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CANAAN

The old name for Palestine, the land on the eastern coast of the Mediterranean, which the Israelites seized, dispossessing the Canaanites, a Semitic people, who came from Arabia originally and derived their name from the descendants of Canaan, the son of Ham (Genesis 9:18), 10:6). (Etym. Hebrew kena'an,land of purple.)

All items in this dictionary are from Fr. John Hardon's Modern Catholic Dictionary, © Eternal Life. Used with permission.

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