Naarah
1:
NAARAH (PERSON) [Heb na˓ărâ (נַעֲרָה)]. Identified as one of the wives of Ashhur (1 Chr 4:5–6).
H. C. Lo
NAARAH (PLACE) [Heb na˓ărâ (נַעֲרָה)]. Var. NAARAN. A city on the border of Ephraim and Manasseh near Jericho (Josh 16:7). It is probably the same site as Naaran (Heb na˓ărān; see Boling and Wright Joshua AB, 402) in 1 Chr 7:28, though in this list it belongs to Ephraim, suggesting it is inside the border on Ephraim’s side.
The site is listed immediately before Jericho, indicating proximity; note also Boling and Wright Joshua AB, 402, who take n˓rth (MT) as having a directive ending. Consequently, several identifications have been offered for Naarah. Eusebius’ Onomast. 136.24 describes Noorath as a Jewish settlement 5 Roman miles from Jericho. This would be Roman Jericho near Wâdı̄ el-Qilt. The site of el-Aujeh is ca. 5 miles NE of Jericho.
More commonly, Naarah is identified as the modern Tel el-Jisr (M.R. 190144) ca. 3.5 miles NW of Jericho. Jisr is just below the springs, Ain Nu˓eimeh and Ain Duyuq (the latter preserves the name of Duk, a citadel in the Hasmonean period). These springs qualify as the “waters of Jericho” E of the border referred to in Josh 16:1 (GTTOT, 163). Josephus (Ant 17.13.1 §340) says Archelaus (ethnarch of Judea, Samaria, and Idumea, 4 b.c.–6 a.d.) rebuilt Jericho. Then he “diverted half the water with which the village of Neara used to be watered” to irrigate the plantations for his new city of Archelais. This locates Neara (Naarah) near Jericho and associates it with a good water supply. The narrative is not decisive but it appears that Naarah is nearer to Jericho than to Archelais. The identification with Tel el-Jisr is based on the discovery in 1918 of a synagogue floor from the 6th century a.d. Jewish villages are not common here, so this has been taken as support for the identification of Naarah with Jisr even though the distance is not quite exact. Avi-Yonah (EAEHL 3: 891) cites a midrash, Lam. Rab. 45a, which mentions the enmity between Naaran and neighboring Jericho. Jews were still mentioned in the 5th century a.d. (Life of Saint Chariton) and the 6th century (Palladius h. Laus 48).
However, Kallai (HGB) points out that such late “data” does not support earlier identifications, and there is no archaeological evidence for the earlier site. Glueck (1951) favored the first ruin N of Jericho in the Jordan valley proper, Kh. el-Ayash (because of its Iron I–II pottery) near Wâdı̄ el-Auja. Most identify the nearest Roman ruin, Kh. el-Auja et-Tahta as Herodian Archelais. Kallai (HGB, 160, n. 131) notes confusion in the designation of sites, which complicates the identification. Kallai also notes an additional site NE of Kh. el-Mifgir (M.R. 193193). It has Iron Age finds and should be considered as a possible identification for Naarah. It is near enough to Tell el-Jisr to be related to it. Kallai (HGB, 165) concludes, however, that there is no conclusive identification.
Bibliography
Glueck, N. 1951. Explorations in Eastern Palestine, IV. Part I: Text. AASOR 25–28:412–13.
Henry O. Thompson
Freedman, D. N. (1996, c1992). The Anchor Bible Dictionary (4:969). New York: Doubleday.
2:
Naarah — a girl, the second of Ashur’s two wives, of the tribe of Judah (1 Chr. 4:5, 6).
Easton, M. (1996, c1897). Easton's Bible dictionary. Oak Harbor, WA: Logos Research Systems, Inc.
3:
NAARAH (Person) One of Ashhur’s two wives, who bore him four sons (1 Chr 4:5–6).
See also Maid, Maiden.
NAARAH (Place) City on the eastern border of Ephraim’s tribe, just north of Jericho (Jos 16:7); alternately called Naaran in 1 Chronicles 7:28. Josephus locates it near Jericho and associates it with abundant water supply in Archelaus’s day (Antiquities 17.13.1). Some locate Naarah at modern Tell el-Gisr near ‘Ain Duq at the foot of the mountains northwest of Jericho. A synagogue dating to the fourth or fifth century ad has been excavated here; it contains a mosaic floor with a zodiac, an ark of the law, and other figures.
Elwell, W. A., & Comfort, P. W. (2001). Tyndale Bible dictionary. Tyndale reference library (928). Wheaton, Ill.: Tyndale House Publishers.
4:
NA´ARAH, NA´ARATH (naʹa-ra; “a girl”).
1. The second named of the two wives of Ashhur of the tribe of Judah, and the mother by him of four sons (1 Chron. 4:5–6), about 1440 b.c.
2. A town named (Josh. 16:7; “Naarath,” KJV) as one of the southern landmarks of Ephraim. It was in the Jordan Valley and N of Jericho. Probably the same as Naaran (1 Chron. 7:28).
Unger, M. F., Harrison, R. K., Vos, H. F., Barber, C. J., & Unger, M. F. (1988). The new Unger's Bible dictionary. Revision of: Unger's Bible dictionary. 3rd ed. c1966. (Rev. and updated ed.). Chicago: Moody Press.
5:
Naarah (nayʹuh-ruh). 1 A city on the border of Ephraim near Jericho (Josh. 16:7); it is probably the same as Naaran (1 Chron. 7:28). It is tentatively identified as modern Tel el-Jisr, about three and a half miles northwest of Jericho. 2 One of the wives of Ashhur, a descendant of Judah (1 Chron. 4:5-6).
Achtemeier, P. J., Harper & Row, P., & Society of Biblical Literature. (1985). Harper's Bible dictionary. Includes index. (1st ed.) (676). San Francisco: Harper & Row.
6:
Naarah (Heb. na˓ărâ) (PERSON)
One of the two wives of Ashhur, the father of Tekoa. She was the mother of Ahuzzam, Hepher, Temeni, and Haahashtari (1 Chr. 4:5–6).
Naarah (Heb. na˓ărâ) (PLACE)
A town on the eastern border of Ephraim (Josh. 16:7). 1 Chr. 7:28 lists Naaran, which is probably the same site. Josephus refers to a town named Naara (Ant. 17.13.1 [340]), and Eusebius describes a Jewish settlement, Noarath, located 8 km. (4.5 mi.) from Jericho (Onom. 136.24). The exact location is uncertain, but Naarah has been identified with Iron Age sites near Jericho, including Khirbet el-˓Ayâsh, el-Aujeh, and most commonly with Tell el-Jisr (190144), ca. 6 km. (3.5 mi.) NW of Jericho.
Laura B. Mazow
Freedman, D. N., Myers, A. C., & Beck, A. B. (2000). Eerdmans dictionary of the Bible (936). Grand Rapids, Mich.: W.B. Eerdmans.
