Generations of Noah in the tradition, being claimed as the ancestors of much of northern Europe. According to Joseph Blenkinsopp, the 70 names in the list express symbolically the unity of humanity, corresponding to the 70 descendants of Israel who go down into Egypt with Jacob at and the 70 elders of Israel who visit God with Moses at the covenant ceremony in . Chapters 1–11 of the Book of Genesis are structured around five "toledot" statements ("these are the generations of..."), of which the "generations of the sons of Noah, Shem, Ham, and Japheth" is the fourth. Events before the Genesis flood
Aram, son of Shem Aram, son of Shem Aram ( "Aram") is a son of Shem, according to the Table of Nations in Genesis 10 of the Hebrew Bible, and the father of Uz, Hul, Gether and Mash or Meshech. The Book of Chronicles lists Aram, Uz, Hul, Gether, and Meshech as descendants of Shem, although without stating explicitly that Aram is the father of the other four. Aram is usually regarded as being the eponymous ancestor of the Aramaean people of Northern Mesopotamia and Syria. The name Aram (, "Aram") means etymologically "height, high region", according to Wilhelm Gesenius and "the highland" according