Encyclopædia Britannica, Ninth Edition/Gaza

Gaza, an ancient city of Philistia, close to the sea and to the south boundary of the Holy Land. The Hebrew is more correctly rendered in English as Azzah (Deut. ii. 23), and means "strong." The modern Arabic form of the name is Ghazzeh. The town stands on an isolated hill about 100 feet high, and has now a population of 1800 souls. It is divided into four quarters, the eastern suburb consisting entirely of mud houses. A magnificent grove of very ancient olives forms an avenue 4 miles long north of the city. On the south-east are a few palms. There are many lofty minarets in various parts of the town, and a fine mosque built of ancient materials. A 12th century church towards the south side of the bill has also been converted into a mosque. On the east is shown the tomb of Samson (an erroneous tradition dating back to the Middle Ages). The ancient walls are now covered up beneath green mounds of rubbish. The water supply is from wells sunk through the sandy soil to the rock; of these there are more than twenty—an unusual number for a Syrian town. The land for the 3 miles between Gaza and the sea consists principally of sand dunes. There is no natural harbour, but traces of ruins near the shore mark the site of the old Majuma Gazæ or Port of Gaza, now called el Mineh, which in the 5th century was a separate town and episcopal see, under the title Constantia. or Limena Gaza. In the 7th century there were numerous families of Samaritans in Gaza, but they became extinct at the commencement of the present century. Hâshem, an ancestor of Mahomet, lies buried in the town. On the east are remains of a racecourse, the corners marked by granite shafts with Greek inscriptions on them. To the south is a remarkable hill, quite isolated and bare, with a small mosque and a graveyard. It is called el Muntâr, "the watch tower," and is supposed to be the mountain "before (or facing) Hebron," to which Samson carried the gates of Gaza (Judg. xvi. 3). The bazaars of Gaza are considered good. An extensive pottery exists in the town, and black earthenware peculiar to the place is manufactured there. The climate is dry and comparatively healthy, but the summer temperature often exceeds 110° Fahr. The surrounding country is partly cornland, partly waste, and is inhabited by wandering Arabs. From the 5th to the 12th century Gaza was an episcopal see of the Latin Church, but even as late as the 4th century an idol named Marnas was worshipped in the town.