Shem is traditionally listed as the ancestor of the Israelites in the genealogies after Noah.
Genesis names Noah’s three sons as Shem, Ham, and Japheth. In Genesis 11, the genealogy from Shem leads through several generations to Abram, later called Abraham. The biblical genealogies therefore place the ancestral line associated with the Israelites within Shem’s family line.
The term “Semitic” was later formed from Shem’s name and is used in historical and linguistic classification. In modern scholarship, “Semitic” primarily describes a language family that includes Hebrew, Arabic, Aramaic, and several ancient languages; it is not a simple biological category.
The other sons also receive genealogical roles in Genesis. Ham is linked in the narrative to Canaan and other peoples, while Japheth is associated with another group of descendants. These assignments belong to the Bible’s ancient ethnographic framework and should not be treated as modern population science.