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(Hebrews Kena'an, ëְּð — òִï , perhaps low; Sept. and N.T. ×áíáÜí ; Josephus ×áíÜáíïò ), the name of a man and of a country peopled by his descendants.
1. The fourth son of Ham, and grandson of Noah (Gen_10:6; 1Ch_1:8; comp. Josephus, Ant. 1:6, 4). B.C. post 2514. Thetransgression of his father Ham (Gen_9:22-27), to which some suppose Canaan to have been in some way a party, gave occasion to Noah to pronounce that doom on the descendants of Canaan which was, perhaps, at that moment made known to him by one of those extemporaneous inspirations with which the patriarchal fathers appear in other instances to have been favored. SEE BLESSING. That there is nojust ground for the conclusion that the descendants of Canaan were cursed as an immediate consequence of the transgression of Ham, is shown by Professor Bush, who, in his Notes on Genesis, has fairly met the difficulties of the subject. SEE HAM.
The posterity of Canaan was numerous. His eldest son, Zidon, founded the city of the same name, and was father of the Sidonians and Phoenicians. Canaan had ten other sons, who were fathers of as many tribes, dwelling in Palestine and Syria (Gen_10:15-19; 1Ch_1:13). It is believed that Canaan lived and died in Palestine, which from him was called the land of Canaan. SEE CANAANITE.
2. The simple name “Canaan” is sometimes employed for the country itself— more generally styled “the land of C.” It is so in Zep_2:5; and we also find “Language of C.” (Isa_19:18); “Wars of C.” (Jdg_3:1); “Inhabitants of C.” (Exo_15:15); “King of C.” (Jdg_4:2; Jdg_4:23-24; Jdg_5:19); “Daughters of C.” (Gen_28:1; Gen_28:6; Gen_28:8; Gen_36:2); “Kingdoms of C.” (Psa_135:11). In addition to the above, the word occurs in several passages where it is concealed in the Auth. Vers. by being translated. These are, Isa_23:8, “traffickers,” and Isa_23:11, “the merchant city;” Hos_12:2, “He is a merchant;” Zep_1:11, “merchant-people.” SEE COMMERCE.