What does arkite mean?
An Arkite is a member of an ancient Canaanite people whose name derives from the city of Arka (modern Arqa), located in what is now northern Lebanon. The term survives today almost solely through its appearance in the Hebrew Bible, where Genesis 10:17 lists the Arkites among the various clans descended from Canaan in the so-called Table of Nations. Alongside neighbours such as the Arvadites, Hamathites, and Sinites, the Arkites belong to the ethnic and political landscape of the ancient Levant during the second and first millennia BCE. Because the word is tied to a specific historical population rather than to everyday experience, it surfaces only in scholarly contexts — biblical commentary, archaeological literature, and works on ancient Near Eastern history. For readers of scripture or students of the region's past, 'Arkite' offers a small but concrete link to one of the many peoples who once inhabited the coastal plains and foothills of ancient Canaan.
nounAn Arkite is a member of an ancient Canaanite people associated with the city of Arka (also called Arqa), mentioned among the descendants of Canaan in the Hebrew Bible.
- A member of the ancient Canaanite clan descended from Canaan, associated with the city of Arka (Arqa), as named in Genesis 10:17.
"The Arkites are listed among the Canaanite clans in the Table of Nations."
"In the Table of Nations, the Arkites appear alongside the Sinites and Arvadites as peoples of ancient Canaan."
"Scholars generally identify the homeland of the Arkites with Tell Arqa in present-day northern Lebanon."
The plural is the standard and nearly exclusive form, since the word denotes a people referred to collectively.
"The territory of the Arkites lay near that of the Arvadites on the northern Canaanite coast."
Hidden inside one verse of Genesis is a whole roster of vanished peoples — and the Arkites, named for their city of Arka, are among them.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of arkite
The word 'Arkite' comes from Arka (Hebrew 'Arqî), an ancient city in northern Canaan, with the English suffix '-ite' used to form names of peoples or inhabitants of places, following the pattern of biblical ethnonyms like 'Canaanite' and 'Hittite'. Its sole significant attestation in English is in translations of Genesis 10:17, where the Arkites appear in the genealogy of the sons of Canaan. The name thus reflects the Hebrew Bible's classification of Levantine peoples rather than any independent English development.
How arkite is actually used
This is a rare, specialized term encountered almost exclusively in biblical studies, archaeology, and historical geography. It appears chiefly in plural form ('the Arkites') when referring to the people collectively.
Easily confused with arkite
'Arctic' refers to the polar region around the North Pole, whereas 'Arkite' is a biblical ethnonym for an ancient Canaanite clan from Arka.