Major Countries of the Ancient Near East

Cedar trees were imported from Lebanon [see photo for Assyria]. The Phoenicians, who lived in the area that is now Lebanon and further south, were a Semitic people. Living in coastal regions, they were traders and established an outpost at Carthage in north Africa. Leading Phoenician trading towns in Lebanon were Tyre, Sidon, Byblos, and Arvad.

The Phoenicians are credited with creating glass, a reddish-purple dye, and the alphabet.

• Introduction to Ancient Lebanon
• Carthage and the Phoenicians