The Valley of Elah, Ella Valley ("the valley of the terebinth";[1] from the Hebrew: {{Script/Hebrew|עמק האלה Emek HaElah), or Wadi es-Sunt (Arabic: وادي السنط), is a long, shallow valley in the Shephelah area of Israel, best known from the Hebrew Bible as the place where David defeated Goliath (17:2 ; 17:19 ). It is home to several important archaeological sites, including those identified as the ancient towns of Azekah and Socho (17:1 ). Rising up from the valley on its extreme southeast end lies the hilltop ruin Adullam, and on its north lie the ruins of the ancient fortress city of Khirbet Qeiyafa, which is identified with the ancient town of Sha'araim (17:52 ).
The valley is named after its indigenous trees - in Hebrew after the large and shady terebinth trees (Pistacia atlantica, elah), and in Arabic after the white acacia trees (Acacia albida, sunt). On the west side of the valley, near Socho, there is a very large and ancient terebinth tree, 55feet in height with a trunk 17feet in circumference and a canopy at least 75feet in diameter. This tree is notable for being one of the largest terebinths in the area, and marks the upper end of the valley.
Since the early 1970s, the valley has also contained a large satellite relay station, with an antenna farm containing some 120 satellite dishes of various sizes. From 2010 to 2014, the region around the valley was believed to be threatened by shale oil extraction through the CCR ground-heating process, with the Green Zionist Alliance and the grassroots group Save Adullam, among others, working to stop exploitation of the region.[2] [3] [4] The plan was ultimately blocked in 2014 by a zoning committee decision. In July 2019, the Elah Valley came under the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, owing largely to its historical importance and the desire to curtail the encroaching city limits of Beit Shemesh to its north.[5]
In 2009, Professor Yosef Garfinkel discovered a fortified city from the Iron Age II dated sometime between 1050 and 915 BC at Khirbet Qeiyafa, southwest of Jerusalem in the Elah Valley.[6] The fortifications have been said to support the biblical account of the United Monarchy, the theory that Israel in the time of King David at the beginning of Iron Age II was more than simply a tribal chiefdom.[7] Others are skeptical and suggest it might represent either a Judahite or Canaanite fortress.[8] In the late 19th century, Claude Conder and Herbert Kitchener described the Elah Valley as being "one of the most fertile districts in Palestine. It is an open flat vale about half a mile across, and covered with corn; a narrow trench runs down the center full of white pebbles worn by the water in winter. Here and there large terebinths grow along its course (Butmet Wâdy es Sûr), and solitary oak trees (Ballûtet Kŭssis). On either side rise the stony hills covered with brushwood and wild growth."[9]
Numerous plant species are native to the Elah Valley, including:
Animal species native to the Elah Valley include: