Their name comes from Aram
The Bible first gives Aram as one of Shem's sons in the nations list after the flood (Genesis 10:22). In later parts of the Old Testament, Aram is the name connected with several places and peoples beyond Israel's northern border. It wasn't always one single kingdom with one king. Scripture refers to places such as Padan-aram and Damascus, showing a wider Aramean world.
The Arameans also appear within Israel's own family history. Rebekah came from Padan-aram, and her brother Laban is called a Syrian in the KJV (Genesis 25:20). Jacob lived and worked with Laban for many years before returning to Canaan (Genesis 31:41). So these were not simply distant strangers. Israel's ancestors had close family ties with people from this region.
The children of Shem; Elam, and Asshur, and Arphaxad, and Lud, and Aram.
Why the KJV says Syrians
If you read the KJV, you will usually see Syrians rather than Arameans. In these Old Testament settings, “Syrians” is the KJV's usual English name for peoples and kingdoms associated with Aram. That is why a Bible map or a newer translation may say Aram or Arameans where the KJV says Syria or Syrians.
Damascus became one of the best-known Aramean centres. When Syrian forces from Damascus came to help Hadadezer against David, David defeated them and placed garrisons in Syria of Damascus for a time (2 Samuel 8:5-6). Later, the rulers of Damascus were frequent rivals of the northern kingdom of Israel. Their relationship with Israel changed across the centuries, as alliances, raids, and wars changed.
And when the Syrians of Damascus came to succour Hadadezer king of Zobah, David slew of the Syrians two and twenty thousand men. Then David put garrisons in Syria of Damascus: and the Syrians became servants to David, and brought gifts. And the Lord preserved David whithersoever he went.
A neighbour, and sometimes an enemy
The Bible doesn't hide the hard parts of this history. Syrian armies fought Israel, and raids from Syria caused real suffering in Israelite communities. Yet Scripture also refuses to reduce an entire people to a simple enemy label. Individual Arameans make choices, show courage, and stand before the God of Israel.
Naaman is a memorable example. He was captain of the Syrian army, but a young Israelite servant girl pointed him towards Elisha when he was suffering from leprosy (2 Kings 5:1-3). Naaman was angry at Elisha's instruction at first, then humbled himself and washed in the Jordan. After he was healed, he openly recognised that the God of Israel alone is God (2 Kings 5:10-15).
Then went he down, and dipped himself seven times in Jordan, according to the saying of the man of God: and his flesh came again like unto the flesh of a little child, and he was clean.
Their language mattered too
Aramaic was the language associated with the Arameans. It was closely related to Hebrew and became widely understood in the ancient Near East. During the Assyrian threat against Jerusalem, Hezekiah's officials asked the Assyrian spokesman to speak in the Syrian language, because they understood it but the people listening on the wall did not (Isaiah 36:11). The phrase there refers to Aramaic.
Knowing who the Arameans were helps bring several Bible stories into focus. They were connected to Abraham's family, lived among Israel's neighbours, and shaped the political world faced by David, Elisha, and later kings. Their story also shows that God's work was never confined by Israel's borders.