CILICIA

CILICIA - A district in the SE. corner of Asia Minor, which in NT times was divided into two portions. The Roman province Cilicia, which alone is referred to in the NT, stretched from a little E. of Corycus to Mt. Amanus, and from the Cilician Gates to the sea. For administrative purposes it was combined with Syria and Phoenicia. The sense of the unity of Syria and Cilicia is seen clearly in Gal.1.21 (also in Ac.15.23, 41). The capital of the province Cilicia was Tarsus (Ac.21.39, 22.3). The other portion to which the name was applied was the client-kingdom of king Antiochus of Commagene, which was under the suzerainty of Rome, and included Cilicia Tracheia (Rugged Cilicia) to the W., as well as a belt surrounding the Roman province on the N. and E. [Article: Dictionary of the Bible, J.Hastings, 2nd Ed., T&T.Clark, 1963. - A.So.]