Merneptah Stele: earliest mention of 'Israel'
- Date
- c. 1208 BCE
- Category
- Culture, arts & philosophy
- Region
- Egypt & Canaan (Thebes / Levant)
- Era
- Ancient Civilizations
- Significance
A victory stele erected by the pharaoh Merneptah, son of Ramesses II, celebrates his campaigns in Libya and Canaan and contains the line 'Israel is laid waste; its seed is no more.' Dated to about 1208 BCE, this is the earliest known reference to Israel anywhere outside the Hebrew Bible, and the only mention of Israel in ancient Egyptian records.
The hieroglyphic determinative attached to the name marks Israel as a people or ethnic group rather than an established city-state, indicating that a group called Israel was present in Canaan by the late 13th century BCE. The stele is a key anchor for debates over Israelite origins and the historicity and dating of the biblical Exodus tradition: most scholars who accept any historical kernel place the events of Exodus in the 13th century, while many regard the narrative as a later literary composition possibly echoing memories of the Hyksos expulsion. The stele itself mentions no exodus, slavery, or sojourn in Egypt.
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Empires active in c. 1208 BCE
- New Kingdom of Egypt1550 BCE – 1077 BCE
- Shang Dynasty1600 BCE – 1046 BCE
- Hittite Empire1650 BCE – 1178 BCE
- Elamite Kingdom2700 BCE – 539 BCE
Related culture, arts & philosophy events
- Oracle-Bone Script: Earliest Attested Chinese Writingc. 1250 BCE
- Olmec colossal heads carved at San Lorenzoc. 1200 BCE
- Tomb of Fu Hao: An Undisturbed Shang Royal Burialc. 1250 BCE
- Great Hypostyle Hall and temple-building at Karnakc. 1290–1213 BCE
- Compilation of the Zhouyi (Core of the I Ching)c. 9th century BCE
- Composition of the early Upanishadsc. 800–500 BCE
Further reading
The wider story
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