Jerah

Je’rah. (the moon). The fourth, in order, of the sons of Joktan, Gen 10:26; 1Ch 1:20, and the progenitor of a tribe of southern Arabia.

("the moon".) Joktan’s fourth son, forefather of a southern Arab tribe. The fortress Yerakh in the Mahra country, to the E. of Hadramaut, seems akin in name.

[Je’rah]

Son of Joktan, of the family of Shem. Gen 10:26; 1Ch 1:20.

JERAH.—Mentioned in the genealogies of Gen 10:26 and 1Ch 1:20 as a son of Joktan. Probably, in analogy with other names in this connexion, Jerah is to be taken as the designation of an Arabian tribe. The Arabic geographers refer to places named Warâkh, Yurâkh, and Yarâch, with any one of which it might be identified. On the other hand, in Hebrew the word signifies ‘new moon’; it may therefore be the translation of a totemic clan-name. In fact, Bochart pointed out that ‘sons of the moon’ is a patronymic still found in Arabia.

W. M. Nesbit.

jē´ra (ירח, yeraḥ): A son of Joktan (Gen 10:26 parallel 1Ch 1:20). No district Jerah has been discovered. However, Yurākh in Yemen and Yaraḥ in Hijaz are places named by the Arabic geographers. The fact that the word in Hebrew means “moon” has led to the following suggestions: the Banū Hilāl (“sons of the new moon”) in the North of Yemen; Ghubb el-Ḳamar (“the bay of the moon”), Jebel el-Ḳamar (“the mountains of the moon”) in Eastern Ḥadramant. But in Southern Arabia worship of the moon has caused the word to bulk largely in place-names.