Pomponius Mela°

POMPONIUS MELA° (first century C.E.), Roman geographer. Referring to Near-Eastern countries (he calls the area Syria), he mentions Judea and singles out three ancient cities of its southern coastal plain (which he calls Palaestina): Gaza (Aza), Ascalon (Ashkelon), and Jope (Jaffa; De Situ Orbi 1:11).

Sources: Encyclopaedia Judaica. © 2007 The Gale Group. All Rights Reserved.