Shinar

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

SHINAR . A term employed in the OT for the greater part, if not the whole, of Babylonia ( Genesis 10:19; Genesis 11:2; Genesis 14:1; Genesis 14:9 , Joshua 7:21 , Isaiah 11:11 , Zechariah 5:11 , Daniel 1:2 ). Its former identification with Sumer , or Southern Babylonia, never regarded as very satisfactory, is now given up. Equally untenable is the view that it is to be identified with Shankhar , a land or district the king of which is mentioned in a letter from Tell el-Amarna along with the king of Khatti. There is little doubt that Shinar is to be identified with the land of Babylonia, but the origin of the name has not been determined.

L. W. King.

People's Dictionary of the Bible

Shinar (shî'nar), the Land of, casting out? country of two rivers? The region where the people, after the Flood, made bricks and used slime (bitumen) for mortar. Genesis 11:2-3. It would seem originally to have denoted the northern part of Babylonia, as "Chaldæa" denoted the southern part; but subsequently, like Chaldæa, it was sometimes used for the whole. Genesis 10:10; Isaiah 11:11; Daniel 1:2; Zechariah 5:11. In Joshua 7:21 it is rendered "Babylonish." Among its cities were Babel (Babylon), Erech or Orech (Orchoi), Calneh or Calno (probably Niffer), and Accad.

Morrish Bible Dictionary

Ancient name of the plain lying in the south between the Euphrates and the Tigris. It was where Nimrod established his kingdom, and where the tower of Babel was built. Amraphel, king of Shinar, was one of the four kings who fought against the five kings when Lot was taken prisoner. In later times it was known as Chaldea, or Babylonia (as in the LXX of Isaiah 11:11 ), and thither some of the captives from Judah were carried. Genesis 10:10; Genesis 11:2; Genesis 14:1,9; Isaiah 11:11; Daniel 1:2; Zechariah 5:11 .

Smith's Bible Dictionary

Shi'nar. (country of two rivers). The ancient name of the great alluvial tract, through which the Tigris and Euphrates pass, before reaching the sea - the tract known, in later times, as Chaldaea or Babylonia. It was a plain country, where brick had to be used for stone and slime for mortar. Genesis 11:3. Among the cities were Babel (Babylon), Erech or Orech (Orchoe), Calneh or Calno (probably, Niffer), and Accad, the site of which is unknown. It may be suspected that Shinar was the name by which the Hebrews originally knew the lower Mesopotamian country, where they so long dwelt, and which Abraham brought with him, from "Ur of the Chaldees."

American Tract Society Bible Dictionary

A level region of indefinite extent around Babylon and the junction of the Euphrates and Tigris, Genesis 10:10 11:2 14:1 Joshua 7:21 Isaiah 11:11 Daniel 1:2 Zechariah 5:11 . See Mesopotamia .

Bridgeway Bible Dictionary

Shinar was an ancient name for the land of Babylon. Its chief towns were Babel, Erech and Accad, and its most famous warrior was Nimrod (Genesis 10:9-10; Genesis 11:1-9; Genesis 14:1; Isaiah 11:11; Daniel 1:2). (For details see BABEL; BABYLON.)

Fausset's Bible Dictionary

A region in Mesopotamia, the plain between the Tigris and Euphrates. Here the rebels against God's will built the Βabel tower (Genesis 11:2-3). Famed for its wheat (Herodotus 1:193). Derived from sheni "two" and 'ar or nahar "rivers."

Watson's Biblical & Theological Dictionary

a province of Babylonia, where men undertook to build the tower of Babel, Genesis 11:2; Genesis 10:10 . Calneh was built in this country. Amraphel was king of Shinar in the days of Abraham, Genesis 14:1 . See BABYLON .

Hawker's Poor Man's Concordance And Dictionary

Rendered remarkable for the tower of Babel being built there. (Genesis 11:2, etc.) The word Chaldean.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

shı̄´nar ( שׁנער , shin‛ar  ; Σεναάρ , Senaár , Σεν ( ρ Ο2 νπ ) αάρ , Sen ( n ) aár ):

1. Identification

2. Possible Babylonian Form of the Name

3. Sumerian and Other Equivalents

4. The Syriac Sen'ar

5. The Primitive Tongue of Shinar

6. Comparison with the Semitic Idiom

7. The Testimony of the Sculptures, etc., to the Race

8. The Sumerians Probably in Shinar before the Semites

9. The States of Shinar:

(1) Sippar

(2) Kes

(3) Babylon

(4) Nippur

(5) Adab

(6) Surippak

(7) Umma

(8) Erech

(9) Lagas

(10) Larsa

(11) Ur

(12) Eridu

(13) The Land of the Sea

(14) Nisin, Isin, or Karrak

(15) Upa or Upia (Opis)

