Tubal-Cain
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Tubal-Cain, or Tubalcain, (Tuval Kayin in Hebrew), is a figure in the Book of Genesis, who functions as a culture hero who is credited with the invention of blacksmithing and ironworking. His name means "thou wilt be brought of Cain", suggesting he is a descendant of Cain.
He was the son of Lamech, a descendant of Cain, by his wife Zillah and the first worker of bronze and iron; Cain's great-great-great-great-grandchild.
- "Zillah also gave birth to Tubal Cain, the forger of every cutting instrument of brass and iron. Tubal Cain’s sister was Naamah." Genesis 4:22 WEB
Scholars have suggested that Tubal-cain is related to Vulcan, the Roman god of metalworking. Omitting the "Tu" and turning the "b" to a "v", a frequent change in Hebrew, Greek and Roman vocabulary, the name Vulcain or Vulcan appears.
In his Doorway Papers, "Genesis and Early Man", Arthur C. Custance relates the traditions of Vulcan and compares that to a story found in Genesis 4:23 where Lamech has taken revenge on a young man for somehow wounding him. Vulcan mythology records that the god was lame, having been thrown out of heaven by Jupiter, his father, as punishment for siding with his mother in an argument. Custance theorizes that this story of Vulcan could fit into the Genesis account and lead to the folklore surrounding the Roman god if one assumes that "the young man" that Lamech avenged was his son, Tubal-cain.
Another interesting name form involving Tubal-cain involves that of his mother, Zillah. It is customary in societies that allow polygamy to name the child after the mother instead of the father for easier identification. This would make Tubal-cain's name "Bar Zillah", that is, "son of Zillah". "Parzillu", an early Sumerian word for "iron" is easily recognizable as the masculinized form of Barzillah. Furthermore, Barzillah can possibly be linked to the country of Brazil, the land of iron.
References
- Adam Clarke's Commentary on the Bible
- Custance, Arthur C., Volume II: The Doorway Papers, "Genesis and Early Man".
- "Spading Up Ancient Words" by Erich A. von Fange, (c) 1984. Online, http://www.creationism.org/vonfange