Text -- Genesis 10:10 (NET)

10:10 The primary regions of his kingdom were Babel, Erech, Akkad, and Calneh in the land of Shinar.

Commentary -- Verse Notes / Footnotes

NET Notes: Gen 10:10

¹ tn Heb “beginning.” E. A. Speiser, Genesis (AB), 67, suggests “mainstays,” citing Jer 49:35 as another text where the Hebrew noun is so used.

² tn Or “Babylon.”

³ sn Erech (ancient Uruk, modern Warka), one of the most ancient civilizations, was located southeast of Babylon.

⁴ sn Akkad, or ancient Agade, was associated with Sargon and located north of Babylon.

⁵ tn No such place is known in Shinar (i.e., Babylonia). Therefore some have translated the Hebrew term כַלְנֵה (khalneh) as “all of them,” referring to the three previous names (cf. NRSV).

⁶ sn Shinar is another name for Babylonia.