The Greek Era

Gerasa, however, did not develop into a strategic urban center until the Greek era. Two traditions claim the city was founded by Alexander the Great: One maintains that the city (γέρασα, gerasa) was established for Alexander’s veterans (γέροντες, gerontes), while the other argues that Alexander killed all of the young men in the region, leaving only old men (γέροντες, gerōntes-) to occupy the city. Neither tradition, however, is supported by the evidence. In Greek, the town came to be known as Antioch on the Chrysorhoas River; the name “Gerasa” originates in West Semitic and is attested in a Nabataean inscription from Petra. Consequently, origin stories based on lexical field relationships with Gerasa in Greek are unfounded.

Based on an inscription found in the city, Perdiccas—a general of Alexander the Great—was likely the patron of the Hellenistic settlement. The city, which alternated between Ptolemaic and Seleucid control during the Greek era, was strategically located on lucrative Arabian trade routes and provided a buffer against bands of desert rogues from the Arabian peninsula. A Seleucid king, Antiochus IV Epiphanes, likely provided the source of the city’s Greek name (Antioch on the Chrysorhoas River).