cuthah Summary and Overview

one of the Babylonian cities or districts from which Shalmaneser transplanted certain colonists to Samaria (2 Kings 17:24). Some have conjectured that the "Cutheans" were identical with the "Cossaeans" who inhabited the hill-country to the north of the river Choaspes. Cuthah is now identified with Tell Ibrahim, 15 miles NE of Babylon.

The region of the Assyrian empire from whence Shalmaneser transported colonists, after the deportation of Israel from it. The seat of the worship of Nergal (2 Kings 17:24; 2 Kings 17:30). The name is akin to Cush, as the Chaldaeans said Athur for Ashur. (CUSH.) Its locality is probably Chuzistan in the region of Susiana E. of the Tigris. The mountainous region between Elam and Media was called Cuthah. It would be a natural policy to transplant some of the hardy mountaineers (called also Cossaei) from their own region, where they gave the Assyrians trouble, to Samaria. There is also a town Cuthah, now Towiba, close to Babylon. G. Smith and Rawlinson identify it with Tel Ibrahim. Intermixing with the ten tribes' remnant, they became progenitors of the Samaritans who are called "Cuthaeans" by the Jews. The Samaritans claimed kindred with the Sidonians, and these again with the Cuthaeans (Josephus, Ant. 11:8, section 6; 12:5, section 5; Chald. Paraphr.