Under the Swaying Palms Nazir 47 In the mishnah on this daf we hear about a second woman who joins Queen Helene in becoming a Nazirite. her name is Miriam and she is from Tadmor (most commentaries correct the text that says Tarmod and make it Tadmor). Unfortunately, nothing is known about this Miriam but her homeland is well known in both Jewish and non-Jewish sources. Tadmor, otherwise known as Palmyra, has been in the news lately because it is now controlled by ISIS and they have deliberately destroyed some of the fabulous antiquities there. But let’s go back in history to happier times. Tadmor/Palmyra seems to derive its name from the tamar, the palm tree. It is a desert oasis on one of the main caravan routes through the Syrian Desert: (Wikipedia) Because of its strategic location, Tadmor was already settled in prehistoric times and by Biblical times it beame a main stop on the caravan route. It was settled by Arameans and Arabs and later became a Hellen