Genesis 10 - Noah’s Family Tree - Ham - Introduction
Having completed Shem’s part of Noah’s family tree, I am moving on to Ham’s. I may not do the entire tree as I did with Shem’s, but I want to at least cover those members who made noticeable impacts on the same territories Shem’s descendents did. For some perspective on what this means, look at the following map…
It seems from this map that Shem’s descendents settled throughout the Arabian peninsula, Ham West of the Red Sea, and Japheth around the Black Sea and the Caspian Sea. This would have occurred over time after the people were dispersed at Babel. But now look at this map, which focuses in on the area around Babel a bit more…
We can see several of the cities we have already discussed from Shem’s family: Assur (questionable), Ur, Susa, and Elam. Arphaxad is also in that area, but isn’t shown. But now look at what other cities are there. Many are from Ham’s line through Nimrod. The ones shown above are Uruk and Babylon. Two others would be Akkad and Kalneh. These may be of particular interest because I believe the Tower of Babel was around where Babylon is shown above. Perhaps Nimrod was an instigator? The rest of Nimrod’s influence will be found in Assyria, which is around Assur. (I realize the map up top shows it controlled by Eber, but is an old map, and my research suggests Eber’s territory was more likely to be between the Mediterranean and the Euphrates…
So, given the interaction that is evidence between Ham’s descendents and Shem’s, both before and after the dispersion, my focus on Ham’s descendents will be on those involved in that interactions. The ones who simply moved north may not get their due… but we’ll see!