Lemuelites () were a subdivision of

Lamanites The Lamanites () are one of the four ancient peoples (along with the Jaredites, the Mulekites, and the Nephites) described as having settled in the ancient Americas in the Book of Mormon, a sacred text of the Latter Day Saint movement. The Lamani ...

, a purported people of the ancient Americas referenced in the

Book of Mormon The Book of Mormon is a religious text of the Latter Day Saint movement, which, according to Latter Day Saint theology, contains writings of ancient prophets who lived on the American continent from 600 BC to AD 421 and during an interlude date ...

. To save time and prevent confusion, those who sought to destroy Nephi's people were often just called ''Lamanites''.

Origins

In the journey in the wilderness, there is a reference to

Lemuel Lemuel is a Hebrew name, meaning "devoted to God", which may refer to: In religion * Lemuel (biblical king), mentioned in the Book of Proverbs, Chapter 31 * Lemuel (Book of Mormon), the second eldest of Lehi's sons and the brother of Laman, Sam, ...

, older brother of Nephi younger brother of

Laman In the Book of Mormon, Laman and Lemuel () are the two eldest sons of Lehi and the older brothers of Sam, Nephi, Jacob, and Joseph. According to the text, they lived around 600 BC. They were notable for their rebellion against Lehi and Nephi, b ...

, marrying one of the daughters of

Ishmael Ishmael ''Ismaḗl''; Classical/Qur'anic Arabic: إِسْمَٰعِيْل; Modern Standard Arabic: إِسْمَاعِيْل ''ʾIsmāʿīl''; la, Ismael was the first son of Abraham, the common patriarch of the Abrahamic religions; and is cons ...

. Also in the Wilderness the wives of the Lehi group bear children; There we have the beginnings of Lemuel's family, though not referenced as having been called Lemuelites until the ministry of

Jacob Jacob (; ; ar, يَعْقُوب, Yaʿqūb; gr, Ἰακώβ, Iakṓb), later given the name Israel, is regarded as a patriarch of the Israelites and is an important figure in Abrahamic religions, such as Judaism, Christianity, and Islam. J ...

Other references

During the missionary efforts of

Ammon Ammon (Ammonite: 𐤏𐤌𐤍 ''ʻAmān''; he, עַמּוֹן ''ʻAmmōn''; ar, عمّون, ʻAmmūn) was an ancient Semitic-speaking nation occupying the east of the Jordan River, between the torrent valleys of Arnon and Jabbok, in p ...

there is a reference to some Lemuelites being converted. Also again there is a reference to them being compounded under the name Lamanites and that

are made up of Lemuelites, Lamanites, Ishmaelites and dissenters from the Nephites, as in Mormon's time as well. After the space of the generations of peace, a group called Lemuelites are among those to break away from the church and reject the gospel.4th Nephi 1:38
/ref>

References

{{reflist, 2 Book of Mormon peoples Book of Mormon words and phrases Mormonism and Native Americans