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Japheth ( ', Modern Hebrew: '; (ギリシア語:Ἰάφεθ) '; (ラテン語:Iafeth) or ''ラテン語:Iapetus ''; (アラビア語:يافث)) is one of the sons of Noah in the Abrahamic tradition. In Arabic citations, his name is normally given as Yafeth bin Nuh ("Japheth, son of Noah"). In Biblical as well as Quranic tradition, Japheth is considered to be the progenitor of European, and some Asian, peoples.〔Susan Reynolds, "Medieval ''origines gentium'' and the community of the realm," ''History'', 68, 1983, pp. 375-90〕〔Ivane Javakhishvili. "Historical-Ethnological problems of Georgia, the Caucasus and the Near East" (a monograph), Tbilisi, 1950, pp. 130–135 (in Georgian)〕〔Colin Kidd, British Identities before Nationalism; Ethnicity and Nationhood in the Atlantic World, 1600-1800,'' Cambridge University Press, 1999, p. 29〕 In medieval Europe various nations and ethnicities were given genealogies tracing back to Japheth and his descendants. Religious syncretists later adopted the euhermistic argument that Japheth's memory was distorted into mythical figures such as Iapetus and Neptune. ==Order of birth == Genesis 10:21 refers to relative ages of Japheth and his brother Shem, but with sufficient ambiguity to have given rise to different translations. The verse is translated in the King James Version as follows, "Unto Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the brother of Japheth the elder, even to him were children born". However, the Revised Standard Version reads, "To Shem also, the father of all the children of Eber, the elder brother of Japheth, children were born." The differing interpretations depend on whether the Hebrew word ''ha-gadol'' ("the elder") is taken as grammatically referring to Japheth, or Shem. Further uncertainty about the birth-order is suggested by a passage in Genesis 9:24, which says Noah realized what his "younger" (or "youngest") son had done to him, referring to Ham.〔Stephen R. Haynes, ''Noah's Curse: The Biblical Justification of American Slavery'', Oxford University Press, New York, 2002, pp.204; 296.〕 They are listed in the order "Shem, Ham, and Japheth" in Genesis 5:32, 9:18 and 10:1. It is disputed whether or not this is a birth-order. Frederick E. Greenspahn says that "Most moderns accept the common sequence of names as reflecting birth order and understand 10:21 as describing Shem as Japheth's older brother. Although Ham is commonly listed in the middle position, Gen 9:24 identifies him as the youngest." However, he notes that Biblical lists of family names are not always in birth order: "Moses and Rachel also appear at the head of such lists despite explicit descriptions of them as younger siblings. Shem, too, is always named first among Noah's sons, although his brother Japheth may have been considered older in at least one passage."〔Frederick E. Greenspahn, ''When Brothers Dwell Together: The Preeminence of Younger Siblings in the Hebrew Bible'', Oxford University Press, New York, 1994, p.65〕 Historian Stephen R. Haynes writes that "Biblical commentators have suggested many solutions to the enigma of birth order—for instance, that Shem and Ham are listed in succession because their descendants live in proximity, or that the arrangement Shem, Ham, and Japheth is 'euphonic rather than chronological'.".〔 Another explanation based on a Jehovah's Witness understanding of the Bible gives the likelihood to Japheth as being the eldest.〔Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of Pennsylvania, ''Insight on the Scriptures''—Volume 2, Watch Tower Bible and Tract Society of New York, Inc., Brooklyn, New York, 1988, p. 919-20. Also available online: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1200003997〕 To start with, Genesis 5:32 (KJV) states, "And Noah was five hundred years old: and Noah begat Shem, Ham, and Japheth." The Bible also mentions that the Flood came when Noah was 600 years old—a hundred years after he became a father. (Genesis 7:6〔Online verse of Ge 7:6: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/b/r1/lp-e/nwt/E/2013/1/7#h=62:0-62:68〕) Thus, Noah's eldest son should be 100 years of age at the time of the Flood. Genesis 11:10〔Online verse of Ge 11:10: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/b/r1/lp-e/nwt/E/2013/1/11#h=107:0-108:89〕 notes that Shem had only been 100 years of age ''two years after'' the Flood. From this, Jehovah's Witnesses consider it would be logical to conclude that Japheth would be the eldest, who should be two years older than Shem, while Ham would be the youngest. (Genesis 9:24〔Online verse of Ge 9:24: http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/b/r1/lp-e/nwt/E/2013/1/9#h=78:0-78:86〕) 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Japheth」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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