It is very possible that Ham received his name due to the fact that he married a black woman. We learn that the names of many individuals in the early years were given them - and often changed - due to incidents which occurred in their lives. For example, Esau's name was changed to Edom, and Jacob's name to Israel, and Abraham was at first known as Abram. It is likely that Ham's name was changed because he had a black wife, for ham is an adjective in Egyptian for black.