Midian was the region where Moses lived with Zipporah’s family. Scholars usually place its heartland east of the Gulf of Aqaba in northwestern Arabia, especially in today’s northwestern Saudi Arabia, with connections into southern Jordan. Its exact borders and Zipporah’s home location are not known.
A region, not a confirmed address
Ancient sources do not preserve a surveyed border for Midian. The name may describe both a people and a region. Archaeological work has connected Midianite material with northwestern Arabia and parts of the southern Levant, but it cannot locate Zipporah’s household.
Reading the story and the map
Exodus says Moses fled from Egypt to Midian, met Zipporah’s family there, and later began his return toward Egypt. The Bible does not provide enough route detail to draw a verified journey from her home to the lodging place in Exodus 4.
Modern borders, roads, and place names help readers orient themselves. They were not features of Zipporah’s world. The map therefore shows a broad area east of the Gulf of Aqaba and preserves the uncertainty that belongs to the ancient evidence.
Sources: Oxford Bibliographies: Midian; American Center of Research: Midianite-Kenite geography; Exodus 2–4, NIV. Checked September 18, 2026.