The meaning of Hivite in the Bible
(From International Standard Bible Encyclopedia)

hi'-vit (chiwwni; Heuaios):

1. Name:

A son of Canaan (Genesis 10:17), i.e. an inhabitant of the land of Canaan along with the Canaanite and other tribes (Exodus 3:17, etc.). In the list of Canaanite peoples given in Genesis 15:19-21, the Hivites are omitted in the Hebrew text, though inserted in Septuagint and S. Gesenius suggests that the name is descriptive, meaning "villagers." The difficulty of explaining it is increased by the fact that it has been confused with "Horite" in some passages of the Hebrew text. In Joshua 9:7 the Septuagint reads "Horite" as also does Codex A in Genesis 34:2, and in Genesis 36:2 a comparison with Genesis 36:24-25 shows that "Horite" must be substituted for "Hivite."

2. Geographical Situation:

In Judges 3:3 the Hittites are described as dwelling "in Mount Lebanon, from Mount Baal-hermon unto the entrance of Hamath," and in accordance with this the Hivite is described in Joshua 11:3 as being "under Hermon in the land of Mizpeh," and in II Samuel 24:7 they are mentioned immediately after "the stronghold of Tyre." Hence, the Septuagint (Codex Alexandrinus) reading must be right in Genesis 34:2 and Joshua 9:7, which makes the inhabitants of Shechem and Gibeon Horites instead of Hivites; indeed, in Genesis 48:22 the people of Shechem are called Amorite, though this was a general name for the population of Canaan in the patriarchal period. No name resembling Hivite has yet been found in the Egyptian or Babylonian inscriptions.

A. H. Sayce

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