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Byblos ('/b//ɪ//b//l//ɒ//s/ BIBloss; ), also known as Jebeil, Jbeil or Jubayl (جُبَيْل, locally Jbeil ; , , probably Gebal), is an ancient city in the Keserwan Jbeil Governorate of Lebanon. The area is believed to have been first settled between 8800 and 7000BC and continuously inhabited since 5000BC. During its history, Byblos was part of numerous cultures including Egyptian, Phoenician, Assyrian, Persian, Hellenistic, Roman, Genoese, Mamluk and Ottoman. Urbanisation is thought to have begun during the third millennium BC and it developed into a city

It was in ancient Byblos that the Phoenician alphabet, likely the ancestor of the Greek, Latin and all other Western alphabets, was developed.

Eusebius' Onomasticon stated that Byblos was known in Hebrew as Gabel / Gobel. The name appears as Kebny in Egyptian hieroglyphic records going back to the 4th dynasty pharaoh Sneferu (BC) and as Gubla (𒁺𒆷) in the Akkadian cuneiform Amarna letters to the 18th dynasty pharaohs Amenhotep III and IV. In the 1stmillenniumBC, its name appeared in Phoenician and Punic inscriptions as Gebal (𐤂𐤁𐤋, ); in the Hebrew Bible as Geval (גבל); and in Syriac as (ܓܒܠ). The name seems to derive from (𐤂𐤁, "well") and (𐤀𐤋, "god"), the latter a word that could variously refer to any of the Canaanite gods or to their leader in particular. The name thus seems to have meant the "Well of the God" or "Source of the God". Its present Arabic name Jubayl (جبيل) or J(e)beil is a direct descendant of these earlier names, although apparently modified by a misunderstanding of the name as the triliteral root or , meaning "mountain". All of these, along with Byblos, are etymologically related. During the Crusades, this name appeared in European records as Gibelet or Giblet. This name was used for Byblos Castle and its associated lordship. The Phoenician city, known to the Greeks as Býblos (Βύβλος) and to the Romans as Byblus, was important for their import of papyrus from Egypt – to the extent that "byblos" came to mean "papyrus" in Greek. The English word "Bible", therefore, ultimately derives from the Greek name of the city.

Situated approximately 42 km (26 mi) north of Beirut, Byblos holds a strong allure for archaeologists due to its accumulations of various strata resulting from countless centuries of human dwelling. The initial excavation was conducted by Ernest Renan in 1860, documented in his work "Mission de Phénicie" (1865–1874). This was succeeded by Pierre Montet's efforts from 1921 to 1924, and later by Maurice Dunand, who continued excavations from 1925 for a span of forty years. Renan's expedition was to "provide the evidence that the city did not move and that Gebeil is Byblos". Fragments attributed to the semi legendary pre Homeric Phoenician priest Sanchuniathon say Byblos was the first city erected in Phoenicia and was established by the god Cronus. (Cronus was considered the nearest equivalent to the Canaanite Baal or Baal Hammon in the syncretising system used by the ancient Greeks and Romans.) According to the writer Philo of Byblos (quoting Sanchuniathon, and quoted in Eusebius), Byblos was founded by the Phoenician shrine god El, (whom the Greeks identified with their god Cronus). During the 3rd millennium BC, the first signs of a town can be observed, with the remains of well built houses of uniform size. This was the period when the Canaanite civilization began to develop.

Neolithic remains of some buildings can be observed at the site. Jacques Cauvin published studies of flint tools from the stratified Neolithic and Chalcolithic sites in 1962. Remains of humans found in Chalcolithic burials have been published by Henri Victor Vallois in 1937. Tombs from this era were discussed by Emir Maurice Chehab in 1950. Early pottery found at the tell was published by E. S. Boynton in 1960 with further studies by R. Erich in 1954 and Van Liere and Henri de Contenson in 1964.

Objects have been found at Byblos naming the 13th Dynasty Egyptian king Neferhotep I.

