Who was the father of the twelve tribes of Israel?

The father of the twelve tribes of Israel was Jacob, who was later named Israel.

In Genesis, Jacob is the son of Isaac and Rebekah and the twin brother of Esau. He becomes the father of twelve sons: Reuben, Simeon, Levi, Judah, Dan, Naphtali, Gad, Asher, Issachar, Zebulun, Joseph, and Benjamin. Their descendants are traditionally identified as the Twelve Tribes of Israel.

Jacob’s family story includes marriages to Leah and Rachel and relationships with Bilhah and Zilpah. Joseph and Benjamin were Rachel’s sons, while the other sons were born to the other women. Jacob’s name is changed to Israel after a mysterious nighttime struggle, so “Israel” can refer both to Jacob personally and to his descendants collectively.

A frequent confusion is Joseph, whose two sons, Ephraim and Manasseh, later receive tribal status in some lists. Jacob’s father was Isaac, and his grandfather was Abraham; therefore, all three names belong to the patriarchal family but only Jacob is the direct father of the twelve sons traditionally linked to the tribes.