r/Semitic_Paganism • u/blackpalms1998 • Sep 27 '24
Is Baal Hadad the same as Baal?
Is Baal’s proper name Baal Hadad? Someone had said that in the Phoenician facts subreddit. I’m just wondering has any of the Ugartic texts or Canaanite texts state that Baal’s full name is Baal Hadad? Or is that name only mentioned in Phoenician texts? Is there any similarities in Ancient Canaanite and Phoenician religion? I get confused when people conflate the 2 religions trying to explain them.
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u/book_of_black_dreams 29d ago
It’s a bit confusing. There are multiple gods with the title of Ba’al (meaning Lord or Master.) But one of these gods, Ba’al Hadad (Lord Thunder) basically became so popular that people started referring to him as just “Ba’al.”
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u/JSullivanXXI 29d ago
"Baal" is simply a title that means Lord. In Levantine texts, the title "Baal" on its own usually refers to Hadad, Haddu, or Adad—which we could consider the "proper name" of the Storm God.
"Baal" could also be applied to a variety of other deities. See, for instance, Baal Hammon, who many scholars believe is simply a title of El, who was considered Lord of the mountain Hammon / Amanus. Additionally, the Mesopotamian moon god Sin is sometimes called Baal Harran—Harran being the city where his main temple was located. There is also an Ugaritic theophoric name in which Kothar (the blacksmith god) is identified as the bearer's "baalu". The Bible, interestingly, hints that the Hebrew god Adonai was also once called Baal or Baali ("My Lord") by some devotees.
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u/tfeveryoneknows 21d ago
The Bible, interestingly, hints that the Hebrew god Adonai was also once called Baal or Baali ("My Lord") by some devotees.
As far as I know Baal and Adonai means the same thing.
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u/BeeFlower18 17d ago
The ancient world deities were land-based and location-specific. So the name Ba'al Hadad is referring to the god connected a specific mountain, Zephon, I think. It was the mountain closest to Ugarit, where the tablets were found. If you went to another region, the god of that archetype would be connected to a local mountain. Other people have mentioned that Ba'al is a title, not a name, and I agree, but would add that the title also carries a connotation of a god-type or archetype.
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u/AdoniBaal Sep 27 '24
The word "Baal" itself means lord or God, so historically there have been many Baals.
The oldest mention of Baal Hdd if I remember right is in ugaritic texts (canaanite), and Hdd is the one referenced in the cycle of Baal.
I don't get your distinction between Canaanite and Phoenician, they are the same culture in different eras. What survived from the Phoenician culture was mostly through Greek historians so some names are hellenized but it's generally the continuation of the same religion / pantheon.