Sokho

Netiv HaLamed-Heh (Hebrew: נְתִיב הַל"ה, lit. 'Path of the 35') is a kibbutz in central Israel. Located in the Valley of Elah, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. In 2021 it had a population of 670.

Khirbet Qeiyafa (Arabic: خربة قيافة), also known as Elah Fortress and in Hebrew as Horbat Qayafa (Hebrew: חורבת קייאפה), is the site of an ancient fortress city overlooking the Elah Valley and dated to the first half of the 10th century BCE. The ruins of the fortress were uncovered in 2007, near the Israeli city of Beit Shemesh, 30 km (20 mi) from Jerusalem. It covers nearly 2.5 ha (6 acres) and is encircled by a 700-meter-long (2,300 ft) city wall constructed of field stones, some weighing up to eight tons. Excavations at site continued in subsequent years. A number of archaeologists, mainly the two excavators, Yosef Garfinkel and Saar Ganor, have claimed that it might be one of two biblical cities, either Sha'arayim, whose name they interpret as "Two Gates", because of the two gates discovered on the site, or Neta'im; and that the large structure at the center is an administrative building dating to the reign of King David, where he might have lodged at some point. This is based on their conclusions that the site dates to the early Iron IIA, ca. 1025–975 BCE, a range which includes the biblical date for the biblical Kingdom of David. Others suggest it might represent either a North Israelite, Philistine, or Canaanite fortress, a claim rejected by the archaeological team that excavated the site. The team's conclusion that Khirbet Qeiyafa was a fortress of King David has been criticised by some scholars.

Bayt Nattif or Beit Nattif (Arabic: بيت نتّيف, Hebrew: בית נטיף and בית נתיף‎ alternatively) was a Palestinian Arab village, located some 20 kilometers (straight line distance) southwest of Jerusalem, midway on the ancient Roman road between Beit Guvrin and Jerusalem, and 21 km northwest of Hebron. The village lay nestled on a hilltop, surrounded by olive groves and almonds, with woodlands of oak and carobs overlooking Wadi es-Sunt (the Elah Valley) to its south. It contained several shrines, including a notable one dedicated to al-Shaykh Ibrahim. Roughly a dozen khirbas (deserted, ruined settlements) lay in the vicinity.During the British Mandate it was part of the Hebron Subdistrict. Bayt Nattif was depopulated during the 1948 Arab–Israeli War on October 21, 1948 under Operation Ha-Har.

The Valley of Elah or Ella Valley ("the valley of the terebinth"; from the Hebrew: עמק האלה‎ Emek HaElah), called in Arabic: وادي السنط, Wadi es-Sunt, so-named from its Acacia albida trees, is a long, shallow valley in the Levant best known as the place described in the Hebrew Bible (or Old Testament of Christianity) where the Israelites were encamped when David fought Goliath (1 Samuel 17:2; 1 Samuel 17:19). It is home to several important archaeological sites, including those identified as the ancient towns of Azekah and Socho (1 Samuel 17:1). Rising up from the valley on its extreme southeast end lies the hilltop ruin Adullam, and on its north lie the ruins of the ancient fortress city of Khirbet Qeiyafa, which is identified with the ancient town of Sha'araim (1 Samuel 17:52). The valley is named in Hebrew after the large and shady terebinth trees (Pistacia atlantica) which are indigenous to it. On the west side of the valley, near Socho, there is a very large and ancient tree of this kind, 55 feet (17 m) in height with a trunk 17 feet (5.2 m) in circumference and a canopy at least 75 feet (23 m) in diameter. This tree is notable for being one of the largest terebinths in the area, and marks the upper end of the valley.Since the early 1970s, the valley has also contained a large satellite relay station, with an antenna farm containing some 120 satellite dishes of various sizes. From 2010 to 2014, the region around the valley was believed to be threatened by shale oil extraction through the CCR ground-heating process, with the Green Zionist Alliance and the grassroots group Save Adullam, among others, working to stop exploitation of the region. The plan was ultimately blocked in 2014 by a zoning committee decision. In July 2019, the Elah Valley came under the Israel Nature and Parks Authority, owing largely to its historical importance and the desire to curtail the encroaching city limits of Beit Shemesh to its north.

