Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy

Autores
Tebes, Juan Manuel
Año de publicación
2017
Idioma
inglés
Tipo de recurso
artículo
Estado
versión publicada
Descripción
Among the geographical narratives of the book of Numbers stand two toponym descriptions that include place-names in the Sinai Peninsula and the Negev Desert: Num 33:5-49, an account of the itinerary of the Exodus with new toponym material; and Num 34:1-12, a description of the borders of the land of Canaan as told by Yahweh. Both texts have been largely regarded as having very different historical value. While Num 34:1-12 is traditionally viewed as a good source of information for the historical geography of Palestine, Num 33:5-49 is often seen as a toponym description composed for purely theological or ritual reasons, with little primary historical information. This short article will attempt a hermeneutical exercise by studying two southern toponyms from both lists and test out their historical reliability in the light of a 7th century BCE Akkadian source, Rassam Cylinder (Prism A), the most important of Neo-Assyrian king Assurbanipal?s descriptions of his wars against the Arabs in the Syro-Arabian Desert. The analysis of this inscription suggests, for the first time, plausible parallels in two Aramized/Arabianized southern Transjordanian place-names for two toponyms in Numbers (Haradah in 33:24, and Hazar Addar in 34:4), strongly suggesting that the origin of these biblical site-names fits well into a specific historical-geographical setting: the arid margins of the southern Levant during the time of the Neo-Assyrian hegemony over the area. The historicity of both geographical descriptions in Numbers, then, should be re-considered in the light of this new interpretation.
Fil: Tebes, Juan Manuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Saavedra 15. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Historia y Ciencias Humanas; Argentina
Materia
Biblical toponymy
Book of Numbers
Assurbanipal
Neo-Assyrian kingdom
Nivel de accesibilidad
acceso abierto
Condiciones de uso
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/ar/
Repositorio
CONICET Digital (CONICET)
Institución
Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
OAI Identificador
oai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/183367

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spelling Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness ToponymyTebes, Juan ManuelBiblical toponymyBook of NumbersAssurbanipalNeo-Assyrian kingdomhttps://purl.org/becyt/ford/6.1https://purl.org/becyt/ford/6Among the geographical narratives of the book of Numbers stand two toponym descriptions that include place-names in the Sinai Peninsula and the Negev Desert: Num 33:5-49, an account of the itinerary of the Exodus with new toponym material; and Num 34:1-12, a description of the borders of the land of Canaan as told by Yahweh. Both texts have been largely regarded as having very different historical value. While Num 34:1-12 is traditionally viewed as a good source of information for the historical geography of Palestine, Num 33:5-49 is often seen as a toponym description composed for purely theological or ritual reasons, with little primary historical information. This short article will attempt a hermeneutical exercise by studying two southern toponyms from both lists and test out their historical reliability in the light of a 7th century BCE Akkadian source, Rassam Cylinder (Prism A), the most important of Neo-Assyrian king Assurbanipal?s descriptions of his wars against the Arabs in the Syro-Arabian Desert. The analysis of this inscription suggests, for the first time, plausible parallels in two Aramized/Arabianized southern Transjordanian place-names for two toponyms in Numbers (Haradah in 33:24, and Hazar Addar in 34:4), strongly suggesting that the origin of these biblical site-names fits well into a specific historical-geographical setting: the arid margins of the southern Levant during the time of the Neo-Assyrian hegemony over the area. The historicity of both geographical descriptions in Numbers, then, should be re-considered in the light of this new interpretation.Fil: Tebes, Juan Manuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Saavedra 15. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Historia y Ciencias Humanas; ArgentinaStellenbosch University2017-12info:eu-repo/semantics/articleinfo:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersionhttp://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501info:ar-repo/semantics/articuloapplication/pdfapplication/pdfhttp://hdl.handle.net/11336/183367Tebes, Juan Manuel; Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy; Stellenbosch University; Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages; 43; 12-2017; 65-960259-0131CONICET DigitalCONICETenginfo:eu-repo/semantics/openAccesshttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/ar/reponame:CONICET Digital (CONICET)instname:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas2025-09-03T09:50:31Zoai:ri.conicet.gov.ar:11336/183367instacron:CONICETInstitucionalhttp://ri.conicet.gov.ar/Organismo científico-tecnológicoNo correspondehttp://ri.conicet.gov.ar/oai/requestdasensio@conicet.gov.ar; lcarlino@conicet.gov.arArgentinaNo correspondeNo correspondeNo correspondeopendoar:34982025-09-03 09:50:31.358CONICET Digital (CONICET) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicasfalse
dc.title.none.fl_str_mv Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy
title Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy
spellingShingle Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy
Tebes, Juan Manuel
Biblical toponymy
Book of Numbers
Assurbanipal
Neo-Assyrian kingdom
title_short Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy
title_full Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy
