Baal

The Hebrew word ba'al (plural: ba'alim) basically means "master," and is used to refer a god, an owner, or a husband.

Most infamously, Baal is the name for several of the many gods worshipped by the Caanites who became neighbours to ancient Israel in the Promised Land. In such cases, they are often appended by another noun or place-name, e.g., Baal-Berith ("god of covenant," Judg 8:33; 9:4), Baal of Peor (Num 25:1), Baal-Zebub (2 Ki 1:2), though the OT is reticent about preserving many of these names, preferring instead to refer to them by the generic term 'baal.'

The word is also incorporated into a number of personal names, e.g., Jerubbaal (Judg 6:32), Eshbaal (1 Chr 8:33), Meribbaal (1 Chr 8:34) and Ethbaal (1 Ki 16:31), and place names, e.g., Baal-zephon (Exo 14:2), Baal-meon (Num 32:38), Baal-gad (Jos 11:17), and Kiriath-baal (Jos 15:60). It cannot always be determined if these names indicated Israelite syncretism.