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Berytus
EntityQ829310· pop 11· linked from 816 articles

Also known as Laodicea in Phoenicia, Laodicea in Canaan

Berytus (; ; ; ; ), briefly known as Laodicea in Phoenicia (; ) or Laodicea in Canaan from the 2nd century to 64 BC, was the ancient city of Beirut (in modern-day Lebanon) from the Roman Republic through the Roman Empire and Early Byzantine period/late antiquity. Berytus became a Roman colonia that would be the center of Roman presence in the Eastern Mediterranean shores south of Anatolia.

Key facts

Ancient site.alternate_name
Laodicea in Phoenicia () or Laodicea in Canaan (2nd century to 64 BCE)
Ancient site.image
St. George's Cathedral, Beirut.jpg
Ancient site.caption
Roman ruins of Berytus, in front of Saint George Greek Orthodox Cathedral in modern-day Beirut
Ancient site.map_type
Lebanon
Ancient site.map_size
270
Ancient site.location
Beirut, Lebanon
Ancient site.type
Settlement
Ancient site.built
Roman republic (merchants from early Laodicea/Berytus recorded by 110–109 BC)
Ancient site.epochs
Roman and Early Byzantine/late antiquity; previous port dating back to Iron Age III and Persian periods
Ancient site.cultures
Phoenician, Roman

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Wikidata facts

Demonym
Berytian
Image
St. George's Cathedral, Beirut.jpg
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Commons category
Berytus
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~11 min read

Article

10 sections
Contents
  • History
  • Early history
  • Roman colonia
  • The Law School of Berytus
  • Early Byzantine rule
  • Recent discoveries
  • Notable people
  • See also
  • Notes
  • Bibliography

Berytus (; ; ; ; ), briefly known as Laodicea in Phoenicia (; ) or Laodicea in Canaan from the 2nd century to 64 BC, was the ancient city of Beirut (in modern-day Lebanon) from the Roman Republic through the Roman Empire and Early Byzantine period/late antiquity. Berytus became a Roman colonia that would be the center of Roman presence in the Eastern Mediterranean shores south of Anatolia.

The veterans of two Roman legions under Augustus were established in the city (the fifth Macedonian and the third Gallic), that afterward quickly became Romanized. It was the only fully Latin-speaking city in the Syria-Phoenicia region until the fourth century. Although Berytus was still an important city after earthquakes, around 400 AD Tyre was made the capital of the Roman province of Phoenicia. "Of the great law schools of Rome, Constantinople, and Berytus", the law school of Berytus stood "pre-eminent". The Code of Justinian (one part of the Corpus Juris Civilis, the codification of Roman law ordered early in the 6th century AD by Justinian I and fully written in Latin) was mostly created in this school.

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