In the Assyrian period, Sibittibaal of Byblos became tributary to Tiglath Pileser III in 738 BC, and in 701 BC, when Sennacherib conquered all Phoenicia, the king of Byblos was Urumilki. Byblos was also subject to Assyrian kings Esarhaddon (r. 681–669 BC) and Ashurbanipal (r. 668–627 BC), under its kings Milkiasaph and Yehawmelek. In the Achaemenid Empire (538–332 BC), Byblos was the fourth of four Phoenician vassal kingdoms established by the Persians; the first three being Sidon, Tyre, and Arwad. Hellenistic rule came with the arrival of Alexander the Great in the area in 332 BC. Coinage was in use, and there is abundant evidence of continued trade with other Mediterranean countries. During the Greco Roman period, the temple of Resheph was elaborately rebuilt, and the city, though smaller than its neighbours such as Tyre and Sidon, was a centre for the cult of Adonis. In the 3rd century, a small but impressive theatre was constructed. With the rise of Christianity, a bishopric was established in Byblos, and the town grew rapidly. Although a Sasanian colony is known to have been established in the region following the early Muslim conquests of 636, there is little archaeological evidence for it. Trade with Europe effectively dried up, and it was not until the coming of the First Crusade in 1098 that prosperity returned to Byblos, known then as Gibelet or Giblet.

In the 12th and 13th century, Byblos became part of the County of Tripoli, a Crusader state connected to, but largely independent from, the Crusader Kingdom of Jerusalem. As Gibelet or Giblet, it came under the rule of the Genoese Embriaco family, who created for themselves the Lordship of Gibelet, first as administrators of the city in the name of the Republic of Genoa, and then as a hereditary fief, undertaking to pay an annual fee to Genoa and the church of San Lorenzo (Genoa's Cathedral). The Embriaco family's residence, the Crusader castle of Gibelet, along with the fortified town, served as an important military base for the Crusaders. The remains of the castle are among the most impressive architectural structures now visible in the town centre. The town was taken by Saladin in 1187, re taken by the Crusaders, and conquered by Baibars in 1266, but it remained in the possession of the Embriacos until around 1300. Having voluntarily surrendered to the Mamluks, the city was relatively spared from looting following its capture. Its fortifications were subsequently restored by Baybars. From 1516 until 1918, the town and the whole region became part of the Ottoman Empire.

Byblos and all of Lebanon were placed under French Mandate from 1920 until 1943 when Lebanon achieved independence. The 2006 Lebanon War negatively affected the ancient city by covering its harbour and town walls with an oil slick that was the result of an oil spill from a nearby power plant. This, however, has been cleared and the coastal area has since then become a destination for beach goers, especially in the late spring and throughout the summer season.

Byblos's inhabitants are predominantly Christian, mostly Maronite, with minorities of Armenian Apostolic, Greek Orthodox, and Greek Catholics. There is also a minority of Shia Muslims. It is said that the city of Bint Jbeil ("Daughter of Byblos") in southern Lebanon was founded by those Shia Muslims. Byblos has three representatives in the Parliament of Lebanon: two Maronites and one Shia.

Byblos is home to the professional schools of the Lebanese American University (LAU). The LAU Byblos Campus houses the Medical School, the Engineering School, the School of Architecture and Design, the Pharmacy School, which offers the only Pharm. D. Program outside the United States accredited by the Accreditation Council for Pharmacy Education (ACPE), the School of Business, and the School of Arts and Sciences. The Campus is situated on a hill overlooking the city and the Mediterranean Sea.

Byblos is re emerging as an upscale touristic hub. With its ancient port, Phoenician, Roman, and Crusader ruins, sandy beaches and the picturesque mountains that surround it make it an ideal tourist destination. The city is known for its fish restaurants, open air bars, and outdoor cafes. Yachts cruise into its harbor today as they did in the 1960s and 1970s when Marlon Brando and Frank Sinatra were regular visitors to the city. and by the World Tourism Organization as the best Arab tourist city for 2013.

Ain el Malik or King's Spring, about 20 m deep, is a large cavity accessible by spiral stairs. Once it supplied the city with water. According to Plutarch's version of the Egyptian Osiris myth, the king's servants met Isis on the stairs of the spring and took her to the royal palace, where she found the body of her husband Osiris embedded in one of the palace pillars. The L shaped Temple was erected about 2700 BC. The Temple of the Obelisks, originally built in 1600–1200 BC on top of the “L shaped temple,” was moved by archaeologists to its present location. The many small obelisks found in this temple were used as religious offerings. The sanctuary contained a large number of human figurines made of bronze covered with gold leaf, which are now displayed in the National Museum of Beirut. The royal necropolis dates back to the second millennium BC and contains tombs of the Byblos kings, including King Ahiram. The Roman theater was built around AD 218.