Noah’s Ark landed where?

Why do so many people believe that Noah’s ark landed on a mountain in or near today’s Armenia.

Typically, the answer is, “The name of the mountain is Ararat, and the Bible teaches us that the ark landed on Mount Ararat.

A fallacy here is that no location on the face of the Earth has an essential name. People give names to geographical locations, and people change names as it suits them.

Who knows who named this mountain “Ararat”? It’s not unlikely that people who heard about the Bible wanted their famous mountain to bear the name of Noah’s mountain. So, who knows that this mountain was named Ararat in Noah’s time?

This is a topic for investigation, to find evidence. I’m fond of suggesting topics for post-graduate dissertations, and this is a topic.

Currently, scientists believe that the earliest community of our ancestors lived near the horn of Africa, around the location of today’s Ethiopia. It’s as likely that Noah’s ark landed in Ethiopia as it is that it landed in Armenia.

Noah and Na’amah had three sons and three daughters-in-law, who themselves had children and grandchildren. There is no saying which family or clan succeeded in heading north leaving Africa and entering southwest Asia. Who knows whether another family followed the pioneers. We don’t even know whether some of these early people backtracked to where Noah and Na’amah had settled.

We don’t know how fast some people moved across Asia. General experience is that people follow water-level routes. Sea coasts tend to be level, generally unblocked by mountains that jut into the ocean.

Sea coasts abound with sea food. Berries, nuts, and fruits are as abundant near coasts as they are inland. It’s not especially difficult to find fresh water nearby. “All waters flow to the sea.”

What about shelter? It seems to me that erosion from wave action creates caves and projecting overhangs. Early humans were as intelligent as we are. Will someone tell me that a family or clan didn’t send a scout ahead to find, among other things, the next location of shelter? Perhaps these people were reluctant to backtrack to the previous shelter, but can you tell me that they didn’t when they urgently needed protection?

Experts believe that evidence of human life along sea shores readily wash into the ocean or are buried by rising sea levels. What I’ve written is speculation — one of my history professors would likely call these musings “idle speculation.”

No matter. Archaeologists are actively exploring sea coasts along the Indian Ocean to Southeast Asia.

If you’ve heard of people experimenting to find out how practical sea level journeys are using primitive strategies, or even safe compromises with contemporary equipment, please tell me. Thanks.