Bible Figure
Canaan
son of Ham and grandson of Noah in the Hebrew Bible (Genesis 10)
Canaan was a son of Ham and grandson of Noah and the ancestral figure from whom the Canaanite peoples are traced.
Biography
Genesis 9 introduces Canaan in the aftermath of Noah's drunkenness. After Ham saw his father's nakedness and told his brothers, Noah pronounced a curse specifically on Canaan, declaring that he would be a servant to Shem and Japheth. Genesis 10 then lists Canaan's descendants, including Sidon and Heth and various Canaanite peoples, and describes the boundaries of their territory. Later biblical history frequently uses 'Canaan' for the land and its inhabitants rather than the individual ancestor.
Biblical Significance
Canaan is central to the Table of Nations and to the biblical background of the land later promised to Abraham's descendants. The ancestral person, the peoples, and the geographic land should be distinguished in crosslinking.