A town near Beersheba in the Negev. It was on the border of the tribes of Judah and Simeon.
At first, it was a Canaanite settlement. Then it belonged to the tribe of Judah, and then to the tribe of Simeon (Joshua 15:30; 19:4, 9). By the time Israel had its first kings, Judah controlled this area again (1 Samuel 30:30).
The Canaanite name "Zephath" changed to "Hormah" when the Hebrews first conquered it (Judges 1:17). Hormah became loyal to David during his ongoing feud with King Saul. David rewarded the town by sending it some of the war spoils of Ziklag (1 Samuel 30).
Joshua 15:30 describes Hormah as being in the south near Kesil and Ziklag. But its exact location remains unknown. From the reference in Numbers 14:45, it could be south of Kadesh-barnea. This is where the Israelites spent much of the wilderness period.