The Phoenicians and the Formation of the Western World ~ Dr. Scott

A small maritime region, Phoenicia lay on the Eastern Mediterranean coast. The Phoenicians, who were Semites, emerged as a distinct Canaanite group around 3200 B.C. Hemmed in by the Lebanon Mountains, their first cities were Byblos, Sidon, Tyre, and Aradus. Scholars agree that there are two sources of the Western tradition: Judeo-Christian doctrine and ancient Greek intellectualism. More generally, there is recognition that Western civilization is largely built atop the Near Eastern civilizations of Mesop