What Is Canaan Called Today?

The area referred to as Canaan in the Bible is today known as the southern half of the Levant, a region in the Middle East that is bounded by the Taurus Mountains in the north, the Mediterranean Sea in the west and the north Arabian Desert to the east.

The boundaries of the region known in Biblical times as Canaan now surround Jordan, Israel and Palestinian territories including the West Bank and Gaza, as well as the southern sections of Syria and Lebanon. In the Bible, the tribes of Israel conquered the land and people of Canaan after their escape from slavery in Egypt.