(16) Other Well-known Cities

10. Shinar and Its Climate

11. Sculpture in Shinar

12. The First Nation to Use Writing in Western Asia

13. The System Employed, with an Example

1. Identification:

The name given, in the earliest Hebrew records, to Babylonia, later called Babel, or the land of Babel ( bābhel , 'erec bābhel ). In Genesis 10:10 it is the district wherein lay Babel, Erech, Accad, and Calneh, cities which were the "beginning" of Nimrod's kingdom. In Genesis 11:2 Shinar is described as the land of the plain where migrants from the East settled, and founded Babel, the city, and its great tower.

2. Possible Babylonian Form of the Name:

Though sometimes identified with the Babylonian Šumer , the connection of Shinar with that name is doubtful. The principal difficulty lies in the fact that what might be regarded as the non-dialectical form šingar (which would alone furnish a satisfactory basis of comparison) is not found, and would, if existent, only apply to the southern portion of Babylonia. The northern tract was called Akkad, after the name of its capital city (see Accad ). The Greek form Sen ( n ) aar shows that, at the time the Septuagint translation was made, there was no tradition that the ‛ayin was guttural, as the supposed Babylonian forms would lead us to expect. As the Biblical form Shinar indicates the whole of Babylonia, it corresponds with the native (Sumerian) Kingi - Ura , rendered "Sumer and Akkad," from which, by changing K into Sh (found in Sumerian), Shinar may have been derived, but this explanation is not free from difficulties.

3. Sumerian and Other Equivalents:

This two-fold designation, Kingi - Ura , is that which is commonly used in the inscriptions of the earlier kings, though it cannot then have indicated always the whole country, but only such parts of it as acknowledged their overlordship. Later on the corresponding term seems to have been Kar - Duniaš ("the territory of the god Duniaš ," to all appearance a term introduced by the Kassite rulers). Nabonassar and his successors seem to have contented themselves with the title "king of Babylon," rule in the city implying also the dominion over the whole country. Often, however, the equivalent term for Babylonia is Ehi , probably an abbreviation of Êridu , and here standing for the land belonging to that sacred city - "the good city," a type of Paradise, Babylonia being, in fact, situated upon the êdinu , or "plain." See Eden .

4. The Syriac Sen'ar:

All these comparisons tend to show that the Babylonian equivalent of Shinar is not any of the above, and as yet has not, in fact, been found. This is also implied by the fact, that Sen'ar was used in Syriac for the country around Bagdad, and in ancient times included (it may be supposed) the plain upon which the ruins of Babylon stand. Sen'ar was therefore in all probability an ancient Babylonian designation of the tract, now lost, but regarded by the Hebrews as synonymous with Babylonia.

5. The Primitive Tongue of Shinar:

From the inscriptions it would seem that the primitive language of Shinar was not Semitic, but the agglutinative idiom now named Sumerian - a tongue long regarded as Turanian, and having, it is thought, Turko-Chinese affinities - gal , "to be," Turkish ol - mak  ; ama ( ana ), "mother," Turkish ana  ; abba , "old man," Turkish baba , "father"; ( h ) ê , "house," Turkish ev , etc. The Chinese affinities seem less close, but the following may be quoted: a ( y ) a "father," Chinese ye (Amoy iâ ); ge , "night," Chinese ye  ; gu , "to speak," Chinese yu  ; shu , "hand," Chinese sheù  ; kin , "business," Chinese kūng , "work"; etc. Chinese and Turkish, however, have had time to pass through many changes since Sumerian was current in Shinar. Many words of the Sumerian language were borrowed by the Semitic Babylonians, and a few (like hēkal , "temple," Semitic ( h ) êgal , "great house") entered the other Semitic languages.

6. Comparison with the Semitic Idiom:

Halevy's contention, that Sumerian is simply "an allography" for the expression of Sera Babylonian, seems to be untenable, as they differ not only in words, but also in grammar; moreover, Sumerian had a dialect, called by the natives "woman's tongue." For the rest, the principal differences between Sumerian and Semitic Babylonian are: (1) post-positional suffixes instead of prepositions; (2) verbs with long strings of prefixes and infixes to express the persons and regimens, instead of a prefix and a suffix; (3) compound words, both nouns and verbs, are common instead of being exceedingly rare. Sumerian seems to have borrowed several words from Semitic Babylonian.

