Manasseh, (Hebrew nashshani "who makes to forget"), was the name of several individuals from the Old Testament.

1. The elder of the two sons of Joseph. He and his brother Ephraim were afterwards adopted by Jacob as his own sons (Genesis 48:1). There is an account of his marriage to a Syrian (1 Chronicles 7:14); and the only thing afterwards recorded of him is, that his grandchildren were "brought up upon Joseph's knees" (Gen. 50:23; R.V., "born upon Joseph's knees") i.e., were from their birth adopted by Joseph as his own children. He is considered the founder of the Tribe of Manasseh.
2. Manasseh of Judah, the king of Judah.
3. In Judges 18:30 the correct reading could possibly read "Moses," and not "Manasseh." Some scholars believe that the name "Manasseh" was introduced by a transcriber to avoid the scandal of naming the grandson of Moses the great lawgiver as the founder of an idolatrous religion.