View source for Religion:Harran (biblical place)

{{Short description|Ancient city in Upper Mesopotamia}}
[[File:Schnorr von Carolsfeld Bibel in Bildern 1860 024.png|thumb|right|''Abram Leaves Haran'', 1860 woodcut by Julius Schnorr von Karolsfeld]]

The ruins of the city of Harran, called '''Haran''' ({{lang-he|חָרָן}}, ''Ḥārān'') in the [[Religion:Hebrew Bible|Hebrew Bible]], might lie within present-day [[Place:Turkey|Turkey]]. Haran first appears in the [[Religion:Book of Genesis|Book of Genesis]] as the home of Terah and his descendants, and as [[Biography:Abraham|Abraham]]'s temporary home. Later biblical passages list Haran among some cities and lands subjugated by Assyrian rulers and among [[Place:Tyre, Lebanon|Tyre]]'s trading partners.

==Name==
Although the placename can be found in English as ''Haran'', ''Charan'', and ''Charran'', it should not be confused with the personal name ''Haran'', one of Abram's two brothers. The biblical placename is {{Script/Hebrew|חָרָן}} (with a ''ḥet'') in Hebrew, pronounced {{IPA-he|ħaːraːn|}} and can mean "parched," but is more likely to mean "road" or "crossroad," cognate to Old Babylonian ḫaranu (MSL 09, 124-137 r ii 54'). The personal name ''Haran'' is spelled {{Script/Hebrew|הָרָן}} (with a ''hei'') in Hebrew and means "mountaineer".

==Identification==
{{Location map many | Mediterranean east
|float      = right
| width    = 300px
| caption  =  Location of Haran and other associated Biblical/Torah sites
| lat1_deg = 36.8775
| lon1_deg = 39.033889
| label1   = '''Haran'''
| lat2_deg = 32.213618
| lon2_deg =  35.281993 
| label2   = Shechem
| lat3_deg = 31.258889
| lon3_deg = 34.799722
| label3   = Beersheba
|position1 = top
|position3 = left}}

Haran is usually identified with Harran, now a village of Şanlıurfa, [[Place:Turkey|Turkey]]. Since the 1950s, archeological excavations of Harran have been conducted,<ref>Lloyd and Brice. ''Harran'', Anatolian Studies, Vol. 1, 1951, p. 77-111</ref><ref>Rice, David S. ''Medieval Harran. Studies on its Topography and Monuments'', Anatolian Studies Vol. 2, 1952, p.36–84</ref> which have yielded insufficient discoveries about the site's pre-medieval history<ref>Bienkowski & Millard. ''Dictionary of the ancient Near East'' ({{ISBN|0812235576}}, {{ISBN|978-0-8122-3557-9}}), 2000, p.140</ref> or of its supposed [[Religion:Patriarchal age|patriarchal age]].<ref>Lloyd and Brice</ref><ref>Alexander & Baker. Dictionary of the Old Testament: Pentateuch, ({{ISBN|0830817816}}, {{ISBN|978-0-8308-1781-8}}) 2003, p. 379</ref> The earliest records of Harran come from the Ebla tablets, c. 2300 BC. Harran's name is said to be from [[Social:Akkadian language|Akkadian]] ''ḫarrānum'' (fem.), "road"; ''ḫarrānātum'' (pl.).<ref>Huehnergard, John. A Grammar of Akkadian (Second Edition, 2008), p. 36, p. 497</ref>

==Biblical mentions==
According to the [[Religion:Hebrew Bible|Hebrew Bible]], Haran was the place where Terah settled with his son [[Biography:Abraham|Abraham]] (at that time called Abram), his grandson Lot, and Abram's wife Sarah (at that time known as Sarai) during their planned journey from Ur Kaśdim ([[Religion:Ur of the Chaldees|Ur of the Chaldees]]) to the Land of Canaan.<ref>{{bibleverse|Genesis|11:26–32|HE}}</ref> The region of Haran is referred to variously as Paddan Aram and [[Place:Aram-Naharaim|Aram-Naharaim]]. Abram lived there until he was 75 years old before continuing on to Canaan, in response to the command of God.<ref>{{bibleverse|Genesis|12:4–5|HE}}</ref> Although Abram's nephew Lot accompanied him to Canaan, Terah and his other descendants remained in Paddan-Aram,<ref>{{bibleverse|Genesis|27:42–43|HE}}</ref>. In Genesis 28:10–19, Abraham's grandson Jacob left Beersheba and went toward Haran. Along the way he had his dream of [[Religion:Jacob's Ladder|Jacob's Ladder]].

In 2 Kings (19:12) and Isaiah (37:12) Haran reappears in the late 8th to early 7th century BC context of the [[History:Neo-Assyrian Empire|Neo-Assyrian Empire]]'s conquests. It appears again in the Book of Ezekiel (27:23) as a former trading partner of the Phoenician city [[Place:Tyre, Lebanon|Tyre]]. In the [[Religion:New Testament|New Testament]], Haran is mentioned in the Acts of the Apostles (7:2–4), in a recounting of the story in Genesis wherein it first appears.

==See also==
* [[Religion:Sabians|Sabians]]

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
* {{Cite NIE|wstitle=Haran|short=x}}

[[Category:Book of Genesis]]

{{Sourceattribution|Harran (biblical place)}}