I. Name
The name baʿal is a common Semitic noun meaning ‘lord, owner’. Applied to a god it occurs about 90 times in the OT. The LXX transcribes Βααλ, Vulgate Baal, plural Βααλιμ and Baalim. Though normally an appellative, the name is used in Ugaritic religion as the proper name of a deity. Also in the Bible, the noun occurs as the name of a specific Canaanite god.
II. Identity
According to Pettinato the noun baʿal was originally used as a divine name. It is attested as such already in third millennium texts. The mention of d…