Bible Encyclopedias
Sepharad

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia

sḗ - fā´rad , sef´a - rad ( ספרד , ṣephārādh ): Mentioned in Obadiah 1:20 as the place of captivity of certain "captives of Jerusalem," but no clear indication is given of locality. Many conjectures have been made. The Targum of Jonathan identifies with Spain; hence, the Spanish Jews are called Sephardim. Others (Pusey, etc.) have connected it with the "(Tsparda" of the Behistun Inscription, and some have even identified it with "Sardis." The now generally accepted view is that which connects it with the "Saparda" of the Assyrian inscriptions, though whether this is to be located to the East of Assyria or in Northern Asia Minor is not clear. See Schrader, Cuneiform Inscriptions , II, 145-46; Sayce, HCM , 482-84; articles in DB , HDB , EB , etc.