Person Old Testament
Kedar
Kedar was a son of Ishmael and the eponymous ancestor of a nomadic Arab tribe known for their tents and flocks. Mentioned in 11 verses across 7 books, first at Genesis 25:13.
Why it matters. A son of Ishmael and a nomadic tribe
- Last reviewed
- 2026-08-30 by the FaithGraph team
About Kedar
Kedar is first mentioned in Gen.25.13 and 1Ch.1.29 as one of the twelve sons of Ishmael, the son of Abraham. He is the eponymous ancestor of the Kedarites, a nomadic Arab tribe that inhabited the desert regions of northern Arabia.
The Kedarites were known for their black tents (Sng.1.5) and their large flocks of sheep and goats (Isa.60.7; Ezk.27.21). They were skilled archers and warriors (Isa.21.16-17) and were one of the major Arab tribes in the ancient Near East.
In the Bible, Kedar is often used as a representation of the nomadic tribes of the desert. The psalmist laments living among the tents of Kedar, symbolizing a hostile and foreign environment (Psalm Isa.120.5). The prophet Jeremiah uses Kedar as an example of a distant and powerful nation.
Description from STEPBible TIPNR (Tyndale House, Cambridge), CC BY 4.0, lightly reformatted. This is background reference material, not Scripture and not a FaithGraph editorial claim.
Connections
No reviewed connections yet.
Family
Family links from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0). Where the dataset marks an identification as uncertain, the mark is kept. Matthew and Luke give different genealogies for Jesus; see the Lineage page, which never merges them.
- Parents
- Ishmael
Appears in Scripture
Named in 11 verses across 7 books. Occurrence data from STEPBible TIPNR (CC BY 4.0); references only, no translation text.