Orientation to the History of Roman Judaea

Abstract

Two neglected areas in the formation of academic specialists are the philosophy of history one brings to the task and an understanding of ancient ways of mapping peoples. This orientation takes up both. Part I (Doing History) examines in turn some basic problems in conceiving of history, popular vs. academic conceptions, fault lines among professional historians (particularly the fork between a humanistic history focused on particular texts and contexts and social or social-scientific history), and special problems in the history of Roman Judaea. It concludes with a proposal for moving forward. Part II (Mapping Peoples) explores the widely shared, particularly Greek-language categories used by ancient writers to communicate in their analysis of peoples. Ethnos, polis, piety (cult, ritual), and voluntary associations are highlighted. In that context, the book examines the place of Judaeans in the Graeco-Roman world and the thorny issues connected with the translation of Greek Ioudaioi. The book includes discussion of more concrete mapping (of territories) and the physical geography f southern Syria.

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