Illustration created for this project.
Asher
A son of Jacob and founder of the tribe of Asher.
What we know — and how we know it
Bible — stated in scripture (with verse) · 2
Scholarly — supported scholarly belief · 2
Family & lineage
Tribe & people
BibleOf the tribe of Asher.
Genesis 30:13
ScholarlyA West-Semitic toponym read roughly as 'a-sa-ru / I-s-r appears in New Kingdom Egyptian place-name lists (Seti I and Ramesses II), and some scholars have linked it to the later tribal region of Asher in western Galilee. The identification is genuinely contested, however, and many scholars doubt it names the tribe rather than an unrelated Canaanite locale.
Egyptian topographical lists of Seti I / Ramesses II; the proposed link and the objections to it are surveyed in the Anchor Bible Dictionary entry on Asher. Presented as debated, not settled.
Name & titles
ScholarlyThe Hebrew name 'Asher derives from a root meaning 'happy, fortunate, blessed.' Genesis preserves a folk etymology in Leah's exclamation at his birth, 'Happy am I! For the women will call me happy.'
Standard Hebrew onomastics; the birth-naming wordplay ('ashri) in the Masoretic text of Gen 30:13.
Where in scripture
GenesisExodusNumbersDeuteronomyJoshuaJudges2 Samuel1 Kings1 Chronicles2 ChroniclesEzekielLukeRevelation
Genesis 30:13Genesis 35:23Genesis 35:26Genesis 46:17Genesis 49:20Exodus 1:4Numbers 1:13Numbers 2:27Numbers 7:72Numbers 10:26Numbers 13:13Numbers 26:44Numbers 34:27Deuteronomy 27:13Deuteronomy 33:24Joshua 17:7Joshua 19:24Joshua 21:6Joshua 21:30Judges 1:31Judges 1:32Judges 5:17Judges 6:35Judges 7:23
…and 13 more mentions
Family
In art
