Gordon Thomasson hypothesizes that Zoram was a Levite refugee from the Northern Kingdom, attached to Laban's household through generations of service (not servitude) to his tribe, thus accounting for his (ritual?) responsibility for keeping the plates and the appearance of what are possibly Levitical ordinances in Lehi's camp and colony prior to their joining with the Mulekites. This heritage could also account for the liturgical innovation found among the Zoramites. [Gordon C. Thomasson, "What's in a Name? Book of Mormon Language, Names, and [Metonymic] Naming," in Journal of Book of Mormon Studies, Volume 3, Number 1 (Spring 1994), p. 16 n. 22]