In modern knowledge, however, <u>Palestine</u> is typically described as a region bounded on the east by the Jordan River, on the north by the boundary between modern Israel and Lebanon, along the west by the Mediterranean (along with the shore of Gaza) and on the south by the Negev.
The name Levant States was used to refer to the French mandate over Syria and Lebanon after World War I. This is probably the reason why the term Levant has come to be used more specifically to refer to modern Syria, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel, Jordan, and Cyprus.
