Who were the Philistines?

Few peoples throughout history are simultaneously so totally unknown, and so maligned, as the Philistines - the name alone has become a pejorative byword for an uncultured individual. We mostly know of the Philistines from the Bible, where they are the enemies of the people of Israel. At the same time, the Philistines leave us very little in the historical record by which we can discern what their culture may have been like, a fact which itself has perhaps accentuated a reliance on biblical sources. We do not know what language the Philistines spoke, what alphabet they used, what their culture held dear; their gods are unclear, and their origins are an enduring mystery. However, archaeology, in concert with what scant written sources we have, can help us build a clearer picture of this Levantine people. Today, we will try to discern the answer to this question: who were the Philistines? With thanks to my Patreon patrons, Bryce Carlyle, Shauna K, Macgonzo, David Mainayar, Mister Five by Five, and Clement Yang! You can join the Patreon to support the channel, watch all the videos ad-free, and access more content.Support the Channel: https://www.patreon.com/TheHistories Music: Blank Light - Adi Goldstein Music from #Uppbeat (free for Creators!):https://uppbeat.io/t/adi-goldstein/blank-lightLicense code: OFUEEDOI7KU4H76M Incantation - Scott Buckley Sources: The Philistines: The History of the Ancient Israelites' Most Notorious Enemy, Charles River Editors, 2015. Aren M. Maeir. "Iron Age I Philistines - Entangled Identities in a Transformative Period." In The Social Archaeology of the Levant: From Prehistory to the Present, edited by Assaf Yasur-Landau, Eric H. Cline and Yorke Rowan, pp. 310 - 323. Cambridge University Press, 2018. Meyers, Eric, ed. The Oxford Encyclopedia of Archaeology in the Near East: Volume 4. Oxford University Press, 1997. Aren M. Maeir et al. "Technological Insights on Philistine Culture: Perspectives from Tell es-Safi/Gath." Journal of Eastern Mediterranean Archaeology & Heritage Studies, Vol. 7, No. 1 (2019). Hermann Michael Niemann. "Neighbors and Foes, Rivals and Kin: Philistines, Shepheleans, Judeans between Geography and Economy, History and Theology." In: Ann E. Killebrew and Gunnar Lehmann (Eds.): The Philistines and Other "Sea Peoples" in Text and Archaeology, 243-264. Arch. & Bibl. Studies, 15. Atlanta 2013. Killebrew, Ann E. The Philistines and Other "Sea Peoples" in Text and Archaeology. Society of Biblical Literature, 2013. All materials are used under fair use for education and commentary. 0:00 - Intro 2:01 - Origins 10:19 - Geography 12:44 - Expansion 20:44 - Society 24:03 - Economy 27:42 - Art and Culture 30:19 - Language 32:15 - Religion. 38:25 - Decline and Fall.