the Week of Proper 28 / Ordinary 33
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Bible Encyclopedias
Raamah
Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature
or [some Raua'nmah] (Heb. Ramah', רִעְמָה; once Rama', רִעְמָא 1 Chronicles 1:9], a shuddering, hence a horse's mane, as in Job 39:19; Sept. ῾Ρεγμά, but ῾Ραμμα [v.r. ῾Ραγμά in Ezekiel 27:22; Vulg. Regma and Reema), the fourth son of Cush, and the father of Sheba and Dedan (Genesis 10:7; 1 Chronicles i, 9), B.C. post 2513. It appears that the descendants of Cush colonized a large part of the interior of Africa, entering that great continent probably by the strait of Bab-el-Mandeb. A section of the family, however, under their immediate progenitor, Raamah, settled along the eastern shores of the Arabian peninsula. There they tfounded nations which afterwards became celebrated, taking their names from Raamah's two sons, Sheba and Dedan. (See CUSH). Though Sheba and Dedan became nations of greater importance and notoriety, yet the name Raamah did not wholly disappear from ancient history. Ezekiel, in enumerating the distinguished traders ini the marts of Tyre, says, "The merchants of Sheba and Raamah, they were thy merchants: they occupied in thy fairs with chief of all spices, and with all precious stones, and gold" (27:22). The eastern provinces of Arabia were famed in all ages for their spices. The position of Sheba (q.v.) is well known, and Raamah must have been near it.
There can be little doubt that in the classical name Regina ( ῾Ρεγμά of Ptolemy, 6:7, and ῾Ρῆγμα of Steph. Byzantium), which is identical with the Sept. equivalemnt for Raamah, we have a memorial of the Old-Test. patriarch and of the country he colonized. The town of Regma was situated on the Arabian shore of the Persian Gulf, on the northern side of the long promontory which separates it from the ocean. It is interesting to note that on the southern side of the promontory, a few miles distant, was the town called Dadena, evidently identical with Dedan (q.v.). Around Regina Ptolemy locates an Arab tribe of the Anariti (Geog. 6:7). Pliny appears to call them Epimaranitae (vi, 26), which, according to Forster (Geogr. of Arabia, i, 64), is just an anagrammatic form of Ramanitoe, the descendants of Raamah — an opinion not improbable. Forster traces the migrations of the nation from Regma along the eastern shores of Arabia to the mountains of Yemen, where he finds them in conjunction with the family of Sheba (ibid. p. 66-71). There the mention of the Ramanitoe tribe by Strabo, in connection with the expedition of Gallus (xvi, p. 781), seems to corroborate the view of Forster. Of Sheba, the other son of Raamab, there has been found a trace in a ruined city so named (Sheba) on the island of Awl (Marasid, s.v.), belonging to the province of Arabia called El-Bahreyn, on the shores of the gulf. (See SHEBA). Be this as it may, however, there can be no doubt that the original settlemenrts of the descendants of Raamah were upon the south-western shores of the Persian gulf. Probably, like most of their brethren, while retaining a permanent nucleus, they wandered with their flocks, herds. and merchandise far and wide over Arabia. For the different views entertained regarding Raamah, see Bochart (Phaleg. 4:5) and Michaelis (Spicileg. i, 193). The town mentioned by Niebuhr called Reymeh (Descr, de I'Arabie) cannot, on etymnological grounds, be connected with RIaamah, as it wants an equivalent for the V: nor can we suppose that it is to be probably traced three days' journey from San'a, the capital of Yemen.
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McClintock, John. Strong, James. Entry for 'Raamah'. Cyclopedia of Biblical, Theological and Ecclesiastical Literature. https://www.studylight.org/encyclopedias/eng/tce/r/raamah.html. Harper & Brothers. New York. 1870.
