Meaning of MIDIAN

"quarrel".
(a) Son of Abraham and Keturah; His father gave him gifts and sent him “to the eastern country,” toward the desert; The name Midian designates both Abraham's son and the tribe that arose from him (Gen. 25:1-6).

(b) Region occupied by the Midianites north of the Arabian Desert, near the Gulf of Akaba. Midian was bounded to the northwest by Edom.

Its limits, which have never been determined, undoubtedly varied greatly throughout history. The entire territories subjected to the Midianites in the OT era occupied a space of around 280 km from north to south.

At the time of the Exodus, Midian controlled the pasture lands east of Horeb on the Sinai Peninsula (Ex. 3:1). The Midianites took possession of a territory where they had resided for a time; This district bordered Moab and was also the border with the kingdom of the Amorites, whose capital was Heshbon (Gen. 36:35; Num. 22:4; 25:1, 6; Josh. 13:21).

The country east of Edom, as far as the Red Sea, belonged to the Midianites. Defeated in the Jezreel Valley, they fled to the east. Gideon, pursuing them, reached Sukkot and the Gadite city of Jogbeha (Judges 8:5, 10, 11; cf. Gen. 37:25, 28).

In the time of David, an Edomite fugitive of royal blood lived in Midian, probably southeast of Edom, before heading to Egypt (1 Kings 11:17, 18). The Midianites resided primarily east and southeast of the Gulf of Akaba. The name of Midian is found in some of the ruins called "Madyan."