Tiras
Gen 10:2. Josephus (Ant. 1:6, section 1) identifies his descendants with the Thracians, including the Getae (from whence came the Goths) and Dacians. Tuch derives the Tyrsenians from Tiras. (See ROSH) Thracian tribes occupied most of northern and central Asia Minor originally. The Bithynians were Thracians. So also the Mariandynians, Paphlagonians, Phrygians (another form of the Thracian Briges), and Mysians (answering to the Moesi).
Tiras follows Meshech in the genealogy, just as the Thracian tribes of Asia Minor adjoined the Moschi toward the W. Thus Genesis 10 includes among Japhet's descendants the vast nation of the Thracians, extending from the Halys in Asia Minor to the Drave and Save in Europe. Bria (perhaps "town"), in Mesembria, Selymbria, is a solitary relic of the Thracian tongue. The name has been identified as appearing in Aga-thyrsi. Taur-us, and Tyras (the river Dniester).
International Standard Bible Encyclopedia on Tiras
Tiras ti'-ras (tirac; Theiras, Lucian Thiras): A son of Japheth (Ge 10:2 (P); 1Ch 1:5). Not mentioned elsewhere; this name was almost unanimously taken by the ancient commentators (so Josephus, Ant, I, vi, 1) to be the same as that of the Thracians (Thrakes); but the removal of the nominative ending -s does away with this surface resemblance. Tuch was the first to suggest the Tursenioi, a race of Pelasgian pirates, who left many traces of their ancient power in the islands and coasts of the Aegean, and who were doubtless identical with the Etruscans of Italy. This brilliant suggestion has since been confirmed by the discovery of the name Turusa among the seafaring peoples who invaded Egypt in the reign of Merenptah (W.M. Muller, AE, 356 ff). Tiras has also been regarded as the same as Tarshish. ⇒See a list of verses on TIRAS in the Bible. Horace J. Wolf ⇒See also the McClintock and Strong Biblical Cyclopedia.
Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible on Tiras
A son of Japheth, Gn 10= [P], 1 Ch 1'. Ethnologically, the name should probably be identified with the Turusha, a seafaring people mentioned in the Egyp- tian inscriptions of the 13tli cent., the Tvpa-qvol of the Greelcs (so Ed. Meyer [Gcsch. d. Alterthtims, i. 200], followed by Dillm., Holzinger, Gunkel, et al.). Jensen {'fheol. Ltztg. 1899, 3, col. 70) makes it = Tarsus ; W. Max Miiller (On'en/. Ltztg. Aug. 1900, col. 290) takes it as a doublet of Tarshish of v.*, which he identifies with Turs, i.e. the land of the Tyrrhenians or Italy. There are the strongest objections to the view ot Josephus (Ant. I. vi. 1), Jerome (on Gn 10-), and the Targg., that Tiros = the Thracians. J. A. Selbie. TIRATHITES(D'nviB ; BA'ApyaOtel/x, Luc. eapa$el). — A family of scribes that dwelt at Jabez, 1 Ch 2". The passage is very obscure. See Shimeath- ITES, and cf. GENEALOGY, vol. ii. p. 12S", and Wellh. de Gentibus, 30 tf.
References
- Orr, J. (ed.) (1915) The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. Chicago: Howard-Severance Company. [Public Domain]
- Easton, M.G. (1893) Easton's Bible Dictionary. 3rd edn. Thomas Nelson. [Public Domain]
- Nave, O.J. (1897) Nave's Topical Bible. Topical Bible Publishing Co.. [Public Domain]
- Hastings, J. (ed.) (1909) A Dictionary of the Bible. Edinburgh: T&T Clark. [Public Domain]
- Smith, W. (ed.) (1884) Smith's Bible Dictionary. London: John Murray. [Public Domain]
- Fausset, A.R. (1878) Fausset's Bible Dictionary. [Public Domain]A Critical and Expository Bible Cyclopaedia