Ashtoreth

Ashtoreth is the biblical name used for a Canaanite or Phoenician goddess worshiped in the ancient Levant. In the Hebrew Bible, Ashtoreth is presented as a foreign goddess associated with the Sidonians and with the broader Canaanite pantheon, often mentioned alongside Baal as a rival deity. The name is generally equated with Astarte, the goddess of love and fertility in the wider Near East, and by extension with Ishtar of Mesopotamia; scholars disagree on whether Ashtoreth represents a single goddess or a generic title for several female deities. The form derives from the Semitic name Astarte or Athtart (Aštartu), rendered in Hebrew as Ashtoreth.

In biblical usage, the worship of Ashtoreth is depicted as idolatrous and forbidden to the people of Israel. Biblical accounts associate her worship with high places, sacred poles or trees, and rites considered abominable by the Yahwistic authors; the references often come in condemnations of unfaithfulness to Yahweh (for example, Solomon’s worship of Ashtoreth in 1 Kings 11, or descriptions of Ashtaroth in high places).

Outside the Bible, the goddess is attested in Northwest Semitic texts from Ras Shamra (Ugarit) under the names Athtart or Astartu, a major goddess linked with fertility and political power, and sometimes connected with Baal or Anat in the regional pantheon. In later translations, the name Ashtoreth has remained a shorthand for the female deities of the Canaanite-Phoenician milieu and is distinct from Asherah, another biblical goddess often discussed separately. The historical identity of Ashtoreth continues to be a subject of scholarly interpretation, reflecting broader syncretism in the ancient Near East.