Palmyra in the context of "Neoclassicism"

Western Aramaic is a group of Aramaic dialects once spoken widely throughout the ancient Levant, predominantly in the south, and Sinai, including ancient Damascus, Nabataea, across the Palestine region with Judea, Transjordan and Samaria, as well as today's Lebanon and the basins of the Orontes as far as Aleppo in the north. The group was divided into several regional variants, spoken mainly by the Palmyrenes in the east and the Aramaeans who settled on Mount Lebanon - ancestors of the early Maronites. In the south, it was spoken by Judeans (early Jews), Galileans, Samaritans, Pagans, Melkites (descendants of the aforementioned peoples who followed Chalcedonian Christianity), Nabataeans and possibly the Itureans. All of the Western Aramaic dialects are considered extinct today, except for the modern variety known as Western Neo-Aramaic. This dialect, which descends from Damascene Aramaic, is still spoken by the Arameans (Syriacs) in the towns of Maaloula, Bakh'a and Jubb'adin near Damascus, Syria.

A sheikhdom or sheikdom (Arabic: مشيخة, romanized: Mashyakhah) is a geographical area or a society ruled by a tribal leader known as a sheikh (Arabic: شيخ). Sheikhdoms exist almost exclusively within Arab countries, particularly in the Arabian Peninsula (Arab States of the Persian Gulf), with some notable exceptions throughout history (e.g. the Sangage Sheikhdom).

Although some countries are ruled by a sheikh, they are not typically referred to as sheikdoms, but kingdom, emirate, or simply state, and their ruler usually has another royal title such as king or emir.

James Germain Février (January 1895, in Clérac – 15 July 1976, in Paris) was a 20th-century French historian and philologist. A specialist of the Semitic world, his thesis was on the archaeological site of Palmyra and he wrote numerous studies on the history of Carthage and the Phoenicians.

He was editor-in-chief of the Journal Asiatique from 1967 to 1972.

Parthian art was Iranian art made during the Parthian Empire from 247 BC to 224 AD, based in the Near East. It has a mixture of Persian and Hellenistic influences. For some time after the period of the Parthian Empire, art in its styles continued for some time. A typical feature of Parthian art is the frontality of the people shown. Even in narrative representations, the actors do not look at the object of their action, but at the viewer. These are features that anticipate the art of medieval Europe and Byzantium.

Parthian sites are often overlooked in excavations, thus the state of research knowledge in Parthian art is not complete. The excavations at Dura-Europos in the 20th century provided many new discoveries. The classical archaeologist and director of the excavations, Michael Rostovtzeff, realized that the art of the first centuries AD from Palmyra, Dura Europos, and also in Iran as far as the Greco-Buddhist art of north India followed the same principles. He called this art style Parthian art.

The Arab migrations to the Levant involved successive waves of migration and settlement by Arab people in the Levant region of West Asia, encompassing modern-day Syria, Lebanon, Jordan, Palestine and Israel. The process took place over several centuries, lasting from ancient time to the modern period. The Arab migrants hailed from various parts of the Middle East, particularly the Arabian Peninsula. In the 9th century BCE, the Assyrians made written references to Arabs among the inhabitants of Levant and Arabia.

Several notable Arab kingdoms, peoples and principalities were established in the Levant since ancient times such as the Nabatean Kingdom in southern Levant 3rd century BC, Itureans north of the Galilee in late Hellenistic period, in Palmyra Arabs alongside Arameans formed a major ethnic group of its native population. notable influential local Arab dynasties and kings also emerged from the Levant such as the Emesene dynasty in modern day Homs and the Roman emperor Philip the Arab.