Idumaean

Idumaean (also Idumean) is a historical demonym and adjective for inhabitants of Idumaea, an ancient region in the southern Levant. Idumaea lay south of Judea along the Arabah valley, and its heartland roughly corresponds to parts of today’s southern Israel and western Jordan. The name Idumaea derives from Greek Idoumainos and Latin Idumaeus, and is ultimately linked to Edom, the Edomite presence in the area; the Idumaeans are commonly identified with the Edomites, descendants of Esau in the biblical tradition.

In antiquity, the Idumaeans were neighbors of the Israelites and Judeans. During the Hasmonean period (2nd–1st centuries BCE), Hyrcanus I and his successors extended control over Idumaea and reportedly compelled many Edomites to convert to Judaism; over time Idumaeans were culturally integrated and often identified as Jews in Roman-period sources.

In the late Hellenistic and early Roman eras, Idumaea produced influential political figures within Judea. Antipater the Idumaean, an advisor to Julius Caesar, rose to prominence, and his son, Herod the Great, founded the Herodian dynasty that ruled Judea under Roman authority.

Today, the term Idumaean is primarily used in historical and philological contexts to describe ancient populations and the Herodian lineage. The geographic region of Idumaea is usually associated with parts of the Negev, the Arabah, and adjacent areas in present-day Israel and Jordan.