How did Jerusalem get its name?

Answer 1

A:Jerusalem is believed to be named after the Canaanite god Shalem.

The word Jerusalem was originally given as 'Urushalim' or 'Urushalem' and is a word of Canaanite derivation. The prefix uru means 'founded by', and the suffix salem or Shalem was the Canaanite god of dusk. The name Urushalim is first found on Egyptian statues from around 2500 BCE. This evidence is reinforced by tablets found in Elba, Syria, dating back to 3000 BCE, on which the god Shalem being venerated in a city called 'Uruksalem' is mentioned.

Jerusalem more recently is often assumed to mean founded in peace, or 'city of peace' (Hebrew: 'ir shalom), but there is no evidence for this interpretation.

Answer 2

Although it is mentioned in similar variations (Salem, Shalem, etc.) in the time of Abraham in the Old Testament (c. 19th century BCE), the name Jerusalem, or Yerushalayim in its hebraic pronouncement, was given to the city by King David (c. 1000 BCE).

Answer 3

Israel is not a city, it's a state.

The name is from The Bible.

Answer 4

Jerusalem (or Yerushalaim in Hebrew) is an old name. Ancient Egyptian sources refer to Urushalim and Rushalim. Biblical references to the town of Salem may or may not refer to Jerusalem. In Psalm 76:2 it probably does, in Genesis 14:18 tradition says it does, and in Genesis 33:18, it probably doesn't. One theory about the name is that Shalim was the god of dusk in the Cannanite religion. Also, Shalim comes from the root for peace (Shalom, Hebrew, Salam, Arabic) and also means complete or whole. Dusk is the completion of the day, and perhaps Shalim also means completion or peace. The prefix Yeru seems to be far more recent, it shows up in the book of Joshuah, but the oldest archaeological evidence for the prefix is pre-Roman but not by much. Yeru may mean cornerstone, so perhaps the name means "cornerstone of peace" or "cornerstone of completion." The "...ayim" ending may refer to some kind of duality, perhaps because the oldest part of the town was on two adjacent hilltops.