Shophan

Shophan was a fortified city in Transjordan, mentioned in Numbers 32:35 as one of the cities built or fortified by the tribe of Gad after they requested and received their allotment on the east side of the Jordan. The full designation in the Masoretic text is Atroth-shophan, suggesting it may be a compound place name linked with the nearby site of Atroth. The Gadites undertook to build these cities as safe enclosures for their livestock and defensible towns for their families before crossing with the Israelite army to assist in the conquest of Canaan. The exact site of Shophan remains unidentified.