348 Tsunami: Levantian Sea, Lebanon
A tsunami caused by an earthquake began at Levantian Sea, Lebanon in 348. Its effects were recorded at 3 places in at least 2 countries.
Where the waves reached
The source (white) and every runup with a place, colored by the water height recorded there. A ring is a runup NCEI marks doubtful.
- Under 1 m
- 1 to 3 m
- 3 to 10 m
- 10 to 30 m
- 30 m and more
- Height not recorded
The tsunami
- Date
- 348
- Source
- Levantian Sea, Lebanon
- Cause
- Earthquake
- Earthquake
- The earthquake
- Runups recorded
- 3
- Tsunami intensity (Soloviev-Imamura)
- 3
- Waters
- Ocean
- How certain
- Very doubtful tsunami
- Source location
- 33.900° N, 35.500° E
The toll
- Damage
- Severe (about $5 to $25 million) with the earthquake or eruption that caused it
Where the literature gives no number, NCEI records a description on a scale of 1 to 4, printed here in its words. Damage is in millions of US dollars of the year of the event, not adjusted for inflation.
What the record says
NCEI’s account, from the sources it cites.
348. Levantian Sea, Near east. A tsunami (intensity 3) was observed on the Arwad Island, the Syrian coasts and in Beirut. (reference #2130)
348. Syrian coasts. Beirut (iii?), Arwad Islands (iii?). Not found in contemporary writers. (references #15, #20, #23)
348/349, Lebanon. This was a disastrous earthquake in Beirut, Lebanon, and a very improbable tsunami is reported (Sieberg 1932; Antonopoulos 1973). According to the review of Guidoboni et al. (1994), however, there is no evidence of a tsunami. (reference #2815)
348. Tsunami reliability 2 (questionable)...a tsunami was observed on the Arwad island, the Syrian coast and in Beirut. (reference #9275)
Every runup
Nearest the source first. Heights are above sea level at the time; a tide gauge reads half the wave’s full height.
| Where | Country | Km from source | Water height, m | Inland, m | Measured by | First wave, UTC | Deaths |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Beirut | Lebanon | 45 | Eyewitness observation of water height | ||||
| Arwad Island | Syria | 110 | Eyewitness observation of water height | ||||
| Syrian Coast | Syria | Eyewitness observation of water height |
More
Every tsunami in 348The 300sTsunamis of LebanonThe earthquakeAlerts in force
Sources
Tsunami events and runups from NOAA’s National Centers for Environmental Information, Global Historical Hazard Database, cited as NCEI/WDS, doi:10.7289/V5PN93H7. Public domain. Read 2026-09-24. NCEI tsunami event 36.