Dictionary Article

Hometown of Terah, the father of Abraham, and the birthplace of Abraham and Sarah. It is mentioned by name only four times in the Bible (Gn 11:28, 31 OET GEN 11:28 · OET GEN 11:31; 15:7; Neh 9:7), always with the full name “Ur of the Chaldeans.”

Show passage in OET: GEN 11:28; GEN 11:31

OET-RV GEN 11:28

28 While his father was still alive, Haran died in the land where he was born, in the city of Ur where the Kasdim (Chaldeans) lived.

OET-RV GEN 11:31

31 Then one day, Terah gathered his son Avram and his grandson Lot (who was Haran’s son), and his daughter-in-law Saray (who was Avram’s wife), and they all left from the city of Ur (where the Kasdim lived), to travel to the region of Kena’an (Canaan), but when they arrived at the city of Haran, they decided to live there.

OET-LV GEN 11:28

28 And_ Ḩārān _he/it _died on the _face _of Teraḩ his/its_father in_land his/its_descendants in_ʼŪr of_the_ones_from _Kasdiy.

OET-LV GEN 11:31

31 And_ Teraḩ _he/it _took DOM ʼAⱱrām his/its_son and_DOM Lōţ the _son _of Ḩārān the _son _of his/its_son and_DOM Sarai his/its_daughter-in-law the _wife _of ʼAⱱrām his/its_son and_they _went _out with_them from_ʼŪr of_the_ones_from _Kasdiy to_go towards_land of _Kənaˊan/(Canaan) and_they _came to Ḩārān and_they _lived there.

Show passage in OET: GEN 15:7

OET-RV GEN 15:7

7 Then Yahweh told Avram, “I’m Yahweh who brought you out of Ur (where the Kasdim (Chaldeans) lived) so I could give you this land to possess it.”

OET-LV GEN 15:7

7 And_he/it _said to_him/it I am_YHWH who I_brought _you _out from_ʼŪr of_the_ones_from _Kasdiy to_give to/for_yourself(m) DOM the_earth/land (the)_this to_take_possession _of _it.

Show passage in OET: NEH 9:7

OET-RV NEH 9:7

7 “You are Yahweh, the god who chose Avram. Then you brought him out from Ur in the Chaldean region, then you renamed him to Avraham (meaning ‘father of many’).

OET-LV NEH 9:7

7 You he are_YHWH the_ʼElohīm who you _chose (in)_ʼAⱱrām and_you_brought _him _out from_ʼŪr of_the_ones_from _Kasdiy and_you _made name _of_his ʼAⱱrāhām.

Jump to OET GEN 11:28 section. · OET GEN 11:31 section.

Jump to OET GEN 15:7 section.

Jump to OET NEH 9:7 section.

The modern site is known as Tell el Muqayyar, “The Mound of Bitumen.” The results of archaeological investigations demonstrate that Abraham came from a great city, cultured, sophisticated, and powerful. The landscape was dominated by the ziggurat, or temple tower, and the life of the city was controlled by a religion with a multiplicity of gods. The chief deity was Nannar, or Sin, the moon god, who was also worshiped at Haran. Near his ziggurat was a temple dedicated to his consort, the moon goddess, Ningal.

Many clay tablets found at Ur tell of the business life of the city, which focused on the temples and their income. There were factories here, such as the weaving establishment for the manufacture of woolen cloth. Some tablets dealt with religion, history, law, and education. Students were instructed in reading and writing in cuneiform script. They were taught multiplication and division, and some were even able to extract square roots and cube roots.

Domestic architecture was highly developed. Houses had two stories and many rooms (10 to 20), sometimes with a private chapel. Small clay religious figures (teraphim or household idols) were discovered. Many art objects made of precious metals and other costly materials have been excavated, especially in the royal tombs. These tombs also contained the remains of a number of retainers who must have been put to death at the time of the royal burials in order to accompany their masters in the afterlife.

Tyndale Open Bible Dictionary