'Shem' can be understood to be internal worship, 'Japheth' is the corresponding external worship, 'Ham' is internal worship corrupted, and 'Canaan' is external worship separate from internal. These people never existed, but the kinds of worship had these names applied to them.

(Odkazy: Arcana Coelestia 1140)

1831. 'And he laid each part opposite the other' means a parallelism and correspondence as regards celestial things. This becomes clear from the fact that the parts on one side mean the Church and those on the other the Lord. And when these are set in their proper places opposite each other, nothing else is meant than parallelism and correspondence. And because the heifer, the she-goat, and the ram, which mean celestial things, as stated just above at verse 9, were cut in half as described and laid in their proper places, it is clear that there is a parallelism and correspondence as regards celestial things. As regards spiritual things however, which will be dealt with shortly, the situation is different. As often stated, celestial things are all those that have to do with love to the Lord and love towards the neighbour. It is the Lord who imparts love and charity, the Church that receives; and that which unites is conscience, which has love and charity implanted within it. Consequently the space in between the parts means those things present in man which are called perception, internal dictate, and conscience. The things that exist above that perception, dictate, and conscience are the Lord's, those that are below reside in man. Thus because these things above and those below look towards one another, a parallelism is said to exist; and because they correspond to one another, as active and passive, a correspondence is said to exist.