7. The Testimony of the Sculptures, Etc. To the Race:

Not only the language, but also the sculptures which they have left, point to the probability that the earlier inhabitants of Shinar belonged to a different race from the later. The Semites of Babylonia were to all appearance thick-set and muscular, but the Sumerians, notwithstanding the stumpy figures which their statues and bas-reliefs show, seem to have been slim - in any case, their warriors, in the better basreliefs, as well as the figures of the god Nin-Girsu (formerly known as "the god with the firestick"), and the engraved cylinders, have this type. Moreover, the sculptures and cylinder-seals show that certain classes - priests or the like - were clean shaven, in marked contrast to Semitic usage elsewhere. Their deities, however, always had hair and beard, implying that they came from a different, though possibly related, stock. These deities were very numerous, and it is noteworthy that, though those with Sumerian names may be counted by hundreds, those with Semitic names are only to be reckoned by tens.

8. The Sumerians Probably in Shinar Before the Semites:

Though there is no certain indication which race entered Shinar first, it is to be noted that Nimrod, presumably Shinar's first king and the founder of its great cities, was a son of Cush (Genesis 10:8 ), and the name of Shinar seems to have existed before the foundation of Babel (Babylon) and its tower (Genesis 11:2 ). In the native sculptures, moreover, the non-Semitic type precedes the Semitic; and in the inscriptions the non-Semitic idiom precedes that of the Semitic tranlation. Everything points, therefore, to the Sumerians having been in Babylonia before the Semitic inhabitants.

9. The States of Shinar:

At the earliest period to which our records refer the Sumerians of Shinar were divided into a number of small states, of which the following may be regarded as the principal:

(1) Sippar:

Sippar or Sippar - Aruru (- Ya'ruru ), possibly including Accad ( Genesis 10:10 ), some distance Southwest of Bagdad. It is the modern ‛Abu - habbah , "father of grain." Though it seems to have fallen early under the dominion of the Semites, it was at first Sumerian, as its native name, Zimbir , and the ideographic writing thereof show. According to Berosus, who calls it Pantabiblion , one of its earliest kings was Amelon or Amillarus , who reigned 13 sari, or 46,800 years. Later on came Evedoreschus , the native Enwe - duran - ki , renowned as a priest favored by the gods. His descendants, if of pure race, inherited the divine grace which he enjoyed. It is said to have been in Sippara ( Sippar ) that Ut - napištim , the Babylonian Noah, buried the records before entering the ark.

(2) Kes:

About 18 miles North of Babylon lay Kěŝ , now Oheimer - a foundation which seems to have preceded Babylon as the capital of Shinar. Its early queen, Azag - Bau , is said to have been the wife of a wine-merchant and to have reigned 100 years.

(3) Babylon:

Babylon , for which see Babel; Babylon . As one of its early kings, Berosus mentions Alorus , "the shepherd of the people," as having reigned for 10 sari, or 36,000 years. The state of Babylon probably included Cuthah. ( Tel Ibrahim ), which once had kings of its own, and possessed a special legend of the Creation. Belonging to Babylon, also, was the renowned city Borsippa, now Birs , or the Birs Nimroud , the traditional site of the Tower of Babel. See Babel , Tower Of .

(4) Nippur:

Some distance Southeast of Babylon lay Nippur or Niffur , now Niffer ( Noufar ), identified by the rabbis with the "Calneh" of Genesis 10:10 . It was a place of considerable importance, and the seat of the worship of Enlil and Ninlil, later, also, of their son Ninip and his spouse (see Calneh ). The American excavations on this site have thrown a flood of light upon almost every branch of Assyriological research.

(5) Adab:

Adab , now called Bismaya , the city of Mah̬ , the goddess of reproduction. One of the earliest rulers of Adab was seemingly called Lugal - dalu , of whom a fine statue, discovered by the American explorers, exists. It was apparently renowned as a necropolis.

(6) Surippak:

South and a little West of Adab was Šurippak , now Fara . This was the birthplace of the Babylonian Noah, Ut - napištim , son of Opartes ( Umbara - Tutu ), a Chaldean of Larancha. The coming of the Flood was revealed to Ut - napištim here.

(7) Umma:

Practically East of Fara lay Umma or Gišuh̬ (or Giuh̬ ), now Jokha . This city was apparently of considerable importance, and the traditional rival of Lagaš .

