Telloh

Telloh is a proper noun that appears in historical, biblical, and literary contexts. The term stems from the Semitic word tel (also spelled tell), which refers to an archaeological mound formed by the successive layers of ancient settlements. In English-language usage, Telloh has been used as a transliterated form of a biblical place name encountered in the Hebrew Bible.

In biblical references, Telloh is mentioned in the prophetic literature as a city associated with idolatry and failure to heed warnings. The exact location of the city is not clearly established in archaeology or ancient geography, and there is no scholarly consensus identifying Telloh with a specific, known site. Various identifications have been proposed over time, but none are universally accepted, and some scholars treat the name as a generic toponym rather than a precise locality.

In archaeology and toponymy, Telloh is often cited as an example of how the term tel is used to name mound settlements in the Near East. The name itself is more common in scholarly discussions of biblical geography and ancient Near Eastern studies than as a contemporary place name.

In culture and fiction, Telloh has been used as the name of fictional cities or settings in works drawing on ancient Near Eastern themes. Such usage typically leverages the historical and linguistic associations of the term rather than signaling a real-world location.

Overall, Telloh functions mainly as a literary and scholarly reference, illustrating how biblical toponyms and archaeological terminology intersect in discussions of the ancient world.