An enthusiastic Arabian Tribe
Brand new Midianites was in fact a great Proto-Arabian group; their residence foot was at Arabia and are also connected with Ishmaelites. The ebook away from Judges claims so it explicitly throughout the tale of Gideon, whom makes the adopting the demand of the Israelites shortly after beating the newest Midianites:
We come across proof the relationship anywhere between Midianites and Ishmaelites just like the better with respect to labels. As an example, Moses father-in-legislation Jethro or Jether (Exod cuatro:17) contains the exact same term because the Davids brother-in-law (partner of Davids brother Abigail), Jether new Ishmaelite (1 Chron dos:17).
New Spruce Trade
During the Iron Decades and afterwards, the brand new Midianites, once the an enthusiastic Arabian group, was basically area of the spruce exchange. They might travel out of Arabia and you may transit Israel on their treatment for the fresh Mediterranean coast and you will/or Egypt. This might be shown on the biblical story from Joseph, and that identifies Midianite and you can Ishmaelite dealers going to Egypt with spices and you can submissives:
Within story, this new traders got very first headed north, perhaps so you’re able to trade with the Arameans, and you will had been moving southern area from the Jezreel valley into Through Maris, that will bring him or her towards the Egypt. While the facts is determined regarding the 2nd 100 years B.C.E., anachronistic keeps eg camels show that it actually was written in the first century B.C.Age.
The new strong connection between such east Arabian people additionally the spice route is mirrored in the label the latest Bible (Gen twenty-five:1-2) offers their eponymous mommy, Qeturah (?????), a reputation related to brand new Hebrew word to own incense, qetoret (?????).
Basically, the brand new Midianites was indeed an Arabian group working in metallurgy as well as the spruce exchange, whose ft was a student in the fresh new northeast of your own Arabian Peninsula, but whose arrive at of payment is much greater, with pouches residing in the brand new southwest Sinai Peninsula, the fresh new south Transjordan, as well as the Aravah (the new wilderness a portion of the southeastern Negev), probably because of the copper veins there.
The fresh new Shaswe-Residential property YHWA
C.Elizabeth., we know your Midianites just weren’t the only ethnic communities life which these types of areas. On the geographical list in the Amunhotep IIIs Soleb Nubian temple, the folks of your own Aravah plus the southern Transjordan are known as Shaswe (or Shasu), a simple label definition something like “nomadic people.”
The phrase shaswe, s?sw ( ) is written after the Egyptian determinative for “land” t? ( ), exhibiting that the Egyptian text is discussing more geographical section inhabited because of the certain shaswe. An area indexed is called Nomad-belongings Seir, that’s the same towards the Attach Seir region from inside the Edom. Next identity from the listing, which means that regional or contiguous that have Seir, try Nomad-belongings Yehwa, yhw?(w) ( ). The newest pronunciation associated with name is undecided, because the such as Hebrew, hieroglyphics don’t become vowels, nevertheless the name is apparently regarding title of the brand new Israelite goddess, YHWH, whoever real old enunciation is also unfamiliar.
An excellent Goddess and you will a land
About record, Yehwa ‘s the identity of a land. As a possible nomadic class stayed in a land titled Seir, another lived in an area named Yehwa. However in antiquity, a reputation you can expect to be one another a toponym and you may a good theonym. The name Assyria (Assur) depicts it certainly: it’s the term out of Assyrias chief goddess as well as its ancient investment urban area. Fundamentally, additionally, it became the name of its empire. Another analogy will be Greek goddess out-of facts, Athena, which began because the patron deity off Athens.
YHWH Comes from new Edomite Southern
Biblical proof implies that YHWH originates from this new southeast, possibly on the hills out-of Edom if not then southern during the Midian otherwise past. That is for example clear in about three extremely old biblical poems: