Tel Melah

TEL MELAH (tĕl mē'la, Heb. tēl-melah, hill of salt). A Babylonian town, probably on the low salty district not far north of the Persian Gulf (Ezra.2.59; Neh.7.61).

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TEL-MELAH tĕl me’ lə (תֵּ֥ל מֶ֨לַח). Melach means salt. It is possible that the ruined city, implied by the word tel, had been sown “with salt” (Judg 9:45). It was another locality, mentioned along with Tel-harsha, whence returning Jewish exiles were unable to establish their lineage by genealogical proof. The site is unknown. It could be the Thelma of Ptolemy, situated near a salty tract of terrain in the Persian Gulf. This is no more than conjecture.

International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915)

A Babylonian town mentioned in Ezr 2:59; Ne 7:61 with Tel-harsha and Cherub (see Tel-harsha). It possibly lay on the low salt tract near the Persian Gulf. In 1 Esdras 5:36 it is called "Thermeleth."