# Who Owned the Sinai Desert in Biblical Days? **URL:** \ **Category:** Factual Questions\ **Created:** [April 10, 2015, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owned-the-sinai-desert-in-biblical-days/717330 "2015-04-10T14:16:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 6\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Jinx](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/c6cbf5/32.png) [@Jinx](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jinx)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 2:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owned-the-sinai-desert-in-biblical-days/717330/1 "2015-04-10T14:16:57Z")
So, Israel took control of the Sinai desert from Egypt in the 1967 War, as I recall. Then, Israel returned it to Egypt as part of the 1979 Peace Treaty and still holds it today. But, I was wondering… When the Jews left ancient Egypt as freed slaves , did anyone claim the Sinai? Was it neutral territory? Or, a no-mans land? ---
**Author:** ![Kinthalis](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kinthalis/32/16084_2.png) [@Kinthalis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kinthalis)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 2:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owned-the-sinai-desert-in-biblical-days/717330/2 "2015-04-10T14:37:34Z")
> [@Jinx](#): > > So, Israel took control of the Sinai desert from Egypt in the 1967 War, as I recall. Then, Israel returned it to Egypt as part of the 1979 Peace Treaty and still holds it today. But, I was wondering… When the Jews left ancient Egypt as freed slaves , did anyone claim the Sinai? Was it neutral territory? Or, a no-mans land? The Jews never left Ancient Egypt as freed slaves as they were never slaves in Ancient Egypt. At the time of the story of Exodus, you’d be hard pressed to even call them Jews! They were semitic, polytheistic, canaanite pastoralists living in the highlands of Canaan. I would imagine Egypt controlled the Sinai, but I’m not sure, hopefully someone with the low down will chime in. ---
**Author:** ![Mr.Milton](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/6bbea6/32.png) [@Mr.Milton](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mr.Milton)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 3:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owned-the-sinai-desert-in-biblical-days/717330/3 "2015-04-10T15:06:12Z")
“Biblical times” covers a LOT of time… For a specific point in time, try this source: [http://www.amazon.com/The-Penguin-Atlas-Ancient-History/dp/0140513485](http://www.amazon.com/The-Penguin-Atlas-Ancient-History/dp/0140513485) IIRC, it was pretty much _never_ under control of the Israelites. Mostly, it was part of the Kingdom of Egypt, then the Persian Empire, then the Empire of Alexander, then the Ptolemaic Empire, then the Roman Empire. ---
**Author:** ![AK84](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/85e7bf/32.png) [@AK84](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AK84)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 5:09pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owned-the-sinai-desert-in-biblical-days/717330/4 "2015-04-10T17:09:55Z")
The OPs rather transparent motives aside, during the time period the Exodus is supposed to have taken place the Egyptians ruled lands streching as far north as the Euphrates. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 6:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owned-the-sinai-desert-in-biblical-days/717330/5 "2015-04-10T18:20:10Z")
According to the Wikipedia article, “the Sinai Peninsula remained under Egyptian control from the First Egyptian Dynasty (c. 3100 BC) until the 20th century.” That covers all of Biblical history. (Egypt was part of the Ottoman Empire from 1517-1906. but it was still Egypt, and, besides, that’s well after the Bible was concluded.) ---
**Author:** ![Malthus](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/85f322/32.png) [@Malthus](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Malthus)\ **Post date:** [April 10, 2015, 7:47pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/who-owned-the-sinai-desert-in-biblical-days/717330/6 "2015-04-10T19:47:27Z")
> [@BigT](#): > > According to the Wikipedia article, “the Sinai Peninsula remained under Egyptian control from the First Egyptian Dynasty (c. 3100 BC) until the 20th century.” That covers all of Biblical history. > > (Egypt was part of the Ottoman Empire from 1517-1906. but it was still Egypt, and, besides, that’s well after the Bible was concluded.) I think, more accurately, the Egyptians _usually_ controlled the coastal strip connecting their possessions and protectorates in Canaan, and occupied copper and tourquise-mining sites scattered here and there - and left the rest of it to the local tribes (in later ages, Bedouin). It would be a mistake to think that the Egyptian monarchy “controlled” the Sinai, as in governed it, in ‘Biblical’ times. There was simply nothing much that was worth governing there, as long as the local tribes didn’t raid the mines or caravans too much.