Canaanite Thorns in Ireland

The Canaanites of the Bible are the Phoenicians of secular history. The Greeks call them Phoenicians. They called themselves Canaanites. From about 1000 B.C. when Solomon and Hiram worked together, we go to 850 B.C., Dido the kinswoman of Jezebel's father-in-law Ethbaal, led a settlement from Tyre to seek a new home on the northern coast of Africa called Carthage in Tunis. Another colony sailed to southern Spain. Procopius says that after a period of Roman domination, the Moors won many victories over the Vandals, gaining almost all of North Africa. He adds that there were two columns of white stone at Tangier with this Phoenician inscription: "We are they who fled before the face of Joshua, the robber, the son of Nun" (Procopius' History of the Wars 4:10).


Since Numbers 33:52-56 says "those which ye let remain shall be thorns in YOUR sides and shall vex YOU in the land wherein YOU dwell," we can conclude that Israelites dwelt in these colonies. Also, "Cursed be Canaan; a servant of servants shall he be unto his brethren. Blessed be Jehovah, the God of Shem, and Canaan shall be SERVANT TO THEM" (Gen. 9:25-27) in these colonies. Hewers of wood and drawers of water. Phoeniciian colonies in France and the British Isles therefore included the Israelites and Canaanites.

From 745 B.C. till 677 B.C., from the first Assyrian invasion of Israel to the last, the fortunes of Phoenicia and Israel were equally precarious. They spoke two distinct forms of the same language. The GAELS, GAULS (Roman forms), and KELTS (Greek form) may have been mostly Canaanites and the Kymry or Belgae were the Israelites. According to Assyrian inscriptions, the kingdom of Israel was known as Beth Khumri. Appian mentions "the Cimbri, a people of CELTS" (1:625). The Belgae were known as Kymry also. Now GAL is a frequent element in local names throughout the country of the Canaanites and of Israel, as in GALAAD, GALILEE and GILGAL. GELILOTH ("cirlces") is used five times in scripture; twice in the general sense of "coast" or "border" and three times relating to the course of the Jordan, the valley of which was at one time the headquarters of the inland Canaanites. The twenty cities given by Solomon to Hiram, King of Tyre, were called GALIL; they were also known as the "district of the Gentiles;" possibly, thinks Dean Stanley, from the number of Canaanites who remained unexpelled from the cities of that part of the country. In this way, GAEL may have easily become a Canaanite name, perhaps referring to their occupation of the sea-coast.

Canaanitish immigration also took place about the same time (745 to 677 B.C.) and the colonists of Ireland gradually formed settled governments. Four kingdoms took their rise -- the later provinces of Ulster, Leinster, Munster and Connaught; the last three settled by dark-haired Canaanites; Ulster settled by the Tuatha de Danaan and the Milesian Scots, both Israelites. Southern Wales is also occupied by dark-haired Canaanites. There is evidence in Ulster of Simeon in such tribal names as Semrighe, Tuath Semonn, Senmogad, Seneran. In the Eastern counties of England we find Simeni. In Connaught, as in Britain later, we find the name Damnonii and in North Ireland the Darnii, the Damnii of Argyle, the Demetae of Cambria. As time went on, the Scots made predatory raids from Ireland to the coast of Britain and dominated Wales, Cornwall and the Isle of Man. In the third century A.D. the Irish Scots had conquered southwest Scotland (Argyle) and the Hebrides, and the lowland counties except the district of GALLOWAY, which was a settlement of the Picts. The whole Highland district and the neighboring coast was occupied by the Canaanitish Picts or GAEL.

By 250 A.D. Israel possessed all of south Britain and the lower half of north Britain and northern Ireland. South Ireland and northwest Scotland were Canaanite. These areas are where Roman Catholicism is strongest with its pictures and molten images From these same areas have come the modern insurrections of the FENIANS (Phoenians, Phoenicians) and the agitation for Home Rule. Irish tenant abusing English landlord, Gladstone's Home Rule Bill, the Moonlighters, assassinations and bombings. Yes the Canaanites are thorns that vex Israel. These poor farmers in Ireland emigrated to America and became poor railroad workers as if fulfilling the prophecy about "a servant of servants." However, it was a Syro-Phoenician woman in whom our Lord found faith (Mark 7:26-30) and Rahab the Canaanite harlot had the faith to help Israelite spies (Joshua 2:1-3).

The Iberians and Phoenicians came to Ireland via Spain. Hence it is interesting that the Spanish word for Phoenician is "FENICIO" which is akin to the Irish name "FENIAN."The Canaanites must trouble Israel (Num. 33:55; Jos. 23:13). The "FENIAN" element in southern Ireland is Phoenician or Canaanite. The Irish language is identical in all respects with the Phoenician language having an alphabet of sixteen letters.

