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Glite Dictionary
Shem

Shem

3 9.3
A son of Noah in the Bible who people say is the ancestor of Semitic peoples
  • proper noun
  • /ʃɛm/
  • Literature
translation icon : Sem
  • In the Old Testament, Shem is recognized as the eldest son of Noah and an ancestor to the Semitic peoples.
  • Shem, Ham & Japheth
  • Shem, Ham
  • Noah's son Shem

His three sons were Shem, Ham or Cham and Japheth.

Examples

  • "And he said, Blessed be the Lord, "God of Shem, and Canaan..."

    The Birth of a Nation (2016)

  • To my father, then to me, and to my sons, Shem, Japheth, and Ham.

    Noah (2014)

  • Christ was of pure lineage and was pure through Shem, the second son of Noah.

    Blog text (3)

  • The sons of Shem: Elam, Asshur...

    The Bible: In the Beginning... (1966)

  • His three sons were Shem, Ham or Cham and Japheth.

    Julian Dorey

  • There dwelt with Noah his sons: Shem... Japheth and Ham.

    The Bible: In the Beginning... (1966)

  • The patriarch, Isaac, warned his sons to marry into Shem's lineage only.

    Blog text (3)

  • The lineage of the Semitic nations is traced back to Shem, who was the firstborn son of Noah.

  • According to scripture, Shem and his descendants played a vital role in the history of the Hebrew people.

Surface Forms

Shem main

Etymology

Shem comes from an old Hebrew word שֵׁם that means 'name' or 'fame'. In the Bible he is Noah's son and is called the ancestor of many Semitic peoples, so thinking of Shem as 'the one with a name' helps you remember him as an important ancestor.