(8) Erech:

South of Fara lay Unuga , Semitic Uruk , the Biblical Erech (which see), now Warka . Its most celebrated king, after Gilgameš , was Lugal - zaggi - si , one of the opponents of the rulers of Lagaš .

(9) Lagas:

Some distance East of Warka was the territory of Lagaš , now Tel - loh - a little state, rather in accessible, but of considerable importance to the antiquarian, which is a testimonial to the advance in civilization which it had made. Its kings and viceroys were among the most renowned, though apparently unknown outside their own domains. The most celebrated were the reformer Uru - ka - gina and viceroy Gudêa , to whom many erections in the city were due. (See Gudêa ' s remarkable statue in the Louvre.)

(10) Larsa:

Somewhat to the Southeast of Warka lay Larsa , the "Ellasar" of Genesis 14:1 (which see). This center of learning maintained its independence even after the other states had been absorbed by Hammurabi and his dynasty into the Babylonian empire.

(11) Ur:

To the Southeast of Warka and Senqara lies the site of the ancient Ur Of The Chaldees (which see) now Mugheir . It was renowned for its temple to the moon, and for the kings known as the dynasty of Ur: Sur - Engur , Dungi , Bûr - Sin , Gimil - Sin , and Ibi - Sin .

(12) Eridu:

South of the Ur lay Êridu , or, in full, Guruduga , "the good city," wherein, apparently, lay the earthly Paradise. This is identified with the present ‛Abu - shahrein , and was the seat of Ea or Enki , god of the sea and of fertilizing streams. According to the tradition, it was there that the "dark vine" grew - a type, seemingly, of the tree of life. The later kings of Babylon sometimes bear the title "king of Êridu ," as though rulers of the domain of Paradise.

(13) The Land of the Sea:

The Land of the Sea (that bordering on the Persian Gulf), in which, seemingly, the Chaldeans afterward settled, seems to have played an important part in the early history of Shinar. Berosus speaks of its king Ammenon , who reigned 12 sari , or 43,200 years, and in whose time the Musarus Oannes , or Annedotus, arose out of the Persian Gulf. Like others referred to in the legends which Berosus refers to, he was half-man and half-fish. It is thought that these incidents, though evidently mythical, point to the introduction of civilization into Babylonia, from this point. See also Jonah; Jonah , The Book Of .

(14) Nisin, Isin, or Karrak:

Nisin , Isin , or Karrak , seat of the worship of Nin - Karraga , was also an important state governed by its own kings.

(15) Upe or Upia (Opis):

Upê or Upia , the Greek Opis , apparently obtained renown at a very early date, its kings being given in the great chronological list before those of Kis.

(16) Other Well-Known Cities:

Other well-known cities , possibly state-capitals, were Larak , Greek Laranche  ; Amarda , one of the centers of the worship of Nergal  ; Ašnunna , a province East of the present Bagdad; Dilmu , now Dailem  ; Nuru , Ennigi , and Kakra , seemingly centers of the worship of Hadad; Tilmun , at the head of the Persian Gulf, and including the island of Bahrein; the province of Sabu  ; Šešeb or Bagdadu , possibly the modern Bagdad; and several others.

10. Shinar and Its Climate:

Whether the country was in the same seemingly uncared-for state in ancient times as at present is unknown; but one cannot help admiring the courage of the original immigrants into such a district, for example, as that of Lagaš . This, which belongs to the southern region, is very inaccessible on account of the watercourses and marshes. Like the whole of Shinar in general, it is more or less dried up in summer, and unhealthy for Europeans. The alterations in the waterways, owing to changes in the irrigation-channels, must then, as now, have hindered communication. Sharp cold, with frost, succeeds the heat of summer, and from time to time sand-storms sweep across the plain. Notwithstanding the destruction sometimes wrought, the floods were always welcomed in consequence of the fruitfulness which followed, and which was such as to make Babylonia one of the most fertile tracts known.

11. Sculpture in Shinar:

The reference to the Sumerian sculptures in (7) above will have shown that the inhabitants of the Plain of Shinar possessed an art of no mean order and of some antiquity, even at the time when it first presents itself to our notice. It is true that many specimens are crude and uncouth, but this is probably due to the sculptors having been, often enough, the slaves of their material. Their stones were frequently more or less pebble-shaped, and they had neither the skill nor the tools to reduce them to better proportions - moreover, reduction of bulk would have meant a diminution of their importance. The broad, squat figures which they produced, however, gave them bad models for their bas-reliefs, and it was long ere this defect was removed, notwithstanding the superior work produced by their seal-engravers during and after the 4th millennium BC.

