The Decapolis (“ten cities”) was a group of cities in the Middle East where ancient Greek, Roman, and Jewish cultures intersected, located between what is today Jordan, Syria, and Israel.
The Decapolis lay across a fertile and strategic zone stretching from Damascus in the north to Philadelphia (modern-day Amman) in the south. It was a crossroads of Greek, Roman, and Jewish civilizations, linking the Mediterranean world with the Arabian interior, and situated between Judea and Galilee to the west and the Nabataean kingdom to the south and east.
Several of the cities that would come to be known as the “ten cities” were founded by Greek settler-soldiers of the Ptolemaic and Seleucid kingdoms. These kingdoms were parts of the empire of Alexander the Great, divided among his generals—the Diadochi—after his death. The cities were either newly established Greek poleis or restructured settlements built upon earlier Semitic towns.
Cities considered part of the Decapolis include Damascus, Canatha, Dion, Raphana, Gadara, Hippos, Abila, Capitolias, Gerasa, Philadelphia, Pella, and Nysa-Scythopolis, according to Pliny (NH 5.16.74).
The Decapolis is mentioned three times in the New Testament (Mk 5:20; Mk 7:31; Mt 4:25), and on at least two other occasions, Jesus visited specific locations within this league of cities east of the Sea of Galilee.
During the Hellenistic period, the cities were supported by Ptolemaic and Seleucid rulers and granted civic status. Following the Roman conquest of Syria by Pompey in 64 BC, the cities were incorporated into the new provincia Syria and had the backing of Rome.
The Diadochi settle in the region
Alexander’s dream was to “Hellenize” the entire world. The dynasties that followed him were as devoted to Greek ideals as he was, each integrating local customs and practices into the broader Hellenistic culture.
After the disbanding of Alexander the Great’s army following his burial at Sidon, many of his veterans sought a peaceful life after over a decade of campaigning. With the coastal towns already populated, many Greek settlers moved inland, where they either laid out new cities or rebuilt and transformed older settlements.
The Seleucids settled in Persia and Syria, just north of Israel, while the Ptolemies settled to the south in Egypt. Soldiers from these kingdoms founded numerous cities throughout Israel, and other towns became Hellenized under their influence, blending Greek, Roman, and Jewish cultural elements.
It is not certain if this was when the Greek term “Decapolis” was coined. Some of the cities counted their civic eras from the time of Pompey’s conquest. The cities did not form a single territorial unit, nor were they directly connected with each other.
In 218 BC, according to Polybius, several of these towns were ideal locations for building strong fortresses. As long as the Seleucids ruled in the north and the Ptolemies in the south, the influence of Greek culture remained paramount in Syria, as Seleucus and Ptolemy solidified their empires.
The Hellenization of the region and the intersection of ancient Greek, Roman, and Jewish cultures
The spread of Hellenism was extensive. Greek cultural institutions were established in many cities, including Jerusalem. Theaters were built, and gymnasiums—the Greek educational institutions—appeared across the region. In the gymnasium, the Greek ideal of training both body and mind was put into practice. Students studied the philosophy of classical Greece, received athletic training, and competed naked in athletic events.
The Greek educational system was highly effective, instilling Greek ideals into entire generations of young Jewish people. Busts of Greek gods and heroes were displayed, while young Jews read Homer, Euripides, and Plato and also learned to draw and sculpt. Greek mythology offered heroes and role models that competed with the Jewish biblical ancestors and the Pharisees, who were devoted to keeping God’s people faithful to the Torah.
Hellenistic cities featured stadiums for athletic contests, temples built to honor local gods, and festivals celebrating ancient Greek feasts. Amid these new attractions, the Jewish population struggled to maintain its beliefs.
The latest architecture and artistic designs made the Hellenized cities of the Decapolis appear modern and attractive. People from the small villages of Galilee must have been awed by marble streets, mosaic floors, running water, and fountains. Across these cities and neighboring regions, Hellenism shaped much of everyday life, with the Greek language becoming the common tongue of commerce and administration.
Few did more to bring Hellenistic ideas to the Jewish population than Herod the Great and his sons. However, they maintained certain Jewish laws and customs to pacify their religious subjects.
