Shinar
Shin’ar is the name for the southern region of Mesopotamia used by the Hebrew Bible.
Etymology
Hebrew שנער Šinʿār is equivalent to the Egyptian Sngr and Hittite Šanḫar, all referring to southern Mesopotamia. Some Assyriologists considered Šinʿār a western variant or cognate of Šumer, with their original being the Sumerians' own name for their country, ki-en-gi, but this is "beset with philological difficulties". Another hypothesis derives the name from a Kassite tribe known as the Šamharu, whose name would have been later used for Babylonia in general.Sayce identified Shinar as cognate with the following names: Sangara/''Sangar mentioned in the context of the Asiatic conquests of Thutmose III ; Sanhar/Sankhar of the Amarna letters ; the Greeks' Singara; and modern Sinjar'', in Upper Mesopotamia, near the Khabur River. Accordingly, he proposed that Shinar was in Upper Mesopotamia, but acknowledged that the Bible gives important evidence that it was in the south.
Albright suggested identification with the Kingdom of Khana.
Hebrew Bible
The name Šinʿār occurs eight times in the Hebrew Bible in which it refers to Babylonia. That location of Shinar is evident from its description as encompassing both Babel/Babylon and Erech/Uruk. In the Book of Genesis 10:10, the beginning of Nimrod's kingdom is said to have been "Babel, and ErechIn Genesis 14:1,9, King Amraphel rules Shinar. It is further mentioned in Joshua 7:21; Isaiah 11:11; Daniel 1:2; and Zechariah 5:11, as a general synonym for Babylonia.