Ammonites attempting to retake the former Ammonite territory in Gilead conquered by Moses (). In the First Book of Chronicles, Segub controlled twenty-three towns in Gilead (). It was bounded on the north by Bashan, and on the south by Moab and Ammon (; ). ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Hills_of_Gilead.jpg" caption="The hills of Gilead, Jordan"] ::

"Gilead" mentioned in the Book of Hosea may refer to the cities of Ramoth-Gilead, Jabesh-Gilead, or the whole Gilead region; "Gilead is a city of those who work iniquity; it is stained with blood" ().

The kingdoms Ammon and Moab sometimes expanded to include southern Gilead. King David fled to Mahanaim in Gilead during the rebellion of Absalom. Gilead is later mentioned as the homeplace of the prophet Elijah. ::figure[src="https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cc/Sea_of_Galilee_from_Jordan.jpg" caption="[[Sea of Galilee]] as seen from Gilead near [[Irbid"] ::

Neo-Assyrian province

King Tiglath-Pileser III of Assyria established the province of Gal'azu (Gilead) c. 733 BCE.

Arabic

Gilead (, Ǧalʻād or Jalaad) is an Arabic term used to refer to the mountainous land extending north and south of Jabbok. It was used more generally for the entire region east of the Jordan River. It corresponds today to the northwestern part of the Kingdom of Jordan. The region appears in the ancient Safaitic inscriptions.

References

References

1. {{cite EPD. 18
2. {{cite LPD. 3
3. ''Easton's Bible Dictionary'', [https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/galeed/ ''Galeed'']
4. "Gilead {{!}} ancient region, Palestine {{!}} Britannica".
5. Hebrew Dictionary, Strong's Concordance of the Bible, reference #5707
6. ''Smith's Bible Dictionary'', "Gil'e-ad"
7. Bible Atlas, [http://bibleatlas.org/jegar-sahadutha.htm ''Jegar-sahadutha (Ramoth-gilead)''].
8. "Gilead | ancient region, Palestine | Britannica".
9. "OCIANA - Online Corpus of the Inscriptions of Ancient North Arabia".

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