[Ispahan], Persia. 33N. 52E. Said to have been f. by Jews who were taken captive by Nebuchadnezzar; former capital of Persia. Tamerlane massacred the inhabitants, 1392; besieged and plundered by Afghans, 1722; re-taken by Nadir Shah, 1729. (See Montesquieu's 'Lettres Persanes,' 'Purchas His Pilgrimes.')
Issus, Asia Minor. 37N. 36E. Alexander the Great conquered Darius in a decisive battle, 333 B.C.; Septimus Severus defeated Niger, 194; Heraclius overthrew Persians, 622.
Istalif, Afghanistan. 35N. 69E. Destroyed by British, 1842.
[Jabbok] ('copious river'), Palestine. 32N. 36E. River on the banks of which Jacob is supposed to have wrestled with an angel. (See Doughty's 'Travels in Arabia Deserta.')
Jaffa, Palestine. 32N. 35E. Celebrated in heathen mythology as the scene of the adventure of Perseus and Andromeda, in Scripture history as the port from which Jonas embarked and city in which Peter raised Tabitha. Cæsar yielded town to the Jews, but it returned to Rome, 6; taken by El-Malik el-Adil, Saladin's brother, 1188; ceded to Christians, 1204; restored by Frederick II., 1228; fortified by St. Louis, 1252; dismantled by Beybars, 1267; taken by Napoleon, 1799; by Mehemet Ali, 1832; by Turks, 1840. Partially destroyed by earthquake, 1838. (See Lamartine's 'Voyage en Orient,' Thomson's 'Land and the Book,' Hakluyt's 'Voyages.')
[Jalalabad], Afghanistan. 34N. 70E. F. by Akbar, 1570. Sir Robert Sale made a successful resistance against Afghans, 1842.
[Jalandhar], Punjab. 31N. 76E. Visited by Hiuen Tsiang. Destroyed by Sikhs, 1757; taken by Ranjit Singh, 1811.
Jamalpur, Bengal. 25N. 86E. Chief locomotive centre of East Indian Railway, described by Kipling in 'Among the Railway Folk.'
[Jaypur], Rajputana. 27N. 76E. F. by Sawai Jai Singh, 1728; greatest city of Rajputana. (See Kipling's 'Letters of Marque.')
[Jericho], Palestine. 32N. 35E. Ancient city frequently mentioned in biblical history, and also by Josephus and Strabo. It was destroyed by Joshua, but rebuilt in Ahab's reign. Here Christ healed blind Bartimæus. (See Twain's 'New Pilgrim's Progress,' Lamartine's 'Voyage en Orient,' Thomson's 'Land and the Book.')