If you look for the words Saudi Arabia in the Bible, you will not find them. That is because Saudi Arabia is a modern country, while the Bible describes the ancient world using older geographical names.
So, what was Saudi Arabia called in the Bible?
The simplest answer is this: there was no single biblical name for modern Saudi Arabia. The Bible speaks about Arabia as a larger region and mentions ancient peoples and places such as Kedar, Dedan, Tema, and Midian that were connected with parts of the Arabian Peninsula. Some of those ancient locations are now within the borders of Saudi Arabia.
This distinction matters. Saying that Saudi Arabia was simply called “Midian” or “Kedar” in biblical times sounds easy, but it is not historically precise. Modern national borders did not exist in the biblical period.
The Bible gives us something more interesting: a picture of ancient Arabia made up of deserts, oases, tribes, trading centers, caravan routes, and kingdoms.
Was Saudi Arabia Called Arabia in the Bible?
Arabia is the closest broad biblical term, but biblical Arabia was not exactly the same territory as modern Saudi Arabia.
The name appears clearly in Scripture.
One of the most important passages is Isaiah 21:13–17. Isaiah gives a prophecy concerning Arabia and then speaks about the caravans of Dedan, the people of Tema, and Kedar. These names help us locate the prophecy in the world of northern Arabia.
Arabia also appears in other Old Testament passages.
1 Kings 10:15 refers to kings of Arabia in connection with wealth brought to Solomon. 2 Chronicles 9:14 gives a similar description. Ezekiel 27:21 connects Arabia and the princes of Kedar with trade in livestock.
These passages tell us something important. Arabia was already a recognizable biblical geographical and cultural term.
But we should not imagine an ancient map with the present Saudi border drawn around it.
Biblical Arabia could refer to different parts of the wider Arabian world depending on the period and passage. One Bible reference work notes that the geographical use of Arabia varies across biblical texts, sometimes focusing on northern Arabian desert regions and elsewhere covering a broader area.
So when someone asks, What is the biblical name for Saudi Arabia?, a careful answer is:
The Bible calls the wider region Arabia, while individual areas within or near modern Saudi Arabia were known by names such as Dedan, Tema, Kedar, and Midian.
What Was Saudi Arabia Called in the Bible Before Modern Borders?
To understand this question, imagine looking at an ancient map rather than a modern political map.
There was no Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in the days of Abraham, Moses, Isaiah, or Jesus. Instead, different peoples lived across different parts of the Arabian Peninsula.
Some lived around fertile oases. Others moved with their animals through desert regions. Some controlled trade routes that connected Arabia with Egypt, the Levant, and Mesopotamia.
Several biblical names are especially important.
| Biblical name | What it refers to | Connection with modern Saudi Arabia |
|---|---|---|
| Arabia | Broad geographical region and peoples | Included areas of the Arabian Peninsula |
| Dedan | Ancient people and settlement | Strongly connected with northwestern Saudi Arabia |
| Tema | Ancient oasis and people | Associated with modern Tayma in Saudi Arabia |
| Kedar | Ishmaelite tribe | Associated with northern Arabian desert regions |
| Midian | Ancient people and territory | Connected with northwestern Arabia and neighboring areas |
These names overlap geographically in complicated ways. They should not be treated as five different “old names” for the whole Saudi kingdom.
Dedan and Northwestern Arabia
Dedan is one of the strongest biblical connections with land now inside Saudi Arabia.
Genesis 25 places Dedan among Abraham’s descendants through Keturah’s family line. Isaiah later refers to caravans of Dedan in his message concerning Arabia.
Dedan was also an important ancient settlement.
The ancient site of Dadan is associated with the AlUla area of northwestern Saudi Arabia. UNESCO identifies Dadan as one of the important ancient settlements of AlUla, a region now well known for its extraordinary archaeological heritage.
That creates a fascinating connection between biblical geography and a place people can identify on a modern Saudi map.
But we still should not say, “Saudi Arabia used to be called Dedan.”
A better statement is:
Dedan was an ancient biblical people and place located in a region that is now part of Saudi Arabia.
Tema and the Ancient Oasis of Tayma
Tema, sometimes spelled Tema in English Bibles, provides another unusually clear link.
Genesis 25:15 lists Tema among the sons of Ishmael. Isaiah 21:14 then describes the people of Tema providing help in the Arabian setting of the prophecy.
Ancient Tema is commonly associated with Tayma, an oasis in northwestern Saudi Arabia.
