Avvim; Avites

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

av´im ā´vı̄ts עוּים , ‛awwı̄m  ; Εὑαῖοι , Heuaı́oi , also unaspirated; also used to represent the name of the Hivites): The early inhabitants of the southern extremity of Canaan afterward occupied by the Philistines ( Deuteronomy 2:23; compare  Joshua 13:3 ,  Joshua 13:4 , the King James Version "Avim," ā´vim ). The Avvim of  Joshua 18:23 was a town of Benjamin, not a people. Gesenius supposes the name to mean "dwellers in the desert," but it was more probably the name of some pre-Sem tribe. The Avvim are described as living in Ḥăcērı̄m or "encampments" and extending as far as the outskirts of Gaza.