NINEVAH

Definition

The ancient city of Assyria on the eastern shore of the Tigris, north of Babylon, one of the oldest and greatest cities of Mesopotamia. It was at its greatest during the eighth century B.C. It was captured and destroyed after a two-year siege by the Medes and Babylonians 606 B.C. It is mentioned principally in the Book of Jonah and Book of Nahum, the latter devoting the whole of his book to the "burden of Ninevah."