Archaeological evidence shows that Tayma had a very long history. Its position helped make it an important center of settlement and trade. UNESCO describes commercial contacts between Tayma and regions such as Syria and the Levant and notes the oasis’s importance along Arabian exchange routes.
One particularly interesting historical detail is that Nabonidus, the last king of the Neo-Babylonian Empire, spent years at Tayma in the sixth century BC. Archaeological evidence includes inscriptions connected with his presence.
For Bible readers, Tema gives us something valuable. It reminds us that many apparently distant biblical names belonged to real places in the ancient Near Eastern world.
Was Kedar a Biblical Name for Saudi Arabia?
You may sometimes hear that Saudi Arabia was called Kedar in the Bible.
That statement needs qualification.
Kedar was not the biblical name of the entire territory that is now Saudi Arabia. Kedar was the name of an Ishmaelite ancestor and later an Arabian tribal people.
Genesis 25:13 names Kedar among the sons of Ishmael. The name later appears in passages dealing with Arabian peoples.
Isaiah 21 is especially important because Kedar appears within the prophecy concerning Arabia. Jeremiah 49 also contains a message against Kedar and describes people associated with tents, flocks, camels, and desert life.
Ezekiel 27:21 describes Arabia and the princes of Kedar participating in trade, including lambs, rams, and goats.
These passages fit a northern Arabian setting.
Still, Kedar should be understood as a people, not as the ancient official name of Saudi Arabia.
If you want to study this people more closely, the related topic Where Is Kedar in the Bible helps explain why Kedar appears so often in discussions of biblical Arabia.
Was Midian Part of What Is Now Saudi Arabia?
Midian is another name often mentioned when people ask what Saudi Arabia was called in the Bible.
Again, the relationship is real, but it needs careful wording.
The Bible introduces Midian in Genesis 25. Midian was one of Abraham’s sons through Keturah.
This is worth remembering because Midian and Kedar do not come from the same immediate biblical family line.
Kedar is listed among the sons of Ishmael.
Midian is listed among Abraham’s sons through Keturah.
Later, Midian becomes very important in the story of Moses. After Moses fled Egypt, he went to the land of Midian. There he became connected with the household of the priest of Midian before eventually returning toward Egypt.
Ancient Midian is generally associated with territory around northwestern Arabia and areas near the Gulf of Aqaba.
UNESCO’s description of archaeological sites in northern Saudi Arabia discusses Qurayyah, northwest of modern Tabuk, in connection with the Midianites. It describes a wider Midianite landscape that included sites in the Tabuk region and names places such as Dedan and Tayma in that historical setting.
That provides strong archaeological support for connecting at least part of the ancient Midianite world with territory inside present-day northwestern Saudi Arabia.
But once again:
Saudi Arabia was not simply called Midian.
Midian represented one ancient people and territory within a much larger Arabian landscape.
Readers interested in Moses’ geographical world may also want to explore Where Is Midian in the Bible.
What Is the Biblical Name for Saudi Arabia?
If someone asks for one short answer, Arabia is the safest choice.
But it needs one sentence of explanation.
Biblical Arabia was broader than modern Saudi Arabia and did not have the same borders.
Isaiah 21 provides perhaps the clearest biblical picture because Arabia, Dedan, Tema, and Kedar appear together in the same geographical setting.
Ezekiel strengthens the connection by mentioning Arabia, Kedar, and Dedan in a trading context.
So we could put it this way:
Modern Saudi Arabia occupies much of the land that belonged to the wider ancient Arabian world, but Scripture identifies particular peoples and places rather than a country matching today’s Saudi borders.
That answer respects both Scripture and history.
What Was the Old Name of Saudi Arabia?
This question is slightly different from asking for the biblical name.
If we are talking about modern political history, we need to leave biblical times and move forward many centuries.
The Kingdom of Saudi Arabia received its present unified name in 1932 under King Abdulaziz. Before that final unification, his realm was associated politically with Hejaz and Najd.
Saudi historical records describe his changing titles. He became King of Hejaz and Sultan of Najd and its dependencies in 1926, then King of Hejaz and Najd and its dependencies in 1927. The unified country was proclaimed the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia in September 1932.
So there are two different answers depending on what you mean:
If you mean biblical history:
Think of Arabia, Dedan, Tema, Kedar, and Midian.
