>>20135594Yuya, the Egyptian courtier who probably inspired the biblical story of Joseph, was the father of Queen Tiye, wife of Pharaoh Amenhotep III, father of Akhenaten, the "monotheistic pharaoh". It is interesting that this pharaoh founded and had Amarna as his headquarters, which served as Egypt's diplomatic intermediary with Canaan and Amurru, from where we obtained the Amarna letters which mentions the Habiru (Hebrews).
The Proto-Jews settle in Israel during the Hyksos (Canaanite) Rulers of Egypt, around 1800-1600. By 1500, the Egyptians retake Egypt from the Canaanites. This is the "enslavement" of the Jewish people at the hands of the now hostile non-canaanite dynasty. The Hyksos had invited them to dwell their due to famines which drove out the hyksos from Canaan in the first place. These famines are mentioned in the bible. After the enslavement, things get murkey. But sometime BEFORE the Amarna letters (which are the historical accounts of the geo-political struggles of the region). This is around 1400-1350.
Now the problem here is where the bible comes in. When exactly did Moses and the Jewish leave Egypt? It has to be before the Amarna letters, about 40 years. But we also have a pretty vague understanding of egyptian chronology and it could easily shorten 100-200 years. The Shasu nomads are also mentioned in this period, meaning the notion of "Jah" as a god has already steadily begun to be codified by these nomadic peoples. Obviously, one tribal element of the Jews. The varying "tribes" in the bible is just a narrative technique to provide identity and ancestry to the varying nomadic groups that joined up. Most, if not all of the tribes, at first worshipped their own god, and not the primary "Jahweh" that forms later.