title_fullStr Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy
title_full_unstemmed Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy
title_sort Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy
dc.creator.none.fl_str_mv Tebes, Juan Manuel
author Tebes, Juan Manuel
author_facet Tebes, Juan Manuel
author_role author
dc.subject.none.fl_str_mv Biblical toponymy
Book of Numbers
Assurbanipal
Neo-Assyrian kingdom
topic Biblical toponymy
Book of Numbers
Assurbanipal
Neo-Assyrian kingdom
purl_subject.fl_str_mv https://purl.org/becyt/ford/6.1
https://purl.org/becyt/ford/6
dc.description.none.fl_txt_mv Among the geographical narratives of the book of Numbers stand two toponym descriptions that include place-names in the Sinai Peninsula and the Negev Desert: Num 33:5-49, an account of the itinerary of the Exodus with new toponym material; and Num 34:1-12, a description of the borders of the land of Canaan as told by Yahweh. Both texts have been largely regarded as having very different historical value. While Num 34:1-12 is traditionally viewed as a good source of information for the historical geography of Palestine, Num 33:5-49 is often seen as a toponym description composed for purely theological or ritual reasons, with little primary historical information. This short article will attempt a hermeneutical exercise by studying two southern toponyms from both lists and test out their historical reliability in the light of a 7th century BCE Akkadian source, Rassam Cylinder (Prism A), the most important of Neo-Assyrian king Assurbanipal?s descriptions of his wars against the Arabs in the Syro-Arabian Desert. The analysis of this inscription suggests, for the first time, plausible parallels in two Aramized/Arabianized southern Transjordanian place-names for two toponyms in Numbers (Haradah in 33:24, and Hazar Addar in 34:4), strongly suggesting that the origin of these biblical site-names fits well into a specific historical-geographical setting: the arid margins of the southern Levant during the time of the Neo-Assyrian hegemony over the area. The historicity of both geographical descriptions in Numbers, then, should be re-considered in the light of this new interpretation.
Fil: Tebes, Juan Manuel. Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas. Oficina de Coordinación Administrativa Saavedra 15. Instituto Multidisciplinario de Historia y Ciencias Humanas; Argentina
description Among the geographical narratives of the book of Numbers stand two toponym descriptions that include place-names in the Sinai Peninsula and the Negev Desert: Num 33:5-49, an account of the itinerary of the Exodus with new toponym material; and Num 34:1-12, a description of the borders of the land of Canaan as told by Yahweh. Both texts have been largely regarded as having very different historical value. While Num 34:1-12 is traditionally viewed as a good source of information for the historical geography of Palestine, Num 33:5-49 is often seen as a toponym description composed for purely theological or ritual reasons, with little primary historical information. This short article will attempt a hermeneutical exercise by studying two southern toponyms from both lists and test out their historical reliability in the light of a 7th century BCE Akkadian source, Rassam Cylinder (Prism A), the most important of Neo-Assyrian king Assurbanipal?s descriptions of his wars against the Arabs in the Syro-Arabian Desert. The analysis of this inscription suggests, for the first time, plausible parallels in two Aramized/Arabianized southern Transjordanian place-names for two toponyms in Numbers (Haradah in 33:24, and Hazar Addar in 34:4), strongly suggesting that the origin of these biblical site-names fits well into a specific historical-geographical setting: the arid margins of the southern Levant during the time of the Neo-Assyrian hegemony over the area. The historicity of both geographical descriptions in Numbers, then, should be re-considered in the light of this new interpretation.
publishDate 2017
dc.date.none.fl_str_mv 2017-12
dc.type.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/article
info:eu-repo/semantics/publishedVersion
http://purl.org/coar/resource_type/c_6501
info:ar-repo/semantics/articulo
format article
status_str publishedVersion
dc.identifier.none.fl_str_mv http://hdl.handle.net/11336/183367
Tebes, Juan Manuel; Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy; Stellenbosch University; Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages; 43; 12-2017; 65-96
0259-0131
CONICET Digital
CONICET
url http://hdl.handle.net/11336/183367
identifier_str_mv Tebes, Juan Manuel; Desert Place-Names in Numbers 33;34, Assurbanipal's Arabian Wars and the Historical Geography of the Biblical Wilderness Toponymy; Stellenbosch University; Journal of Northwest Semitic Languages; 43; 12-2017; 65-96
0259-0131
CONICET Digital
CONICET
dc.language.none.fl_str_mv eng
language eng
dc.rights.none.fl_str_mv info:eu-repo/semantics/openAccess
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/ar/
eu_rights_str_mv openAccess
rights_invalid_str_mv https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/2.5/ar/
dc.format.none.fl_str_mv application/pdf
application/pdf
dc.publisher.none.fl_str_mv Stellenbosch University
publisher.none.fl_str_mv Stellenbosch University
dc.source.none.fl_str_mv reponame:CONICET Digital (CONICET)
instname:Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
reponame_str CONICET Digital (CONICET)
collection CONICET Digital (CONICET)
instname_str Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
repository.name.fl_str_mv CONICET Digital (CONICET) - Consejo Nacional de Investigaciones Científicas y Técnicas
repository.mail.fl_str_mv dasensio@conicet.gov.ar; lcarlino@conicet.gov.ar
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