 A small port city known today as Tell Abu <unk> was established Late Bronze Age ( 14th century BCE ) . During the 6th century BCE , Greek geographer <unk> told of a city " between the bay and the <unk> of Zeus " ( i.e. , the Carmel ) which may be a reference to Shikmona , a locality in the Haifa area , during the Persian period . By Hellenistic times , the city had moved to a new site south of what is now Bat Galim because the port 's harbour had become blocked with sand . About the 3rd century CE , the city was first mentioned in <unk> literature , as a Jewish fishing village and the home of Rabbi <unk> and other Jewish scholars . A Greek @-@ speaking population living along the coast at this time was engaged in commerce . 
