Ramallah
/rəˈmæl.ə/noun
Ramallah is a Palestinian city in the central West Bank and the de facto administrative center of the Palestinian Authority.
Did you know?The name is commonly analyzed as Arabic Rām Allāh, “height of God,” although historians note that the name may preserve older Aramaic or Canaanite place-name elements.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
Proto-Semitic
*rwm
“To rise, be elevated, or stand high”
Ancient Northwest Semitic
Canaanite
rām
“High or elevated”
Biblical and Late Antique period
Aramaic
rāmā
“Height, high place, or elevated settlement”
Early Islamic period
Arabic
Rām Allāh
“Height of God; the traditional Arabic interpretation of the place-name”
Modern English
English
Ramallah
“The modern English form of the Palestinian city’s name”