If you mean the period immediately before modern Saudi Arabia:
Think especially of Hejaz and Najd and the political territories brought together under King Abdulaziz.
Mixing these two periods can create confusion.
Hejaz and Najd are part of modern Saudi political history. Dedan, Tema, Kedar, Midian, and biblical Arabia belong to the much older world of Scripture.
Saudi Arabia and Ishmael in the Bible
The connection between biblical Arabia and Ishmael is another important part of this discussion.
Genesis 25 gives a list of Ishmael’s sons. Among them are names such as Kedar and Tema, which later appear in passages associated with Arabia.
This shows how biblical genealogies sometimes become geographical clues.
A person’s name can later become associated with a clan, tribe, or region.
But we need to avoid taking this too far.
The Bible does not say, “All people living in modern Saudi Arabia descend from this one biblical person.” Modern populations have complex histories spanning thousands of years.
Scripture’s more limited point is that ancient groups such as Kedar and Tema were remembered within the genealogical world of Ishmael.
Midian is different. As we saw earlier, Genesis places Midian among Abraham’s sons through Keturah.
Keeping those family lines separate makes the historical picture clearer.
Trade Routes Help Explain Biblical Arabia
Biblical Arabia was not simply an empty desert far away from the major events of Scripture.
Its people were connected to surrounding civilizations through trade.
Ezekiel 27 describes several peoples involved in Tyre’s vast commercial network. Dedan appears as a trading partner, followed by Arabia and the princes of Kedar.
This matches what archaeology tells us about northern Arabian oases.
Tayma, for example, benefited from its location on routes linking Arabia with the Levant and other regions. UNESCO notes its long record of commercial contact and describes northern Arabian sites positioned along major caravan routes.
Imagine merchants traveling across dry country from one oasis to another.
They carried animals, valuable goods, pottery, metals, spices, and other products. A well-watered oasis could become a major stopping point. Settlements grew around these places, and rulers could become wealthy by participating in trade.
That world helps passages about Dedan, Tema, and Kedar feel much more real.
They were not simply mysterious names on a Bible page.
They belonged to communities living within important networks of travel, commerce, and politics.
What Was Saudi Arabia Called in the Bible According to Isaiah?
If we had to choose one chapter to answer the main question, Isaiah 21 would be one of the best.
Isaiah introduces an oracle concerning Arabia and then refers to Dedan, Tema, and Kedar.
Notice what this tells us.
Isaiah does not treat Arabia as one modern-style nation with one capital and one fixed boundary.
Instead, Arabia is a geographical setting containing recognizable groups.
Dedan has caravans.
Tema has inhabitants.
Kedar has its own people and strength.
That is much closer to the way we should picture biblical Arabia.
Jeremiah gives a similar impression. Jeremiah 25 places Dedan and Tema near a reference to kings associated with Arabia, while Jeremiah 49 speaks separately about Kedar.
The ancient map was a patchwork of peoples, settlements, tribal regions, and kingdoms.
Were Mecca and Medina Mentioned in the Bible?
Another common question is whether the Bible directly names Mecca or Medina.
The canonical Bible does not explicitly name the modern cities Mecca or Medina using those names.
Various religious interpretations have attempted to connect particular biblical locations or terms with later Arabian cities, but those interpretations should not be presented as if the Bible clearly identifies modern Mecca or Medina.
For a Bible-history article, the safer approach is to stay with locations that have direct textual and geographical evidence.
Names such as Arabia, Kedar, Dedan, Tema, and Midian give us much firmer ground.
This matters whenever we study ancient geography. Faith does not require us to claim more than the text actually says.
What Was Iraq Called in the Bible?
Modern Iraq, like Saudi Arabia, cannot be assigned one simple biblical name.
Much of Iraq belongs to the ancient region commonly called Mesopotamia, the great civilization zone associated with the Tigris and Euphrates river system. Ancient cities and kingdoms located within modern Iraq included major centers of Sumerian, Babylonian, Akkadian, and Assyrian civilization. The Metropolitan Museum identifies ancient sites such as Ur, Nimrud, and Ctesiphon within Mesopotamian contexts connected with modern Iraq.
Several names are especially important for Bible readers.
Babylon
Ancient Babylon was located in what is now Iraq.
Babylon became one of the most important places in Old Testament history, especially when the Babylonian Empire conquered Judah and Jerusalem and carried many Judeans into exile.
Assyria
The Assyrian Empire was centered farther north. The Metropolitan Museum notes that the Assyrian kings ruled an empire centered in northern Iraq during the first millennium BC.
