Lexical Definition
חֲוִילָה Chăvîylâh (khav-ee-law') Havilah N:N--L
probably from חוּל; circular
Havilah.
- § Havilah = "circle"
- Chavilah, the name of two or three eastern regions
- also perhaps of two men
n pr loc
1) a part of Eden through which flowed the river Pison (Araxes); was probably the Grecian Colchis, in the northeast corner of Asia Minor, near the Caspian Sea
2) a district in Arabia of the Ishmaelites named from the 2nd son of Cush; probably the district of Kualan, in the northwestern part of Yemen
n pr m
3) a son of Cush
4) a son of Joktan
Extended Information
- a district in Arabia of the Ishmaelites named from the 2nd son of Cush; probably the district of Kualan, in the northwestern part of Yemen
Brown-Driver-Briggs
חֲוִילָה proper name, of a territory (√ dubious DlPa 12 suggests חוֺל sand-land, downs, as Hebrew popular etymology, MV11 give it as actual etymology; StaThLZ Apr. 28, 1894, 235 compares this, as well as חוֺל sand, with Arabic 
soft mud, [dampsand]) — אֶרֶץ הַחֲוִילָה Gen 2:11 (surrounded or bordered — סבב — by river Pishon; noted for excellent gold, bdellium and shoham-stone); elsewhere without article חֲוִילָה Gen 10:7 = 1Chr 1:9 as a 'son' of Cush (between סְבָא and סַבְתָּה); but also as a 'son' of יָקְטָן, a descendant of Shem Gen 10:29 = 1Chr 1:23 (between אוֺפִיר and יוֺבָב); עַדשֿׁוּר ׳מֵח Gen 25:18 said of limits of Ishmaelitish territory; compare same limits of Amalek 1Sam 15:7 (but dubious; We reads טֵילָם, compare v1Sam 15:4 and see Dr; GlaserSkizze ii, 326 reads חֲכִילָה as 1Sam 23:19; 1Sam 26:1; 1Sam 26:3). — Most have supposed several regions named ׳ח to be indicated in these passages: — e.g. Thes.
- Arabian shore of Persian Gulf Gen 10:29 etc. 2. Ethiopian coast Gen 10:7 etc. 3. India Gen 2:11 (regarded as indefinite extension of 1). DiGen 10:7 distinguishes 1 and 2 either as quite distinct, or as different settlements of one great people, and (on Gen 2:14) thinks that ׳כל ארץ ח Gen 2:11 implies vague extension eastward. DlPa 12 ff. 57 ff. identification ׳ח in all passages with northeast part of Syrian desert, so EMeyGeschichte. Alterth. i. 224; GlaserSkizze ii. 323 ff. with central and northeast Arabia. The question is still undecided.
Brown-Driver-Briggs References
| Book | Refs |
|---|---|
| Genesis | 2:11 · 2:14 · 10:7 · 10:29 · 25:18 |
| 1 Samuel | 15:4 · 15:7 · 23:19 · 26:1 · 26:3 |
| 1 Chronicles | 1:9 · 1:23 |
Profile
Havilah_2 • Region inhabited by Ishmaelites, raided by Saul
Havilah was a region inhabited by the descendants of Ishmael (Gen 25:18), which was later raided by King Saul during his campaign against the Amalekites (1 Sam 15:7).
Havilah was a region located in the northwestern Arabian Peninsula, inhabited by the descendants of Ishmael, Abraham's son (Gen 25:18). The Ishmaelites settled in the area from Havilah to Shur, which bordered Egypt to the east. During King Saul's reign, he launched a military campaign against the Amalekites, a nomadic people who lived in the region. Saul's army attacked the Amalekites from Havilah to Shur (1 Sam 15:7), indicating that Havilah marked the eastern extent of the Amalekite territory. This Havilah is distinct from the one mentioned in the Garden of Eden account and is likely located in what is now northwestern Saudi Arabia.
All entries for Havilah: חֲוִילָה