I. Name
In the Old Testament, the tribe of Amalek is one of Israel’s enemies of old (Exod. 17.8–16; Num. 13.29 etc.). Their ancestor is seen as a grandson of Esau (Gen. 36.12–16). Amalek can also designate a topographical area as in the expression har hāʿămālēqî ‘the mountain of the Amalekites’ (Judg. 12.15). An etymological explanation of the name Amalek has been impossible until now (Weippert 1974:252). The suggestion has been made to relate the name Amalek to a mountain deity ḥmrq known from an Egyptian source (Görg 1987:14–15).