Tribe of Dan
According to the Book of Judges: prior to the Tribe of Dan occupying the land, the town was known as Laysha ( and , לישה) or Laish (Jozua 19:47, Judges 18) – which root the Hebrew poets applied also to the lion (, and ). The Egyptians cursed Laish in the execration texts; later, Tuthmosis III conquered the town "ra-wy-sa" along others.