The Formation of Israelite Identity in the Central Canaanite Highlands in the Iron Age I-IIA

Bibliographic Data

ID5134878
AuthorsOmer Sergi (0000-0002-1613-691X, corresponding author)
Year2019
Volume82
Issue1
Pages42-51
Publication date2019-03-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessNo
TypeARTICLE
VenueNear Eastern Archaeology (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1094-2076 • E-ISSN: 1557-5594
PublisherUniversity of Chicago Press (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1086/703325
OpenAlexW2921618797
LanguageEN
References cited10

The author examines the formation of Israelite identity in relation to the formation of the Israelite monarchy in the Iron I–IIA central Canaanite hill country. Drawing on recent studies regarding the significant role of kinship in ancient Near Eastern societies, this article reflects on Israelite identity as a kinship identity. It begins with a brief discussion of settlement patterns and oscillations in the central Canaanite hill country during the Iron I–IIA in the context of the formation of the Israelite monarchy. As kinship is a social ideology, the relevant textual sources are also examined, leading to the conclusion that it is the process of “state formation,” with its constant need to form politically and socially unified structures under centralized rule, that generated the construction of an encompassing Israelite identity

Ancient history · Art · Iron Age · Ancient Egypt and Archaeology · Archaeology and Historical Studies · Biblical Studies and Interpretation · History

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