Bethany

Bethany, in the Bible, was the name of a village near Jerusalem - see Bethany (Biblical village) - mentioned in the New Testament as the home of the siblings Mary, Martha, and Lazarus and, according to the Gospel of John, the site of a miracle in which Jesus raises Lazarus from the dead. This village is commonly identified with the present-day West Bank city of al-Eizariya, located about 1.5 miles (2.4 km) east of Jerusalem on the south-eastern slope of the Mount of Olives. During the Crusades, al-Eizariya was still referred to as Bethany by Christians.

There a second biblical site of this name, Bethany beyond the Jordan, called Bethabara in the King James Version of the Bible. This locality on the Jordan River above the Dead Sea is described in the New Testament as the site where Jesus was baptized by John the Baptist.

Many places are named for the biblical village of Bethany. Bethany is also used as a female given name.

As a modern name, Bethany now means 'From the house of God's grace' and is a combination of Beth and Annie. It is of Aramaic origin.