פירוש על בראשית 25:3

אשורם ולטושם The names of chieftains of clans (Genesis Rabbah 61:5). As regards the translation of Onkelos I cannot make it fit in exactly with the words of the text. He explains אשורם by למשירין which means “camps” (cf. שיירא a caravan). If you say that this cannot be correct on account of the א in אשורם which is not a root letter in the word from which משירין is derived (whilst in אשורם we have an א) then I would reply that we find some words which should have no א at the beginning, but still א is placed before them. Such are אנך in (Amos 7:7) “a wall made by a plumbline (אנך)”, where the word is of the same root as נכה in (2 Samuel 4:4) “stricken (נכה) in his feet”, and אסוך, a cruse containing anointing oil, in (2 Kings 4:2) “a pot (אסוך) of oil” which is of the same root as וסכת in (Ruth 3:3) “wash thyself and (וסכת) annoint thyself”.

ASSHURIM, AND LETUSHIM, AND LEUMMIM. Rashi comments: “These were the names of clan chieftains. But I cannot reconcile Onkelos’ translation with the language of the text.”¹⁵⁰Onkelos translates Asshurim as meaning “camps,” Letushim as “owners of tents who spread about in all directions,” and Leumim as “islands” or “sea-districts.” Upon this Rashi comments that he cannot make Onkelos’ translation fit in exactly with the words of the text. Ramban now proceeds to explain Onkelos’ understanding on the verse and also the reason why he was forced to make this translation.
It appears to me that Onkelos was of the opinion that Asshurim means camps, companies that travel the roads from city to city, just as it says, a company of Ishmaelites.¹⁵¹Further, 37:25. Onkelos thus considered Asshurim as being derived from the expressions, To His steps (‘ba’ashuro’) hath my foot held fast;¹⁵²Job 23:11. His steps (‘ashurav’) do not slide.¹⁵³Psalms 37:31. And Onkelos’ opinion of Letushim is that they are the ones who dwell in tents that are scattered over the face of the earth, resting today in one place and tomorrow in another, for the letter lamed and nun interchange in many places, [thus Letushim would be like Netushim (scattered ones)] just like lishchah and nishchah,¹⁵⁴Nehemiah 13:7. [both of which mean “chamber”]; And on that day men were appointed over ‘haneshachoth’ (the chambers).¹⁵⁵Ibid., 12:44. From this root is derived the expression, a sword ‘netushah,’¹⁵⁶Isaiah 21:15. which is the same as letushah (sharpened). And of the word Le’ummim Onkelos said ulenagvon, [which is Aramaic for the Hebrew word] iyim (islands).¹⁵⁷See Isaiah 41:1 and Targum.
Onkelos was stirred to this translation by the word hayu [and the children of Dedan ‘hayu’ (were) Asshurim, and Letushim, and Leummim], when it would have been proper to express it similarly to the verse, And Mitzraim begot Ludim, and Ananim, and Lehabim, and Naphtihim.¹⁵⁸Above, 10:13.
And in Bereshith Rabbah we find:¹⁵⁹61:4. “Rabbi Shmuel the son of Rav Nachman said that even though we translate these names and say, ‘Merchants, flaming ones, and heads of peoples,’ all of them were heads of peoples.” The matter is as I have explained. The translators rendered Asshurim as “merchants, those who walk the road.” From the word Letushim (sharp, shiny) they derived “men of wickedness,” their faces are faces of flame,¹⁶⁰Isaiah 13:8. burning as torches, from the roots: to sharpen ( liltosh ) his plowshare, and his coulter;¹⁶¹I Samuel 13:20. He sharpened ( yiltosh ) his eyes upon me.¹⁶²Job 16:9. But Rabbi Shmuel the son of Rav Nachman said that even though they are accustomed to thus translate these names, they are still only the proper names of the heads of people, there being no descriptive name among them at all. And such is the case.

ויקשן, The Torah mentions only some of the children of Keturah’s sons. In the case of Yokshon even a grandson of Keturah is mentioned. Altogether the Torah mentions by name 16 such sons and grandsons. We are hard-pressed to know the reason for the Torah’s selectivity in mentioning only part of the many grandsons, etc. Perhaps those whom Avraham or at least Keturah still knew before they died, are mentioned by name, whereas those who were born by his/her sons after he had died were not mentioned. Considering that Avraham had married Keturah when he was 140 years old or older, he lived for only another 35 years, it would have been unlikely that he saw grandchildren from Keturah, considering that we have no record of anyone marrying below the age of 29 in those days.

אשורים ולטושים ולאומים. According to Rashi these are all names of the eventual nations they developed into. Personally, I fail to reconcile what Onkelos says on these name with the wording of the text. Nachmanides writes that he understands Onkelos as saying that אשורים are camps and caravans which move from city to city, similar tote caravans of Ishmaelite traders described in the story of the sale of Joseph. The word is related to Job 23,11 באשורו אחזה רגלי, “I have followed in his tracks.” The word לטושים he understands as referring to Bedouins, dwellers in tents, instead of people housed in permanent structures. These are apt to be abandoned in time of need. The letter ל and נ are often used interchangeably as in נשכה instead of לשכה.”office.” (Nechemyah 13,7) Onkelos translates לאומים as נגון, i.e. a word meaning “islands.” (island dwellers) Probably Onkelos was alerted to the change in the text from יקשן ילד, “Yakshon sired,” to בני דן היו instead of בני דן ילדו, to see in the three wordsאשורים, ולטושים, and ולאומים something other than additional offspring. We would have expected a formulation parallel to Genesis 10,13 ומצרים ילד.

The name of the heads of nations. I.e., from one of Dedan’s sons descended all the Ashurim, and so from the second one [descended all the Letushim]. Otherwise, it should say Ashur and Latush, [in singular]. (Re’m) But Gur Aryeh explains: Otherwise it should say ובני דדן אשורים ולטושים. Why does it say היו? Perforce, because they are “the name of the heads of nations.”

אשורם usw. scheinen, wie auch nach Onkelos, nicht Eigennamen, sondern ihren Nationalcharakter ausdrückende Gattungsnamen zu sein. אשר geradhin schreitend, wovon אשורים, die geradhin gerichteten Schritte. לטש ,לטושים schärfen, Geschärfte, vielleicht einzeln gerüstet Lebende, die zu ihrer Verteidigung sich selbst genug waren.

אשורים, the name given to tent-dwelling nomads. לטושים, people who live scattered, and do not form a cohesive civilisation. The meaning is similar to the word נטושים people who have been abandoned on the fields, the letter נ having been exchanged by the letter ל.

The לטושים (according to Onkelos) are owners of tents who spread about in all directions and travel about each in the “tents of his palace” (Rashi uses a Biblical phrase (Daniel 11:45), but he means nothing more than “each in his own tent”). Indeed Scripture says (1 Samuel 30:16) “Behold they were spread (נטושים) over all the ground”, for ל and נ may interchange (so that לטושים is equivalent to נטושים).

אשורים ולטושים ולאמים, we do not know why the names of these three sons appear with the plural ending ים at the end. Possibly, these sons knew why they had been named thus. It is interesting that מצרים, a son of Cham, also gave his sons names ending with the ים plural ending. According to Onkelos, the names mentioned here were not their real names, as he translates their names as למשריין, ולשכונין, ולנגון.