The Maccabees and the Romans
The two Greek empires went to war over ambitious territorial claims in the new lands in 274 BC. The Seleucids, having gained dominance over Judea, sought to extend their control over Egypt and the Jewish population. Ptolemy I Soter, who had ruled over Judea, had allowed the Jewish people religious freedom in Jerusalem and other parts of the region.
After the war between the two dynasties, in which the Seleucids emerged victorious, Antiochus III took control over Judea and much of the Arabian Peninsula. He began forcibly promoting Greek culture and religion among the new populace, attempting to remove aspects of Jewish identity that distinguished it from Greek religion and other accepted monotheistic practices.
The Maccabean revolt (167–160 BC) against the Seleucid Empire, supported by the Hasidic Jewish community (“those fiercely devoted to Yahweh and the Torah”), was largely a reaction to Antiochus III’s efforts to impose Greek pagan values and practices. However, several Jewish communities had already been Hellenized, benefiting from Greek culture, including economic integration among the Greek cities.
In 64–63 BC, Roman General Pompey overran Syria, Damascus, Pella, and then moved into Judea and Jerusalem, turning the entire region into a Roman province. The Greek cities, regarded as safeguards of Roman rule against potential native uprisings, were granted numerous privileges. They retained the right to mint their own coins, preserved municipal autonomy, and were allowed freedom of movement throughout the surrounding territory.
The cities of the Decapolis league
It was immediately after Pompey’s conquest that the league of the Decapolis was formed with the cities of northern Judea. Later, Ptolemy enumerated eighteen cities, showing that the term Decapolis referred to a region rather than specific cities. These cities were joined as a league by the Romans to control the trade route running from Arabia to Damascus, while maintaining the influence of Greek culture and accommodating Jewish communities along the way.
The importance of the league was based on the strategic positions of its principal towns. Scythopolis, the capital of the Decapolis, stood at the head of the plain of Esdraelon, west of the Jordan River, guarding the natural portal from the sea to the great interior plateau of Basan and Galaad.
Originally a Canaanite and Jewish town (Beit She’an), it was transformed into a Greek polis, possibly under Ptolemaic or Seleucid rule. The name “Scythopolis” may indicate that Scythian mercenaries or settlers lived there.
Philadelphia (modern Amman) was originally the Ammonite capital Rabbath-Ammon. It was refounded and renamed Philadelphia by Ptolemy II Philadelphus in the 3rd century BC, spreading Greek civic models while coexisting with local Jewish traditions.
Gerasa (modern Jerash) developed under Hellenistic influence with a Greek polis layout, including colonnaded streets, temples, and theaters, and later flourished under Roman rule as part of the Decapolis.
Gadara (modern Umm Qais), overlooking the Yarmouk Valley, became a cultural center during the Hellenistic era, producing notable Greek poets such as Meleager of Gadara, while continuing to integrate local traditions and maintain its Hellenistic character.
Built on layers of ancient Greek, Roman, and Jewish cultures
The cities of the Decapolis were not originally Greek, Roman, or Jewish. Before the arrival of the Greeks and Romans, the Semitic sites that later became major cities were inhabited by Ammonites, Moabites, Israelites, Arameans, and other peoples. Later, the Greek Diadochi of Alexander the Great built upon these settlements, and eventually the Romans developed the cities of the Decapolis even further.
The Decapolis region became a place where Jewish, Greek, Roman, Syrian, and Arab populations mingled, creating a vibrant, hybrid society with a unique cultural identity in both the Mediterranean and Middle East.
It was the ideas of Roman urbanism that further shaped the physical appearance of these cities. The Romans built amphitheaters, temples, baths, aqueducts, and colonnaded streets, modernizing the region. The monumental remains visible today in Gerasa (Jerash), Gadara (Umm Qais), and Philadelphia (Amman) largely date to the Roman period, highlighting the layered history of the Decapolis.
Today, the cities of the Decapolis, with the exception of Damascus, are largely deserted and in ruins. Yet even in this state, they stand in striking contrast to the nearby Semitic towns. Their lavish temples, theaters, and forums testify to the ingenuity of the Greek, Roman, and local builders who shaped them.
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