{"id":44070,"date":"2025-08-12T07:00:17","date_gmt":"2025-08-12T11:00:17","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.biblicalarchaeology.org\/?p=44070"},"modified":"2025-08-11T11:35:10","modified_gmt":"2025-08-11T15:35:10","slug":"lilith-in-the-bible-and-mythology","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.biblicalarchaeology.org\/daily\/biblical-topics\/hebrew-bible\/lilith-in-the-bible-and-mythology\/","title":{"rendered":"Lilith in the Bible and Mythology"},"content":{"rendered":"
\"White<\/a>

C.S. Lewis\u2019s character Jadis, the White Witch of Narnia, in his The Chronicles of Narnia<\/em> novels is said to have descended from Lilith, Adam\u2019s first wife. Pictured here is Tilda Swinton as Jadis, the White Witch of Narnia, in the film adaptation The Chronicles of Narnia: The Lion, the Witch and the Wardrobe<\/em> (2005).<\/p><\/div>\n

C.S. Lewis, one of the most beloved authors of the 20th century, created a magical, fictional world called Narnia. The primary villain of the first book of this series, The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe<\/em>, is Jadis, the White Witch. Below is the character Edmund\u2019s description of the White Witch when he first meets her:<\/p>\n

A great lady, taller than any woman that Edmund had ever seen. She also was covered in white fur up to her throat and held a long straight golden wand in her right hand and wore a golden crown on her head. Her face was white\u2014not merely pale, but white like snow or paper or icing-sugar, except for her very red mouth. It was a beautiful face in other respects, but proud and cold and stern.
\n(The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe<\/em>)<\/p><\/blockquote>\n

Jadis, the White Witch, is beautiful\u2014and terrifying. Although she looks like a human, she is not. According to the character Mr. Beaver, the White Witch was descended from Lilith, Adam\u2019s first wife, on one side and from giants on the other.<\/p>\n

Who is Lilith? Is there any warrant for calling Lilith Adam\u2019s first wife, or is this just the baseless chatter of woodland creatures? Are there appearances of Lilith in the Bible?<\/p>\n

Dan Ben-Amos, Professor of Folklore and Asian and Middle Eastern Studies at the University of Pennsylvania, explores the figure of Lilith in the Bible and mythology in his article \u201cFrom Eden to Ednah\u2014Lilith in the Garden<\/a>\u201d in the May\/June 2016 issue of Biblical Archaeology Review<\/em>. His analysis shows that Lilith is an intriguing figure who has taken on many shapes over the millennia. From this, we see that Jadis, the White Witch, shares more than just lineage with her supposed ancestor.<\/p>\n\n\n\t\t

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FREE ebook: Exploring Genesis: The Bible\u2019s Ancient Traditions in Context<\/strong>\r\nMesopotamian creation myths, Joseph\u2019s relationship with Egyptian temple practices and 3 tales of Ur, the birthplace of Abraham.\r\n<\/p>\n\n\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t\t