Tekoa (ancient town)

Tekoa, Teqoa, Thekoa or Thecoe (Hebrew: תקוע; Greek: Θεκώα) was an ancient town in the hill country of Judea, on the edge of the Judaean Desert. The town is identified with the ruins of Tel Tekoa or Khirbet Tekoa (also spelled Khirbet et-Tuqu'), located about 12 km southeast of Bethlehem.

The town appears in the Hebrew Bible, which connects its founding with the descendants of Caleb, in connection with figures such as the wise woman of Tekoa, the prophet Amos, and in accounts of Tekoa's fortification under Rehoboam (or possibly Josiah). During the Second Temple period, Tekoites returning from exile reportedly participated in rebuilding Jerusalem's walls, and the town features in accounts of the Maccabean revolt, the First Jewish Revolt and the Bar Kokhba revolt.

Archaeological finds at the site of Khirbet Teqoa include pottery from Iron Age IIA–IIC, Persian, Hellenistic, and Roman periods, as well as remains of a Byzantine church dedicated to Saint Nicholas and a propheteion commemorating Amos. The site remained inhabited into the Middle Ages, with the remains of a Crusader fortress, and villagers paid taxes to the Ottoman imperial authorities.

Today, the site of the ancient town is distinct but part of the modern Palestinian village of Tuqu', with 131 Palestinians living in Khirbet Tuqu' in 2019. The Israeli settlement of Tekoa was initially established nearby as a Nahal military outpost in 1975 and named after the ancient site.