The Migration of Abraham's Ancestors

Alice C. Linsley

The Hebrew were a ruler-priest caste that maintained shrines and temples along the Nile long before the tie of Abraham (c.2000 BC). The caste had a moiety structure. The two ritual groups were the Horite Hebrew and the Sehtite Hebrew. The oldest known site of Horite Hebrew worship was a Nekhen on the Nil (c.4000 BC).

From the Nile Valley, the Hebrew dispersed into many regions of the ancient world. They were known by various names such as 'Apiru, Hapir, Habiru and Abru. Abru in Ancient Akkadian means "priest."

The words tera, sarki and harwa are related words mean ruler-priest. The words are found across the ancient world which extended from Nigeria to the Orissa region of India. In Hinduism, the sarki are responsible for flaying the sacrificed animal and for preserving the hides. The word harwa is an ancient Egyptian word for priest.

One of Abraham's nephews was named Thahash. This is the Hebrew word tahash, meaning skins. Thahash was likely a sarki who tanned the hides of sacrificed animals. Exodus 25:5 speaks of "five rams' skins dyed red, and

tahash skins; acacia wood." God acts as the first sarki when He sacrifices animals to make coverings for the man and the woman (Gen. 3:21). Today Sarki live in the Orissa province of India and as ‘Haruwa’ in the Tarai region of Nepal. The word Haruwa is equivalent to the ancient Egyptian word ‘Harwa”, meaning "priest."

In Nigeria the sarki are called "Kano Kings" and they are linguistically closer to their Niger-Congo brethren than they are to the Semites. 

Other words for priests of the ancient world include tera, korah, sem, wabau, kalu (lamentation priest), hekau, and šangû. The Akkadian term šangû is the likely origin of the Latin word saguis and the English word sanguine, both referring to blood. The šangû probably offered animal sacrifice at royal sanctuaries.

According to Umberto Cassuto, the name Lamech is related to the Akkadian word lumakku, meaning “priest” (Commentary on Genesis, Vol. 1, p. 233). It also is related to the Hebrew word melek, meaning “king”. Further, Lamech is related to the Akkadian words maklu (burnt offering) and malku (ruler-priest). The Lamech of Genesis 4 and his grandson Lamech the Younger (Gen. 5) were Hebrew ruler-priests.

Genesis also tells us that Abraham was a descendent of Kush, so while Abraham lived in Mesopotamia, he was of the Kushite people. Among these people the ruler-priests intermarried exclusively. Genesis shows that this is the case with Ham and Shem's lines. This should have an effect on the DNA of their living descendants, which it does. The Kushite migration explains the spread of R1*-M173, which is found mainly, but not exclusively in Africa. Haplogroup R1*-M173 is the pristine form of haplogroup R. We would expect just such a result from the Kushites whose rulers intermarried exclusively.

What is even more interesting is that this haplogroup is traced to Sub-Saharan Africa, which confirms the suspicion that the Kushites are descendants of people who moved to the Upper Nile from more southern parts of Africa, probably the Lebombo Mountains.  In Africa researchers have detected frequencies of Haplogroup R1*-M173 as high as 95% among Sub-Saharan Africans. This study supports the picture of diffusion of Niger-Congo (Nilo-Saharan) carriers of R1*-M173 from Africa to Eurasia between 4-5,000 years ago.

In fact, the migration of Abraham's ancestors from Africa to India and beyond, explains the spread of motifs common to Afro-Asiatic, Hindu and Buddhist religions. Those motifs include Trees, Serpents, Water, the Bull, the Sun and the Moon. All of these are found at the temples and shrines of Memphis, Heliopolis and Hierakonpolis, but they did not originate there. They appear to have come from more southern parts of Africa.

Research verifying the Genesis record of Kushite migration from Africa into Eurasia can be found here: http://maxwellsci.com/print/crjbs/v2-294-299.pdf

Current Research Journal of Biological Sciences 2(5): 294-299, 2010

ISSN: 2041-0778

© Maxwell Scientific Organization, 2010

The Kushite Spread of Haplogroup R1*-M173 from Africa to Eurasia

Clyde A. W inters


Related reading: The Hebrew Were a Caste; Five Features of the Hebrew Social Structure; Sent-Away Sons; Hebrew Names and Titles; Why Nekhen is Anthropologically Significant