Samaria

Both a region and a city. Samaria was the territory of the tribe of Joseph (i.e. Ephraim and Manasseh) after the conquest by Joshua. After the split of the Kingdoms in 922 BC, Samaria became part of the northern Kingdom. Until the reign of Omri in the ninth century the capital of the northern Kingdom was Tirzah but Omri built the city of Shomron (which is the Hebrew version of the name) around 878 BC. The name of the capital city later became the name of the whole region. In 722 BC Samaria (both region and city) were destroyed by the Assyrians. The later inhabitants of the land became known as Samaritans.