Baal

Divine title given to their chief male gods by the Phoenicians, or Canaanites, of the eastern Mediterranean coast about 1200-332 BC. Their worship as fertility gods, often orgiastic and of a phallic character, was strongly denounced by the Hebrew prophets.

The word ‘Baal’ is found in many Semitic names; for example, Ish-bael ‘man of Baal’, Hannibal, ‘favour of Baal’, and Baalbek. Many devout Yahwists include Baal in their names to indicate Yahweh's superiority; for example, Jerubbaal ‘overthrower of Baal’ and Meribbaal ‘contender of Baal’.

Baal

Opera by Friedrich Cerha (libretto by the composer after Bertolt Brecht), first produced in Salzburg, Austria, on 7 August 1981. It portrays the poet Baal as a victim of society.