Jina la Palestina lilikuwa jina lililotumiwa zaidi, mara kwa mara na mfululizo kwa zaidi ya miaka 1200 katika zama za kale za Ugiriki na Roma pamoja na Zama za Kale za Mwisho, kuanzia kilele cha ustaarabu wa kale wa Athene mnamo mwaka 500 KK hadi mwisho wa kipindi cha Byzantine na kukaliwa kwa Palestina na majeshi ya Kiislamu mnamo miaka 637‒638 BK.

Palestine was the name used most commonly, consistently and continuously for over 1200 years throughout classical and Late Antiquity, from the highlight of classical Athenian civilisation in 500 BC until the end of the Byzantine period and the occupation of Palestine by the Muslim armies in 637‒638 AD.

Kubadilisha neno lisilo wazi na lisilo sahihi Kanaani kwa jina halisi la kihistoria na rasmi Palaestina lililotumika katika kipindi cha kitamaduni kilichodumu zaidi ya milenia moja kungekuwa sawa na kufuta historia ya eneo hili na kungeleta vikwazo vikubwa katika kuelewa Enzi ya Kale ya Kitamaduni na Enzi ya Marehemu ya Kale. Kubadilisha Kanaani (inayojulikana kwa kipindi kifupi tu cha Enzi ya Shaba ya Marehemu) badala ya Palaestina pia kungeondoa uwezekano wa kupata maarifa halisi ya kihistoria kuhusu moja ya vipindi muhimu zaidi katika historia ya kale ya eneo hili, yaani Ukristo wa mwanzo na Palestina ya Kibyzantini. Ukristo wa Kibyzantini unaozungumza Kigiriki huko Palestina ulianza katika utawala wa Mfalme wa Kirumi Konstantino Mkuu (306–337 BK) na ukadumu hadi mwanzo wa utawala wa Waislamu huko Palestina mnamo mwaka 637–638 BK.

To substitute the vague and imprecise term Cana’an for the real historical and official toponym Palaestina used during a classical period lasting over a millennium would be tantamount to the elimination of the history of this region and would create major obstacles to an understanding of Classical and Late Antiquity. The substitution of the term Cana’an (known only for a limited period during the Late Bronze Age) for Palaestina would also eliminate the possibility of any real historical knowledge of one of the most important periods in the ancient history of the region, namely early Christianity and Byzantine Palestine. Greek-speaking Byzantine Christianity in Palestine began in the reign of the Roman Emperor Constantine the Great (306–337 AD) and lasted until the beginning of Muslim rule in Palestine in 637‒638 AD.