Places in the Bible Today:

Nophah

Data

Translated NameNophah
Typesettlement
Notesif it’s a place, then it may be in Moab north of Dibon
Geo Data KML (for Google Earth)
GeoJSON (for GIS applications)

3 Possible Identifications

  1. in Moab 1 (ancient): 45% confidence
    1. panorama of a wadi in Moab 1in Moab 1

  2. another name for Nobah 1 (ancient): 25% confidence. It may be:
    1. panorama of ruins at QanawatQanawat

    2. satellite view of the region around Krak CanathaKrak Canatha

  3. not a place (textual problem): less than 10% confidence

Verses (1)

Num 21:30

Linked Data Identifiers

SourceIdentifier
Logos FactbookNophah
OpenBible.info (2007)Nophah
OpenBible.infoaed6b0e (Nophah)
TIPNRKenath@Num.21.30
UBS Names Databaseot ID_1999

Sources

  1. Anchor Yale Bible Dictionary (1992): Nophah (place)
  2. Baker Illustrated Bible Dictionary (2013): Nophah
  3. Baly, Atlas of the Biblical World (1971): Nophah
  4. Eerdmans Dictionary of the Bible (2000): Nophah
  5. Grollenberg, Atlas of the Bible (1957): Nophah
  6. Holman Illustrated Bible Dictionary (2003)
  7. International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1979): Nophah
  8. IVP Old Testament Bible Background Commentary (2000): Num 21:30
  9. Nelson’s Illustrated Bible Dictionary (2014): Nophah
  10. New Unger’s Bible Dictionary (1988): Nophah
  11. Tyndale Bible Dictionary (2001): Nophah
  12. Westminster Historical Atlas to the Bible (1956): Nophah
  13. Wycliffe Bible Encyclopedia (1975): Nophah
  14. Zondervan Atlas of the Bible (2010)
  15. Zondervan Encyclopedia of the Bible (2010)

Confidence Trends over Time

This chart indicates how confidence in the identifications is changing over time. Each dot (connected by a dotted line) reflects the confidence of an identification over the preceding ten years (e.g., the 2009 dot reflects scholarship from 2000 to 2009), and the corresponding solid line reflects a best-fit line for the identification. Confidences that cluster near or below 0% indicate low confidence. Because of the small dataset, it's best to use this chart for general trends; if one identification is trending much higher than the others, for example, then you can probably have higher confidence in the identification. This chart only reflects the sources I consulted (listed above), not an exhaustive review of the literature.

Places with Similar Names

Thumbnail Image Credits

Adeeb Atwan, Gianfranco Gazzetti, Contains modified Copernicus Sentinel data 2019

About

This page attempts to identify all the possible locations where this biblical place could be. The confidence levels add up to less than 100%, indicating that the modern location is uncertain. It's best to think about the confidences in relative rather than absolute terms. Often they reflect different schools of thought, each confident in their identifications.

The isobands you see on the map (gray areas with dark borders) attempt to give you confidence where a region is. Because many ancient regions aren't precisely defined, I consulted atlases to determine where the biblical region is located and used that data to build the isobands. The smaller isobands reflect more confidence that the given isoband is in the region, while the larger isobands reflect less confidence. Isobands are a kind of contour line that here indicate confidence levels.