What does Genesis 10:6 mean?

Chapter 10 is sometimes called the "table of nations." In listing the names of the descendants of Noah's sons, it also describes the origins of the nations of the ancient world. The previous verses named the sons and grandsons of Japheth. This verse begins a section describing the descendants of Ham and the nations that came from them.

These peoples and nations will become integral to Israel's story and they are familiar names to this day. Ham's first generation of sons included Cush, Egypt, Put, and Canaan. Each of their lines will be described in the following verses.

Egypt is also known as Mizraim and the original Hebrew text uses the word Misra'yim here. In ancient literature, the names of nations and their founders were often used interchangeably, such as with Edom and Esau (Obadiah 1:8–10). Since the purpose of this passage is explaining the origins of the various ancient kingdoms, many English translations simply state this name as "Egypt."