Has the Biblical Goliath Been Found?

I personally don't need any archeological evidence to verify the truth of the Torah, but this, posted on IMRA is interesting none the less!

Thursday, November 10, 2005
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

CONTACT: Elana Oberlander, Office of the Spokesman, Bar-Ilan University

Has the Biblical Goliath Been Found?
Bar-Ilan University Archaeologists
Unearth Earliest Philistine Inscription
in Which Names Similar to Goliath Appear

Ramat Gan - A very small ceramic sherd unearthed by Bar-Ilan University archaeologists digging at Tell es-Safi, the biblical city "Gath of the Philistines", may hold a very large clue into the history of the well-known biblical figure Goliath. The sherd, which contains the earliest known Philistine inscription ever to be discovered, mentions two names that are remarkably similar to the name "Goliath". Tell es-Safi/Gath is located inthe southern coastal plain of Israel, approximately halfway between Ashkelon and Jerusalem.

The discovery is of particular importance since the Bible attributes Gath as the home town of Goliath. "Gath of the Philistines," was one of the major cities of the Philistines, the well-known arch-enemies of the Israelites in the biblical text. The archaeological find may also be seen as the first clear extra-biblical evidence that the well-known biblical story of the battle between David and Goliath (and, in particular, the very existence of a figure such as Goliath during the biblical period) may be more than just a legend, according to Prof. Aren Maeir, Chairman of Bar-Ilan University'sMartin (Szusz) Department of Land of Israel Studies and Archaeology, who has been directing the excavations since they began in 1996. Prof. Maeir will present his findings next week at the conference of the American Schools ofOriental Research in the U.S. city of Philadelphia.

Other recent findings uncovered at the recent excavations at Tell es-Safi include a large assortment of objects of various types which are linked to Philistine culture. Additional remains relating to the siege system constructed by Hazael, King of Aram Damascus around 800 BCE, were revealed, along with extensive evidence of the subsequent capture and destruction of the city by Hazael, as mentioned in Second Kings 12:18. Remains of the Crusader period fortress, Blanche Garde, built after the first Crusade in the mid-twelfth century CE, were also discovered.

Written in archaic "Proto-Canaanite" letters, the inscription found on the sherd, dating to the 10th or early 9th century BCE, contains two non-Semitic names: Alwt and Wlt. Most scholars believe the name Goliath, of non-Semitic origin, is etymologically related to various Indo-European names, such as the Lydian name Aylattes. Following intense examination of the inscription, Prof. Maeir (along with his colleagues Prof. Aaron Demsky, an expert in epigraphy at Bar-Ilan University, and Dr. Stefan Wimmer, of Munich University) has concluded that the two names which appear in the inscription are remarkably similar to the etymological parallels of Goliath.

"It can be suggested that in 10th-9th century Philistine Gath, names quite similar, and possibly identical, to Goliath were in use," says Prof. Maeir."This chronological context from which the inscription was found is only about 100 years after the time of David according to the standard biblical chronology. Thus, this appears to provide evidence that the biblical story of Goliath is, in fact, based on a clear cultural realia from, more or less, the time which is depicted in the biblical text, and recent attempts to claim that Goliath can only be understood in the context of later phases ofthe Iron Age are unwarranted."

While the letters are Semitic, the names appearing in the inscription are Indo-European (the linguistic family of ancient Greek and related languages). It is assumed by most scholars that the Philistines migrated to the Levant from somewhere in the Aegean region. On their arrival, they brought with them assorted Aegean cultural facets. With time, their culture became more and more effected by the local cultures, slowly incorporating local elements. This inscription, with Semitic script and Indo-European names, is among the earliest hard evidence showing this process.

The Tell es-Safi/Gath Archaeological Project is a long-term investigation aimed at studying the archaeology and history of one of the most important sites in Israel. Tell es-Safi is one of the largest tells (ancient ruin mounds) in Israel and was settled almost continuously from the 5th millennium BCE until modern times.

Continuous excavations of the site are planned for at least the next decade.