What is "magog"

Magog may refer to:

Magog (; Hebrew מגוג , Greek Μαγωγ) is the second of the seven sons of Japheth mentioned in the Table of Nations in Genesis 10.

Magog is often associated with apocalyptic traditions, mainly in connection with Ezekiel 38 and 39 which mentions " Gog of the land of Magog, the chief prince of Meshech and Tubal" (Ezek 38:2 NIV); on the basis of this mention, " Gog and Magog" over time became associated with each other as a pair. In the New Testament, this pairing is found in the Book of Revelation 20:8, in which instance they may merely be metaphors for archetypal enemies of God.

Josephus refers to Magog son of Japheth as progenitor of Scythians, or peoples north of the Black Sea. According to him, the Greeks called Scythia Magogia (Ant., bk. I, 6). An alternate identification derived from an examination of the order in which tribal names are listed in Ezekiel 38, "would place Magog between Cappadocia and Media." According to Rabbi Shlomo Ganzfried (19th century) Magog refers to the Mongols. He cites an Arab writer who refers to the Great Wall of China with the name 'Magog'.

Jordanes' Getica (551) mentions Magog as ancestor of the Goths, as does the Historia Brittonum, but Isidore of Seville (c. 635) asserts that this identification was popular "because of the similarity of the last syllable" ( Etymologiae, IX, 89). Johannes Magnus (1488–1544) stated that Magog migrated to Scandinavia (via Finland) 88 years after the flood, and that his five sons were Suenno (ancestor of the Swedes), Gethar (or Gog, ancestor of the Goths), Ubbo (who later ruled the Swedes and built Old Uppsala), Thor, and German. Magnus' accounts became accepted at the Swedish court for a long time, and even caused the dynastic numerals of the Swedish monarchs to be renumbered accordingly. Queen Christina of Sweden reckoned herself as number 249 in a list of kings going back to Magog. Magnus also influenced several later historians such as Daniel Juslenius (1676–1752), who derived the roots of the Finns from Magog.

According to several medieval Irish chronicles, most notably the Auraicept na n-Éces and Lebor Gabála Érenn, the Irish race are a composite including descendants of Japheth's son Magog from "Scythia". Baath mac Magog (Boath), Jobhath, and Fathochta are the three sons of Magog. Fenius Farsaid, Partholón, Nemed, the Fir Bolg, the Tuatha de Danann, and the Milesians are among Magog's descendants. Magog was also supposed to have had a grandson called Heber, whose offspring spread throughout the Mediterranean.

There is also a medieval Hungarian legend that says the Huns, as well as the Magyars, are descended from twin brothers named Hunor and Magor respectively, who lived by the sea of Azov in the years after the flood, and took wives from the Alans. The version of this legend in the 14th century Chronicon Pictum equates this Magor with Magog, son of Japheth.

The Magog are an alien race in the television series Andromeda. The most significant Magog character in the series is Rev Bem, who eschews the "brutish violence" of the rest of the Magog.

Magog is a fictional character in the comic books published by DC Comics. He first appeared in Kingdom Come #1 (May 1996), and was created by Mark Waid and Alex Ross. In 2009, Magog was ranked as IGN's 75th Greatest Comic Book Villain of All Time.