Hebrew tribe

The Israelites (/ˈɪzriəˌlaɪtsˌ/; Hebrew: בני ישראל‎‎ Bnei Yisra'el) were a confederation of Iron Age Semitic-speaking tribes of the ancient Near East, who inhabited a part of Canaan during the tribal and monarchic periods. The ancient Israelites are considered to be an outgrowth of the indigenous Canaanite populations that long inhabited the Southern Levant, Syria, ancient Israel and the Transjordan region.

In the Hebrew Bible, the term Israelites, also known as the Hebrews and the Twelve Tribes of Israel, refers to the direct descendants of any of the sons of the patriarch Jacob, or to the descendants of the people who are called Israel, and to a worshiper of the God of Israel, Yahweh. In the period of the divided monarchy it was only used to refer to the inhabitants of the northern Kingdom of Israel, and it is only extended to cover the people of the southern Kingdom of Judah in post-exilic usage.

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