12. The First Nation to Use Writing in Western Asia:

But in all probability special renown will always be attached to the non-Semitic inhabitants of Shinar as the inventors, or at least the earliest users known to us, of the cuneiform script. It may be objected that the system which they introduced was cumbersome and imperfect, but they knew of nothing simpler, and modern Chinese, with which their script has been compared, is far less practical. Briefly, the system may be described as syllabic for the prefixes and suffixes, and ideographic for the roots. To show this the following transcribed example will probably suffice:

13. The System Employed, with an Example:

Ê nu - Du Uru nu - Dim , A house was not built, a city was not constructed;

Uru nu - Dim Adam , nu - mun - Gar , A city was not constructed, a community he had not founded;

Abzu nu - Du Guruduga nu - Dim , The abyss was not built, Êridu was not constructed;

Ê Azaga Dingir ene Ki - Dura - bi nu - Dim , The holy house of the gods, its seat was not constructed;

Šu - Nigin Kurkura gi Aabba ama , The whole of the lands was sea.

The nominal and verbal roots of the above extract from the bilingual account of the Creation are in capitals, and the pronominal prefixes and suffixes, with a couple of lengthenings which determine the pronunciations of the nouns, in small letters. This will not only give an idea of the poetical form of the Sumerian legend of the Creation by Merodach and Aruru, but also show how short and concise, as a language, was the speech of Shinar, before Semitic supremacy.

Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature

(Heb. Skinar', שַׁנְעָר [on the signif. see below]; Sept. usually Σεναάρ, Σενναάρ ;. Vulg. Sennaar) seems to have been the ancient name (Genesis 10:10; Genesis 11:2; Genesis 14:1,'9) of the great alluvial tract through which the Tigris and Euphrates pass before reaching the sea the tract known in later times as Chaldlca, or Babylonia. It was a plain country,. where brick had. to be used for. stone, and slime, bitumen, or mud, for mortar (xi, 3). Among its-cities were Babel (Babylon), Erech or Orech (Orchoe), Calneh or Calno (probably Niffer), and Accad, the site of which is unknown - These notices are quite enough to fix the situation. It may, however, be remarked, farther, that the Sept. renders the word by " Babylonia" (Βαβυλωνία) in one-place"'(Isaiah 11:11), by "the land of Babylon" (γῆ Βαβυλῶνος) in another (Zechariah 5:11), and by ποικιλή in a third (Joshua 7:21) as an equivalent -to Βαβυλονική , (A. V. "Babylonish").

The native inscriptions contain no trace of the term, which seems to be purely Jewish and unknown to any other people. At least it is extremely doubtful whether there is really any connection between Shindar and Singara, or Sinjar. Singara was the name of a town in Central Mesopotamia, well known to the Romans (Dion Cass. lxviii, 22; Atom. Marc. 18:5, etc.), and still existing (Layard, Nin. and Bab. p. 249).", It is from this place that the mountains which run across Mesopotamia from Mosul to Rakkeh receive their title of "the Sinjar range" (Σιγγάρας ὅρος, Ptolemy, v, 18). As this name first appears in Central Mesopotamia, to which the term Shinar is never applied, about the time of the Antonines, it is very unlikely that it can represent the old Shinar, which ceased practically to be a geographic title soon after the time of Moses (the use in the above passages of Isaiah and Zechariah is an archaisni; so also, perhaps, in Daniel 1:2).

It may be suspected that Shinar was the name by which the Hebrews originally knew the lower Mesopotamian country, where they so long dwelt, and which Abraham brought with him from "Ur of the Chaldees" (Mugheir). Possibly it means " the country of the Two Rivers," being derived from. שְׁנֵי, "two," and 'ar, which was used in Babylonia, as well as nahr or ndhdr (נָהָר ), for "a river." (Comp. the "Armalchar" of Pliny [H. I.D vi; 26] and "A Ar Macales" of Abydennus [Fr. 9] with the Naar-malcha of Atnmianus [24:6], called; Ναρμάχα by Isidore [p. 5 ], which is translated as "the Royal River;". comp. again the "Narragam" of Pliny [H. N. 6:30] with the "Aracanus" of Abydenus, 1. s. c.). (See Mesopotamia).

Kitto's Popular Cyclopedia of Biblial Literature

Shi´nar, the proper name of Babylonia, particularly of the country around Babylon (;;;; ) [BABYLONIA].

The Nuttall Encyclopedia

The vast alluvial plain extending along the Tagus and Euphrates, forming the country of Chaldea and Babylonia.