Elkoshite (Hastings' Dictionary)

A gentilio adjective employed to describe the prophet Nalium (1'), implying that a place named Elkosh was his birthplace. Three identifications have been pro- posed for the latter. (1) Jerome (in his Comm.) locates Elkosli at a village in Galilee named Elcesi (cf. also Capernaum = 0'nj is? (?), 'village of Nahum '). (2) In a work ascribed to Epiphanius, Un the Pruphcts, huw they died and where tliey were buried, we are told that ' Nahum was of Elkosh, beyond B6t GabrC, of the tribe of Simeon.'

This B6t GabrS is Beit Jibrin, the ancient Eleu- thcropolis, N.E. of Lachish. (3) Mediii'val traditiim connected Nahum with Elkush on a tributary of the Tigris, 2 days' journey N. of Mosul (Nineveh). We must be content to leave the prophet's birtliplaci' uncertain, although weighty considerations plead • For this mtme see »rt. RAUATnAiM-iornni.

In I Oh e^" and *>fi Samuel is repre»ented as a Invite, and the three nanieo, Klihu, Tohu, Zu|>h, appear as Eliub, NahaUl, Zophai ((1»H") ; Eliel, Toah, Zupli {Kflhihh Zlph) (IP^SO). It ia noliceolile that in the first of tiiese places there is no connectintr link twtwei-n the Elkanah nirnli(>iie<l and Samuel.

The usual explanation ^ven of this apparent discrepancy ia that the Invites in any [urtieutar city were counted om port of the tribe amonifst whom they wero dwelling; ; but this doec Dot seem very satisfactory. 698 ELLASAR ELYAIAIS in favour of the second of the above identifica- tions. LlTBRATTTRI. — A. B, Davidson, Xahum, Introd. S 1 ; Nestle, Zeitach. d. deutsch. Pal. Vemins, i. 222 ff. (tranaU in PEFSt (1879), p. 138 ff.) ; O. A. Smith, Hist. Geog. 231 n. J. A. Selbie.