Samaria Ostraca in the context of "Sebastia, Nablus"

Samaria (Hebrew: שֹׁמְרוֹן Šōmrōn; Akkadian: 𒊓𒈨𒊑𒈾 Samerina; Greek: Σαμάρεια Samareia) was the capital city of the northern Kingdom of Israel between c. 880 BC and c. 720 BC. The city gave its name to the surrounding region of Samaria, a historical region bounded by Judea to the south and by Galilee to the north. Strategically situated on a high hill, Samaria commanded views of the surrounding fertile countryside and was located near key trade routes connecting the highlands with the coastal plain.

Samaria was founded as Israel's royal capital by King Omri (884–873 BC), replacing Tirzah. According to the biblical account, which was composed in Judah but likely preserves records from Israel (possibly from Samaria itself), Omri purchased the hill from its previous owner, Shemer, for two talents of silver. Under the Omride dynasty, Samaria developed into a major royal and administrative center. Excavations reveal a massive palace complex, one of the largest in the Levant from this period, constructed in two main phases corresponding to the reigns of Omri and his successor, Ahab. Notable finds from the Israelite period include the Samaria Ivories, intricately carved ivory fragments inspired by Phoenician art, and the Samaria Ostraca, Hebrew-inscribed potsherds recording transactions such as shipments of wine and oil, which provide insight into the kingdom's bureaucratic organization.

The system of Hebrew numerals is a quasi-decimal alphabetic numeral system using the letters of the Hebrew alphabet.The system was adapted from that of the Greek numerals sometime between 200 and 78 BCE, the latter being the date of the earliest archeological evidence.

The current numeral system is also known as the Hebrew alphabetic numerals to contrast with earlier systems of writing numerals used in classical antiquity. These systems were inherited from usage in the Aramaic and Phoenician scripts, attested from c. 800 BCE in the Samaria Ostraca.