Which are some of continuously-inhabited cities of the world? These are urban centres -- with a rich culture plus connnection to the oldest civilisations, ancient monuments -- that have had a ringside seat of the world's history. They still flourishing today. There are historical debates on which cities are older and this list has therefore been compiled from several sources.
Damascus, called the capital of Arab culture, is one of the oldest inhabited cities in the world. It dates back, according to some historical sources, to 10,000 BC and has witnessed the rise and fall of many great civilisations. Damascus, severely damaged in the war, is a home to over two million.
Beautiful Aleppo, badly scarred and all but razed in the war, has been continuously inhabited for over 8,000 years, with evidence of human settlements dating back to 11,000 BC. Strategically located between the Mediterranean Sea and Mesopotamia, it thrived as a major trading hub in ancient times.
A UNESCO World Heritage Site, Byblos played a key historic role as the first known exporter of papyrus to Greece. It has been, it is believed, continuously inhabited for 7,000 years.
Argos is another old, old city, surviving for at least 7,000 years. Today, though home to wonderful historical sites, it has a population of 22,000.
Athens, capital and largest city of Greece, is neck-to-neck with Argos in oldest city stakes. It too is 7,000 years old. Great philosophers like Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle once lived here and Athens played played a crucial role in shaping human thought.
Susa has been located in the Zagros mountains, near the Tigris River, for 6,300 years. Though it was destroyed by the Assyrians, it was quickly rebuilt and later thrived as part of the Persian Empire.
The timeless Kurd city has been in existence for 6,000 years old. Its most iconic landmark, the Erbil Citadel (Hawler Castle) from 2,000 BC, also a UNESCO World Heritage site.
Plovdiv, Bulgaria’s second-largest city, has a history spanning over 6,000 years, making it one of Europe’s oldest always inhabited cities.
Varanasi, also known as Benares or Kashi, is India’s oldest and most sacred city and a spiritual hub of Hinduism. On the Ganga in Uttar Pradesh, it finds mention in the Vedas and is believed to be inhabited since the 11th century BC but other estimates suggest it to be much younger.
As mentioned earlier there is much difference in opinion among historians on which are the 10 oldest cities. This feature would not be complete without adding a few more contenders -- Jerusalem, Israel and Palestine; Jericho, Palestine; Beirut, Lebanon; Gaziantep, Turkey; Faiyum, Egypt; Yerevan, Armenia; Vani, Georgia; Xi'an, China.
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