Laban

Laban

Laban (Aramaic: ܠܵܒܵܢ; Hebrew: לָבָן‎, Modern: Lavan, Tiberian: Lāḇān, "White"), also known as Laban the Aramean, is a figure in the Book of Genesis of the Hebrew Bible. He was the brother of Rebekah, the woman who married Isaac and bore Jacob. Laban welcomed his nephew, and set him the stipulation of seven years' labour before he permitted him to marry his daughter Rachel. Read more on Wikipedia

Since 2007, the English Wikipedia page of Laban has received more than 82,200 page views. His biography is available in 37 different languages on Wikipedia (up from 33 in 2019). Laban is the 497th most popular religious figure (up from 505th in 2019).

Laban is most famous for his dance with Jacob. Laban was a shepherd, and Jacob was his nephew. Jacob wanted to marry Laban's daughter Rachel, but Laban tricked him by giving him his daughter Leah instead. Jacob realized the trick and demanded to marry Rachel as well. Laban agreed, but only if Jacob worked for him for seven years. After the seven years were up, Laban tried to cheat Jacob by giving him his daughter Leah again, but Jacob insisted on Rachel. Laban finally agreed to give Rachel to Jacob in exchange for seven more years of labor.