What is the significance of Negev in the Bible?

The name the Negev means dry land in Hebrew. The Negev desert goes back to the events of Abraham's life through the time Israel wandered through the wilderness. The Negev desert is mentioned in the following Bible verses:

• Genesis 12:4-9; 20:1; 24:62
• Deuteronomy 1:19, 46
• Numbers 13:17-20
• Joshua 10:40; 11:16; 12:8, 15; 19:1-9
• Judges 1:9
• 1 Samuel 27:5-7
• 1 Samuel 30:1

Negev (a desert in southern Israel) is mentioned several times in the Bible. Negev (or Negeb) is derived from the Hebrew root "dry land". Some biblical passages use "Negev" to mean south because the Negev lay south of Judah. In the Septuagint (Greek version of the Hebrew Bible) Negev is translated as "desert."