In Genesis, Canaan was Noah's grandson whose descendants included the Canaanites. Genesis 10:6 lists Canaan as a son of Ham, one of Noah's three sons, and then names several groups associated with Canaan's descendants.
The family sequence is Noah, Ham, and Canaan. Genesis 9:25 includes a curse involving Canaan after the episode in which Ham sees Noah uncovered, while Genesis 10 presents a genealogy of nations. The text therefore connects Canaan with Noah's post-Flood family and with the peoples of the land later called Canaan.
Canaan should not be confused with Ham or with Cush, Mizraim, and Put, who are also listed as Ham's sons. The genealogy is a biblical origin account rather than a modern demographic classification. Its names and relationships are important for understanding how Genesis links the Flood story to later narratives about the peoples and territories of the ancient Near East.