Amate
Amate is an ancient city mentioned in the Bible, located in the region of Mesopotamia in modern-day Iraq. Known today as Karkheh River.
Biblical History
Amate is a place of considerable scholarly uncertainty, and its precise biblical identification remains debated. The name does not appear prominently in canonical lists, suggesting it may represent either a textual variant, an alternative spelling, or a site known under another designation in Scripture. Some scholars associate it with locations in the Mesopotamian sphere given the coordinates near the Karkheh River in southwestern Iran (ancient Elam). The Karkheh River region falls within the territory of ancient Elam, a kingdom frequently mentioned in Scripture in contexts of conquest and exile. Elamite territory features in the Table of Nations (Genesis 10:22), in the campaigns of Chedorlaomer (Genesis 14), and in prophetic oracles of judgment and restoration (Isaiah 11:11; Jeremiah 49:34–39; Ezekiel 32:24). If Amate is associated with this Mesopotamian region, it would have served as part of the vast eastern territories through which exiled Israelites were dispersed, lying at the eastern edge of the ancient world known to the biblical writers.
Archaeological & Historical Notes
The Karkheh River valley in the Khuzestan province of modern Iran was home to several ancient Elamite settlements, most notably in the vicinity of ancient Susa (biblical Shushan). Archaeological work in this region has been extensive, particularly at Susa itself, where French excavations in the nineteenth and twentieth centuries uncovered material spanning from the fifth millennium BCE through the Achaemenid period. The broader Karkheh watershed contains numerous tells and occupation sites attesting to continuous settlement. The specific identification of a place called Amate in this region remains uncertain, and it may reflect a minor or variant place name that has not yet been securely linked to a known archaeological site.
Verse Appearances (0)
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- OpenBible.info (n.d.) Bible Geocoding. Available at: https://www.openbible.info/geo/. [CC BY 4.0]
- Bagnall, R. et al. (eds.) (n.d.) Pleiades: A Gazetteer of Past Places. Available at: https://pleiades.stoa.org. [CC BY 3.0]
- Wikidata contributors (n.d.) Wikidata. Available at: https://www.wikidata.org. [CC0]
- Lawrence, D. et al. (2025) Villages to Empires: a settlement dataset for the Southern Levant. doi:10.5281/zenodo.15111732. [CC BY 4.0]
- Church of England (1769) The Holy Bible, Authorized (King James) Version. [Public Domain]