Readers who want to understand that world more deeply can also explore Who Are the Assyrians in the Bible.
Mesopotamia
Mesopotamia is a larger geographical term rather than simply another word for Iraq.
Its ancient cultural world extended beyond the borders of the modern Iraqi state.
So just as we should not say Saudi Arabia was simply “Midian,” we should not say Iraq was simply “Babylon.”
The modern country contains territory once associated with several ancient peoples, cities, and kingdoms.
What Was Syria Called in Jesus’ Time?
This question has a much simpler answer.
Syria was already called Syria during New Testament times.
Matthew 4:24 says that news about Jesus spread throughout Syria. The name therefore appears directly in a Gospel account describing Jesus’ ministry.
The book of Acts also uses the name. Acts 15:41 describes Paul traveling through Syria and Cilicia while strengthening churches.
Earlier Old Testament history also contains the older term Aram and references to Aramean peoples. Depending on the biblical period and translation, those older terms can appear in discussions of regions that later became associated with Syria.
But if the specific question is:
What was Syria called in Jesus’ time?
The direct answer is:
Syria.
The New Testament itself uses the name.
Ancient Bible Geography Does Not Match Modern Borders
This is probably the most useful lesson to remember.
When we open a modern map, we see countries such as:
Saudi Arabia
Jordan
Israel
Egypt
Iraq
Syria
Each has recognized modern borders.
That is not how the ancient biblical world was organized.
Borders changed.
Empires rose and disappeared.
Tribes migrated.
Cities became powerful and then declined.
Kingdoms conquered their neighbors.
An area that belonged to one political power in one century might belong to another power several generations later.
That is why statements like these can cause problems:
“Saudi Arabia was called Midian.”
“Saudi Arabia was called Kedar.”
“Iraq was called Babylon.”
Each contains a small piece of geographical truth, but each oversimplifies thousands of years of history.
A better approach asks:
Which biblical peoples or places occupied land that falls within a modern country today?
Once we ask the question that way, the ancient map becomes much clearer.
A Simple Way to Remember Biblical Saudi Arabia
If all these names feel confusing, remember them in three levels.
1. Arabia Was the Wider Region
The Bible itself uses Arabia.
That is the broadest biblical name connected with the Arabian world.
2. Dedan and Tema Were Important Places
Both are connected with northern Arabia.
Dadan is associated with modern AlUla, while ancient Tema is associated with Tayma. Archaeological research confirms the great antiquity and importance of these northwestern Arabian settlements.
3. Kedar and Midian Represented Ancient Peoples
Kedar had an Ishmaelite biblical genealogy.
Midian had a separate line through Abraham and Keturah.
Both became associated with parts of the wider Arabian world.
That three-part picture is much more accurate than searching for one ancient name to place over the entire modern kingdom.
What This Ancient Geography Helps Us See
So, what was Saudi Arabia called in the Bible?
There was no single biblical country corresponding exactly to modern Saudi Arabia.
The broadest biblical term is Arabia. Within that larger Arabian world, Scripture identifies places and peoples such as Dedan, Tema, Kedar, and Midian. Archaeology provides especially strong modern connections for Dadan in AlUla, Tayma in northwestern Saudi Arabia, and Midianite activity around the Tabuk region.
Modern Saudi Arabia itself belongs to a much later chapter of history. The unified Kingdom of Saudi Arabia took its present name in 1932, after the political unification of territories including Hejaz and Najd under King Abdulaziz.
Knowing these distinctions helps us read the Bible more carefully.
Biblical geography is not just a list of strange names. These were real places filled with travelers, families, shepherds, merchants, rulers, and communities. Their roads connected deserts with cities. Their oases provided water to caravans. Their kingdoms interacted with Israel, Judah, Egypt, Babylon, Assyria, and other powers of the ancient world.
When Scripture speaks of Arabia, Kedar, Dedan, Tema, or Midian, it is opening a window onto that ancient landscape.
And sometimes, when we compare those names with archaeology and modern geography, we discover that the landscape is not as distant as it first seems. Places mentioned in the biblical world can still be located within the deserts and oases of Arabia today.
For further study, see Where Is Kedar in the Bible and Where Is Midian in the Bible, two related topics from our Bible geography collection.
Dr. Rachel is very smart and knows a lot about the Bible. He helps us understand the Bible better by talking about the old texts in a simple way.