The Battle of Ajnadayn (Arabic: معركة أجنادين) was fought in July or August 634 (Jumada I or II, 13 AH), in a location close to Beit Guvrin in the present-day Palestine region; it was the first major pitched battle between the Byzantine (Roman) Empire and the army of the Arab Rashidun Caliphate. The result of the battle was a decisive Muslim victory. The details of this battle are mostly known through Muslim sources, such as the ninth-century historian al-Waqidi.

Jarmuth, Hebrew: Yarmut (יַרְמוּת), was the name of two cities in the land of Canaan.The Douai-Rheims version of the Bible has an alternative spelling, Jaramoth.

Givat Yeshayahu (Hebrew: גִּבְעַת יְשַׁעְיָהוּ, lit. 'Yeshayahu Hill') is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the Valley of Elah around ten kilometres south of Beit Shemesh, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. In 2021 it had a population of 807.

Tel Yarmuth (also Tel Yarmouth and Tel Yarmut; Hebrew name) or Khirbet Yarmuk (Arabic name) is an ancient Near East archaeological site in Israel located 25 kilometers southwest of Jerusalem and near modern Beit Shemesh. It is a large primarily single-period (EB II/III) site and has been suggested as possibly being the city of Jarmuth, being only a tentative identification, as it is based solely on the similarity of the Hebrew name with the Arabic name and its areal location.

Judea or Judaea (; Hebrew: יהודה, Modern: Yəhūda, Tiberian: Yehūḏā; Greek: Ἰουδαία, Ioudaía; Latin: Iudaea) is a mountainous region of the Levant. Traditionally dominated by the city of Jerusalem, it is now part of Palestine and Israel. The name's usage is historic, having been used in antiquity and still into the present day; it originates from Yehudah, a Hebrew name. Yehudah was a son of Jacob, who was later given the name "Israel" and whose sons collectively headed the Twelve Tribes of Israel. Yehudah's progeny among the Israelites formed the Tribe of Judah, with whom the Kingdom of Judah is associated. Related nomenclature continued to be used under the rule of the Babylonians (the Yehud province), the Persians (the Yehud province), the Greeks (the Hasmonean Kingdom), and the Romans (the Herodian Kingdom and the Judaea province). Under the Hasmoneans, the Herodians, and the Romans, the term was applied to an area larger than the historical region of Judea. In 132 CE, the Roman province of Judaea was merged with Galilee to form the enlarged province of Syria Palaestina.The term Judea was revived by the Israeli government in the 20th century, as part of the Israeli administrative district name "Judea and Samaria Area" for the territory that is generally referred to as the West Bank.

Aderet (Hebrew: אַדֶּרֶת) is a moshav in central Israel. Located in the Judean foothills in the Adullam region, south of Beit Shemesh, west of Gush Etzion and overlooking the Valley of Elah, it falls under the jurisdiction of Mateh Yehuda Regional Council. In 2021 it had a population of 922.

Highway 38 is an arterial road in the low plains of Judea in Israel. It serves as the main access route to Beit Shemesh and as a main north–south route in the region. Along the route are many nature preserves and archeological sites.

Horvat 'Ethri (Hebrew: חורבת עתרי; alt. spellings: Hurvat Itri, Ethri, Atari), Hebrew for "Ethri ruin", Arabic name: Umm Suweid ("mother of the buckthorns"), is an archaeological site situated in the Judean Lowlands in modern-day Israel. Excavations at the site uncovered the remains of a now partially restored Jewish village of the Second Temple period, wherein are preserved an ancient synagogue, wine presses, cisterns, ritual baths and stone ossuaries, as well as an underground hideout system. The village was violently destroyed during the Bar Kokhba revolt.