Gederah
Ged'erah (Heb. with the article hag-Gederah', הִגּדֵרָה, the fortress or sheep-cote SEE GEDER; Sept. Γαδηρα), a town in the Shephelah or plain of Judah (Jos 15:36, where it is mentioned Uetween Adithaim and Gederothaim [q.v.]). According to Eusebius and Jerome (Onomast. s.v. Γάδειρα, Gaddera), it was still a village (Γέδορα, Gadora) near Jerusalem "around the Terebinth," an expression which Raumur (Palast. page 193) interprets of the valley of Elah or the terebinth (1Sa 17:1); although Keil (on Joshua, ad loc.) shows that it means the wood of Mamre, near Hebron, and Reland had pointed out that this was in the mountains and not the lowlands of Judah (Palest. page 802). Van de Velde has identified the site with that of "Gheterah or Ghederah, a village on the south banks of wady Surar, near the high road from Ramleh to Ghuzzeh" (Memoir, page 313); a position exactly agreeing with that of the Cedes (Κέδους, Jerome Gedrus), described by Eusebius (Ononast. s.v. Γεδούρ, Jerome Gaedur) as a very large village ten miles from Diospolis (Lydda) towards Eleutheropolis (Beit-Jibrin). The inhabitants seem to be those designated as Gederites (q.v.) in 1Ch 27:28 (comp. 4:23, "hedges").
