APE

[Heb., qohph].

The apes imported by King Solomon may have been a species of long-tailed monkeys referred to by ancient writers as being native to Ethiopia. (1Ki 10:22; 2Ch 9:21) The fact that the Hebrew word qohph may be related to the Sanskrit word kapi and that peacocks are considered to be native to SE Asia has given rise to the conclusion that the apes were brought by Solomon’s fleet from India or Sri Lanka. However, the imported items need not necessarily have come directly from the country of origin nor from the same land, in view of the indications that commercial intercourse existed between India and Africa even before Solomon’s time.​—See PEACOCK; TARSHISH No. 4.