Shem

Shem is a figure in the Hebrew Bible, described as one of the three sons of Noah who survived the Flood. His name, written in Hebrew as Shem, is often translated as “name,” and the term Shem has given rise to the scholarly and cultural label Semite, used for a group of peoples and languages that includes Hebrew, Aramaic, Arabic, and others. In Genesis, Shem is part of the postdiluvian lineage and is blessed by Noah: “Blessed be the Lord, the God of Shem” (Genesis 9:26), a blessing that has been interpreted as associating the divine favor with Shem’s line.

Shem’s descendants are traced in the Table of Nations in Genesis 10. From his line come Arphaxad, Shelah, Eber, Peleg, Reu, Serug, Nahor, Terah, and ultimately Abraham, linking Shem’s line to the later Hebrew Bible narrative about the Israelites. The term Semite and Semitic languages are derived from Shem’s name, reflecting the biblical association of his line with the peoples of the ancient Near East.

In biblical chronology, Shem is said to have lived 600 years, with his son Arphaxad and subsequent generations continuing the genealogical record that connects Noah’s sons to later nations. The narrative functions as both a genealogical bridge and an etiological explanation for the existence of Semitic-speaking peoples and their languages, though modern scholarship treats these genealogies as theological literature that conveys cultural and religious meaning rather than literal historical fact.