Ashdod
city in Israel
Ashdod (Hebrew: אַשְׁדּוֹד, romanized: ʾašdōḏ, pronounced [ʔaʃˈdod] ; Arabic: أسدود, romanized: ʾasdūd, pronounced [ʔasˈduːd], or إسدود, ʾisdūd [ʔɪsˈduːd]; Philistine: 𐤀𐤔𐤃𐤃, romanized: *ʾašdūd) is the sixth-largest city in Israel. Located in the country's Southern District, it lies on the Mediterranean coast 32 kilometres (20 miles) south of Tel Aviv and 20 km (12 mi) north of Ashkelon. Ashdod's port is the largest in Israel, handling 60% of the country's imported goods.
Modern Ashdod was established in 1956 on the sand hills 6 kilometers northwest of the ancient city of Ashdod, known in modern times by its Arabic name Isdud. Isdud had been depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War, having had a history spanning approximately 3,700 years. In ancient times, ancient Ashdod developed as an active maritime trade center, with its ports identified at Ashdod-Yam and Tel Mor. In biblical times, it was one of the five principal cities of the Philistines.
Ashdod has absorbed extensive immigration from around the world, resulting in one of the highest percentages of new immigrants in Israel. The city is home to the largest Moroccan and Karaite Jewish communities in Israel, and to the largest Georgian Jewish community in the world. According to the Israel Central Bureau of Statistics (CBS), Ashdod had a population of 228,562 in 2024, with an area of 47,242 dunams (47.242 km2; 18.240 sq mi).
This brief starts where responsible research should: with the source description of “Ashdod” as city in Israel. Everything that follows is an evidence route, not borrowed authority.
Why this record matters
The subject matters to the places & architecture register because the source frames it as city in Israel. Its deeper value depends on whether names, dates, institutions and citations support that framing.
Maps, plans, fabric surveys and administrative records can establish how the site’s name, extent and function changed over time. The source revision retrieved here is dated Sep 15, 2026. The linked authority identifier is Q171639. VIAF identifies the subject as 12148574335324430001. The Library of Congress control number is n83130512. Authority coordinates are 31.798, 34.650. 3 of 10 selected statements include explicit references; 6 carry qualifiers and 0 use preferred rank. The first chronological checks are 1956, 1948 and 2024.
Architectural summaries often privilege surviving fabric and can understate demolished phases, contested use or displaced communities. The source lead contains qualifying language; that uncertainty should survive quotation, summary and reuse. Authority statements aid reconciliation but still require their own references, qualifiers and ranks to be checked.
How to read it
Treat names, boundaries and functions as historically changeable. Maps, plans, inventories and administrative records can clarify what the place meant at different dates.
- Historic place names
- Jurisdictional context
- Routes into maps and plans
Contemporary maps, plans, listed-building records, estate papers and the responsible local or national archive.
Three-step research path
- Establish the record: confirm the title “Ashdod”, its source revision and the description used here.
- Expand the search: follow Ashdod primary sources, Ashdod archive and Ashdod research across catalogues and specialist indexes.
- Test the account: compare the strongest cited source with the responsible institution’s current record and note any disagreement.
Questions for further research
- Which source most directly establishes the central claim about “Ashdod”?
- What physical evidence or contemporary plan supports the description?
- Which authority defined the place, boundary or structure at the relevant date?
Search terms from this dossier
This entry incorporates text from “Ashdod” on English Wikipedia. Contributors are listed in the page history. Text is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 License. Selected authority identifiers and statements are retrieved from Wikidata under CC0; their references and qualifiers remain part of the verification path.