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Tiberias was founded by Herod Antipas (ruled 4 BC–AD 39), tetrarch of Galilee under the Romans in AD 18, and named for the reigning emperor Tiberius. Some traditions hold that it is built on the site of the biblical Rakkath, mentioned in Joshua 19. After the destruction of the Temple by the Romans, Galilee became the center of Jewish life, and Tiberias, its principal city, grew in importance.
