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The Hebrew languages refer to a variety of Canaanite languages and dialects historically spoken by various peoples in the region of Canaan whom Abrahamic religion believes to have been Hebrews who emigrated from the Chaldees. These different languages were not necessarily more or less related to each other than to other Canaanite languages, and their traditional distinction as Hebrew languages is almost purely by religious belief.

Of the varieties of Hebrew, only one — Modern Hebrew — survives as a spoken language today, and is one of the official languages of the State of Israel. A few others survive as liturgical languages, but are otherwise not actively used in daily life.

1 Hebrew subdivisions in Biblical Canaan

Abrahamic religion believes that there were (at least) four Hebrew nations in Canaan: Ammon, Moab, Edom and Israel, all believed to be direct descendants of the Hebrew patriarch TerahTerah or Terach "Wanderer; loiterer", Standard Hebrew Tera / Tara Tiberian Hebrew Tera / Tra was the father of Abraham mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. According to the Book of Genesis 11, Terah was the son of Nahor, who was the son of Serug, who was the so, whose son Abram and grandson LotIn the Bible, Lot "Hidden, covered", Standard Hebrew Lot Tiberian Hebrew L Qur’anic Arabic Lu was the nephew of the patriarch, Abraham or Abram. He was the son of Abraham's brother Haran. According to Jewish midrash, Abraham took care of Lot after Haran w (Abram's nephew) settled in Canaan and adapted to the local language of the Canaanites. Although they are believed to have had contact and trade with the indigenous Canaanites, it is also believed that the more pious families of AbrahamAbraham "Father/Leader of many", Standard Hebrew Avraham Tiberian Hebrew Arhm Arabic Ibrhim is the patriarch of Judaism, Islam, and Christianity. His story is told in the Book of Genesis. Islam also regards him as the ancestor of the Bedouins, through Ish, IsaacIsaac or Yitzhak "He will laugh. Standard Hebrew Yiaq Tiberian Hebrew Yiq Arabic Isq is a biblical patriarch, the son and heir of Abraham and the father of Jacob and Esau. His story is told in the Book of Genesis. Isaac was so called because when his moth and JacobAngel Gustave Dore, 1855 Jacob or Ya'akov "Holder of the heel", Standard Hebrew Yaaqov Tiberian Hebrew Yaaqo Arabic Yaqub , later known as Israel "Prince with God", Standard Hebrew Yisrael Tiberian Hebrew Yisrel Arabic Isril is a biblical patriarch. His s forbade intermarriage or assimilation to Canaanite culture, ultimately giving the Israelites a culture permanently separated from the Canaanites.

2 Language of Biblical Hebrews before Canaan

If (as the Book of Genesis implies) the Hebrews came from elsewhere rather than being native to Canaan, their language was most probably not a Canaanite one (as Biblical Hebrew linguistically is). Biblical scholars who accept this feature of the account in Genesis have put forward several theories as to what this language may have been:

• The language was Akkadian, the predominating language of the Chaldees.
• The language was an early form of the Aramaic language, more specifically the same language spoken by Laban, another descendant of Terah. This theory assumes that Laban inherited the language ancestrally from Terah, thus assuming that the Hebrews spoke Aramaean languages.
• It was a Northeast Caucasian language, perhaps closely related to Avar.
• The language was one of the extinct Hurro-Urartian languages, a non- Semitic language family based in eastern Anatolia. This theory assumes that the Hebrews were originally Hurro-Urartian-speaking, and different descendants of the culture adopted local languages wherever they sojourned or settled. It also associates the Hebrews either with the Hurrians, or with Urartu and the mountains of Ararat, the traditional landing site of Noah's ark.
• The early Hebrews were highly multilingual and no one language clearly predominated. This would be plausible considering Abraham and Lot as sojourners, learning and speaking the local language of the places they traveled and in which they traded.