יהושע, פרק י״ז, פסוק ו׳

The division of land for the tribe of Manasseh presents a unique situation where geography and inheritance laws closely intertwine. The exact calculation of their territories is driven by the unusual circumstance of daughters inheriting land alongside sons. Because the daughters of Zelophehad received their own inheritance within the land of Canaan, the territory had to be divided into a greater number of regions. By adding four specific tracts of land for the daughters to the six regions designated for the main families of the tribe, exactly ten distinct districts were created within the Land of Israel, forming the proper and fitting arrangement for them [מצודת דוד, מלבי״ם, ביאור שטיינזלץ].

Alongside this primary inheritance in Canaan, the territory of Gilead, located across the Jordan River, was distributed to the rest of the tribe's families [רש״י]. These other families are characterized by a secondary or subordinate status. In earlier accounts, the broader tribe of Manasseh was viewed in this secondary light because the family of Machir had quickly claimed their land first due to their bravery in battle. Now, however, the dynamic shifts. The descendants of Machir are the ones categorized as the secondary group, simply because they formed a numerical minority when compared to the six central family groups of the tribe [מלבי״ם].