Gadara (Umm Qais): The Country of the Gadarenes
A Decapolis city on a ridge above the Sea of Galilee, Matthew's setting for the swine miracle
Found 1974 — German Protestant Institute of Archaeology (Ute Wagner-Lux) from 1974; Thomas Weber (DAI) 1980s–1990s; Claudia Bührig, German Archaeological Institute Orient Department, from 2005
Where Umm Qais, Irbid governorate, above the Yarmouk gorge (Jordan)
Dates from 3rd century BCE – 8th century CE · Hellenistic – Byzantine · Decapolis in the Gospels
Now at In situ; museum in the Ottoman village on site
How Gadara (Umm Qais): The Country of the Gadarenes was found
Seetzen identified the ruins in 1806. German teams have cleared the west and north theatres, the colonnaded decumanus, a five-aisled Byzantine basilica built over a Roman mausoleum, shops, baths and city gates, and traced a Seleucid fortress. The Jordanian army accidentally opened an underground Roman mausoleum. The site's 170-km aqueduct system, including the longest known ancient tunnel, was surveyed and conserved 2004–2018.
What it is
A black-basalt Roman city on a limestone ridge 10 km south-east of the lake, with two theatres, a long colonnaded street, a hippodrome, cemeteries of rock-cut tombs along the road, and the octagonal Byzantine church. Its hot springs at Hammat Gader lie in the valley below. Gadara was famous for poets and philosophers, including Meleager and Philodemus.
Why it matters for the Bible
Matthew places the healing of two demon-possessed men 'in the country of the Gadarenes', with the pigs rushing down a steep bank into the lake. Gadara itself is too far uphill for that scene, but its territory reached the lakeshore, and the road-side tombs at Umm Qais illustrate the 'tombs' where the possessed lived. The city also shows what a Gentile, pig-keeping Decapolis town looked like — Greek-speaking, theatre-loving — right at the edge of Jewish Galilee.
The Hebrew word: cha-ZEER
חֲזִיר
חֲזִיר is pronounced cha-ZEER and means pig — unclean for Israel, kept freely in Gentile Gadara (Strong's H2386).
Places
- Gadara — גָּדָר (gah-DAR) — Semitic 'wall/enclosure'; Greek Gadara
Events
Healing of the demoniacs and the drowned swine · Yeshua's travels through the Decapolis
Gadara (Umm Qais): The Country of the Gadarenes in Scripture
Matthew 8:28-32 'The country of the Gadarenes' with tombs and a herd of swine; Umm Qais is the city of that district. (First mention of Gadara.)
Mark 5:20 The healed man proclaims in the Decapolis; Gadara was a leading Decapolis city.
Mark 7:31 Yeshua passes through the Decapolis on the way back to the lake.
Questions people ask
What is Gadara (Umm Qais): The Country of the Gadarenes?
A black-basalt Roman city on a limestone ridge 10 km south-east of the lake, with two theatres, a long colonnaded street, a hippodrome, cemeteries of rock-cut tombs along the road, and the octagonal Byzantine church. Its hot springs at Hammat Gader lie in the valley below. Gadara was famous for poets and philosophers, including Meleager and Philodemus.
When was Gadara (Umm Qais): The Country of the Gadarenes discovered?
It was found in 1974 by German Protestant Institute of Archaeology (Ute Wagner-Lux) from 1974; Thomas Weber (DAI) 1980s–1990s; Claudia Bührig, German Archaeological Institute Orient Department, from 2005, at Umm Qais, Irbid governorate, above the Yarmouk gorge.
Where is Gadara (Umm Qais): The Country of the Gadarenes today?
In situ; museum in the Ottoman village on site.
Which Bible verses does Gadara (Umm Qais): The Country of the Gadarenes relate to?
Matthew 8:28-32, Mark 5:20, Mark 7:31.
Is Gadara (Umm Qais): The Country of the Gadarenes authentic?
The city's identity is secure. Which Decapolis territory the swine miracle belongs to (Gadara, Gerasa, or Gergesa/Kursi) is debated among manuscripts and scholars.
Related discoveries
- עֵבֶר הַיַּרְדֵּןGerasa (Jerash) of the DecapolisThe best-preserved Roman city east of the Jordan, in the 'country of the Gerasenes'
- חֲזִירKursi (Gergesa)Byzantine monastery on the eastern shore marking the miracle of the swine
- נוּסPella of the Decapolis and the Flight of the Jerusalem ChurchThe Jordan valley city to which, Eusebius says, Yeshua's followers fled before 70 CE
- תֵּאַטְרוֹןTheater of CorinthRoman theater beside the Erastus pavement, seat of the city's public life
- קְהִלָּהCuretes Street and the Library of Celsus, EphesusThe marble city Paul walked — with a landmark built a generation after him
Sources
- Wikipedia, 'Umm Qais'
- Weber, T., Gadara – Umm Qēs I: Gadara Decapolitana (2002)
- German Archaeological Institute, Gadara / Umm Qais project
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