The Romanization of the Negev, Israel: Geographical and cultural changes in the desert frontier in late antiquity

In the Negev desert, a large-scale settlement system developed and flourished in late antiquity. These settlements became sedentary and agriculturally based and reached their climax during the fifth, sixth and seventh centuries CE under the Roman Byzantine Empire. During this period, major geographical and cultural changes took place, changes which had an effect on almost every aspect of life in the Negev: settlement pattern, social and political organization, local economy, architecture, language and even religious life were all influenced by the Roman Byzantine Empire and its civilization. The paper examines the extent to which the process of sedentarization in the desert was an internal, immanent one, motivated by forces within the desert; or an external one, driven by the Roman Byzantine Empire.