In the 18th century, linguists noticed the great similarity between that Phoenician and the early Irish Celtic language. Leading 18th and 19th century scholars, such as Gen. Charles Vallancey, Lord Rosse, and Sir William Betham, also wrote on this subject. Vallancey, for instance, speaks of, "The great affinity found in many words, nay whole lines and sentences of this speech, between the Punic [Phoenician] and the Irish." George Rawlinson, Phoenicia, p. 327

In 1772, General Charles Vallancey, a leading Irish scholar of the day, published his famous work, "Essay On The Antiquity Of The Irish Language, Being A Collation Of The Irish With The Phoenician Punic Language." In his opening remarks he states, "On a collation of the Irish with the Celtic, Punic, and Phoenician languages, the strongest affinity, (nay a perfect Identity in very many Words) will appear; it may therefore be deemed a Punic-Celtic compound."Vallancey continues, "from the Canaanite proceeded the Phoenician, from the Phoenician, Carthaginian, or Punic was derived the Aeolian, Dorian and Etruscan, and from these was formed the Latin... Of the Roman Saxon capital letters, the Irish use but three, all the others bear a very great resemblance to the primitive Canaanite and Phoenician." (p. 2-3) Modern language scholars have confirmed that there is a definite connection between the Celtic and Canaanite Phoenician."

Were the Phoenicians ISRAELITES?

Israel and Phoenicia spoke different dialects of the same HEBREW language and so could understand eachother. Inscriptions of Phoenicia and Carthage from about the 9th century B.C. onwards were written in a SEMITIC dialect and inscribed in the reversed or retrograde direction, from right to left, with reversed letters, as adopted by SEMITIC tribes. The Phoenician alphabet was also "SEMITIC." While the SEMITIC residents in Phoenicia practiced CIRCUMCISION, the Hamitic true Phoenician mariners were uncircumcised (Her.2:104). Therefore, we see that the alphabet and writings were probably Israelite inventions which the Phoenicians borrowed. This is why historians think the Phoenicians were SHEMITE rather than Hamite. The monuments and coins of the Mediterranean Phoenicians show them to be of fine CAUCASIAN physical type so these are portrayals of Israelites. Jules Africanus said that the HYCSOS were Phoenicians. Yet Manetho recorded that the HYCSOS went to JUDEA and built JERUSALEM after leaving Egypt. The only conclusion we can come to is that the Phoenicians were largely ISRAELITES. The name "Phoenicians" may mean "blood red." "The Canaanite sailors were spoken of as the "red men" on account of their SUNBURNT SKIN" (Encyc. Brit. 11th 21:450). They looked CAUCASIAN. Hiram and DAVID had conversations (2 Sam. 5:11). SOLOMON hired many workers from Phoenicia (1 Ki.5:6). ELIJAH and the Sidonian widow conversed (1 Ki.17:9-16) and the two navies had a joint expedition (1 Ki.9:26-28). Some scholars speculate that the friendship and alliance between Hiram and DAVID and later with SOLOMON (2 Sam.5:11; 1 Ki.5) implies that many Phoenician colonies were actually ISRAELITE colonies such as "GADES" Spain where the tribe of GAD had a colony and MARSEILLE and BRITAIN, named after Brutus-the-Trojan who was from Zarah Judah (see p.155 of Waddell's Phoenician Origin of Britons). Even up to the first century, Phoenicia was at peace with and dependent upon PALESTINE for food (Acts 12:20). Perhaps many ISRAELITES escaped Assyrian captivity in 721 B.C. by sailing to GADES, MARSEILLE, CARTHAGE and BRITAIN since Sargon II only led away captive a mere 27,290 Israelites from Samaria (p.263. Bible As History). Those who were taken captive probably became the PARTHIAN Empire and SCYTHIA. Isaiah 10:20 mentions these two categories: "the remnant of Israel, and such as have escaped." The so-called Phoenician golden age of trade and colonization was, in reality, an Israelite age for it ceased when the Kingdom of Israel ceased (1006 to 731 B.C.). Diodorus Siculus says "The Phoenicians planted many colonies throughout Libya and not a few as well in WESTERN parts of EUROPE" (16:20). The word "VENETIAN" (Italy) and "FENIAN" (Ireland) may both come from "PHOENICIAN" (Palestine). The VANDALS gave their name to Andalusia Spain. Thus ISRAELITES became known as Phoenicians and gave them their Shemitic language and alphabet. Many Phoenician coins have the consonants "B-R-T" on them, meaning "COVENANT" (People) in Hebrew. "BRUTTIUM, the southernmost point of Italy" (Pliny 3:38) was probably a Phoenician colony. In Cappadocia is the town of "BARATTHA" (Ptolemy 5:6) and "BEIRUT" Lebanon (Ptolemy 5:14), the homeland of Phoenicia (See Steven Collins' The Lost Ten Tribes Of Israel ... Found for more). The great Hannibal, at the battle of Zama, 202 B.C., had in his ranks Carthaginians, Africans, MACEDONIANS and BRUTTIANS. The letter "u" is interchangeable with the letter "y" giving us "BRYTTIANS" or BRITONS. Before the time of Christ, Denmark was called "BRITTIA. "The Newton Stone in Aberdeenshire has a Phoenician and a bilingual inscription of about 400 B.C. Its author, in dedicating a votive monument to the Sun-god Bel, calls himself "Phoenician," "Briton" and "Scot" whose native town was in Cilicia; and he signs himself "Partolon, king of the Scots."

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