According to Genesis, Ham became the ancestor of Canaan. Genesis 9:18 identifies Ham as the father of Canaan, and the later episode involving Noah’s curse concerns Canaan rather than directly naming Ham as the person cursed.
Ham is one of Noah’s three sons, alongside Shem and Japheth. Genesis 10 presents a table of nations that links descendants of the three sons with peoples and territories known to the biblical authors.
This passage has been widely misused in later history to justify racial slavery. The text does not mention race or Africa as a justification for slavery, and the so-called “curse of Ham” is a later label that can obscure the passage’s actual wording. The specific genealogical answer in Genesis is Ham, through his son Canaan.