From: faris@sarcasm.trl.OZ.AU (Aziz Faris)
Subject: Re: ERETZ YISRAEL (was Re: deportation)
Keywords: Canaanites
Reply-To: a.Faris@trl.oz.au 
Organization: Telecom Research Labs, Melbourne,Australia
Date: Mon, 11 Jan 1993 21:11:53 GMT

In article <1993Jan11.153952.203449@uctvax.uct.ac.za>, naturman@uctvax.uct.ac.za writes:
|> 
|> False. The term "Canaanites" literally means people from Canaan (western
|> ancient Israel). In its widest sense it meant any person living in Canaan
|> including Hebrews. In the Bible it was usually used for the people ruling
|> Israel as vassels for the Egyptians. Often it is used in an even narrower sense
|> for specific groups among these people. As I said before, some were West
|> Semites like the Hebrews, others were invaders from Turkey. The western part 
|> of Syria was sometimes included under the name Canaan and some of the people 
|> in the coastal cities are called Canaanites by some modern writers. They were
|> never in Iraq. Babylon was founded by Sumerians. Its original name was Babilu
|> , a Sumerian name whose meaning is not understood. The Assyrians misunderstood
|> the name as Bab-El meaning gate of G-d, but this interpretation of the name is 
|> wrong.

In the Bible, the people of Canaan are those descendants of Canaan who occupy
the area I have mentioned in the previous post. Archaelogy also says the people
who occupied the entire Mediteranean sea board had the same culture and
religious beleif and are thought to be related. Biblically, in the story of
exodus, the biblical writers screwed up as usual and only called the part
they wanted as Canaan which became the Jewish kingdom.

Babylon is not Sumerian. The Sumerians occupied Southern Iraq and Babylon is
right in the center of Iraq. The name is not attributed to the Assyrians
and I said it is thought to be Canaanite because the Canaanites used that
convention of naming.
 
|> 
|> The term Hebrews comes from the old West Semitic root `-b/p-r meaning pass or
|> cross. The term was originally used for any semi-nomadic people but later
|> became an "ethnic" term describing the Israelites and related tribes such as
|> the Edomites, Moabites etc. They were descended from West Semitic people who
|> took up a semi-nomadic lifestyle due to the increase of the population around
|> the end of the third and beginning of the second millenium BCE. West Semitic
|> civilization originated in the area of Israel. It was made up of various waves
|> of people entering the area in different centuries and intermarrying with the
|> earlier inhabitants. The earliest ancestors of the West Semitic people were
|> already present c. 9000 BCE. The last wave, who brought the West Semitic
|> language which developed into Hebrew and Aramaic, arrived c. 3000 BCE probably
|> from Arabia. From 2500 - 2000 BCE West Semitic civilization spread eastwards as 
|> far as the Euphrates.

Yes and I said Hebrew meant those who crossed. I will repeat, the Hebrews were
nomadic tribes from Arabia who migrated into Mesopetamia. This is one reason
that many Jewish biblical stories are similar to those of Mesopetamian Myths.
The Aramaics and all other west semitics are thought to be original inhabitants
since names of places and land marks are derived from the native languages
spoken by these people.

|> 
|> 
|> Not based on it, but using similar language and literary techniques. This
|> confirms that the Hebrews were very closely related to the people Western Syria
|> who were part of the West Semitic civilazation.

However, it means they copied the same style and Myths that was present in the
Canaanite-Phoenician civilisation. I fail to see any relation, since any nomadic
tribe will usually pick up parts of civilisation that it comes in contact with.

|> 
|> Completely false. Aramaic became the official language at the time of the
|> Assyrian empire. Hebrew actually survived as a spoken language until about the
|> 3rd century CE. Aramiac had been encroaching slowly over many centuries and
|> eventually replaced Hebrew completely only in the Talmudic period.

And the Assyrian empire started about 800 BC in its earliest form, which is
during the rise of the Hebrew civilisation.

|> 
|> No, the Canaanites are known have assimilated into the Jewish people. At the
|> time of David, many of his Jewish generals were of Canaanite descent. By the
|> time that the kingdom split the Canaanites had been completely assimilated into
|> the Jews. (Saul the first king of Israel was in fact descended from the people
|> of Gibeon who were Canaanites that had been incorpoarted into the tribe of
|> Benjamin. Solomon's mother Bathsheva is also thought to have been a Canaanite.)

Did all the Canaanite tribes assimilate into the Jewish tribes, hardly. The
Jewish tribes only incorporated those who lived on good terms with them and
those who were willing. It does not account every one.

|> 
|> The Turks always saw themselves as a different people to the Arabs. It is known 
|> that during the middle of the 18th century that there were no Arabs in Israel
|> (other than the Druze to the north). There were Jews, Turks and small Christian
|> minorities who were not Arabs.

Turks are different than Arabs. However, the Arabs of Southern Syria (including
Palestinian Arabs) are descendants of the tribe of Ghassan who moved into that
area after the Jews were evicted from that area. This is much earlier than the
Islamic conquest.

A.Faris