Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible Online

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Haran חרן
(352 words)

I. Name

It has been speculated that the city of Haran (7 times in Genesis; see also 2 Kgs. 19.12; Isa. 37.12; Ezek. 27.23) was named after a deity Haran (Lewy 1934). The available evidence does not support the contention.

II. Identity

The grounds on which a cult of a god Haran is postulated are not very firm. In an Old Assyrian letter (CCT 4 Pl. 35b:19–20), Lewy found a reference to a “priest of Ḫarranātum” (ku-um-ra ša Ḫa-ra-na-tim; the alleged goddess is also mentioned in CCT 4 Pl. 48b:20). Lewy concluded that Ḫarranātum must have been…

Cite this page
K. van der Toorn, “Haran חרן”, in: Dictionary of Deities and Demons in the Bible Online, Edited by: Karel van der Toorn, Bob Becking, Pieter W. van der Horst. Consulted online on 28 March 2023 <http://dx.doi.org/10.1163/2589-7802_DDDO_DDDO_Haran>



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