לַחְמִי
𐤋𐤇𐤌𐤉
Lachemi
H3902 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Personal name, likely meaning 'my bread' or 'belonging to bread/food,' possibly used as a theophoric or descriptive element. In specific biblical usage, refers to an individual of Philistine origin, Lahmi, the brother of Goliath, in 1 Chronicles 20:5. The name may denote an association with sustenance or provision, but in practice operates as a proper name.
Semantic Range
Lahmi (proper name); possibly 'my bread' or 'of bread'; possibly, by textual corruption, referencing a Bethlehemite or one associated with bread/food
Root / Etymology
Derived from the Hebrew root לחם (l-ḥ-m), 'to eat, consume, fight' or 'bread, food.' The suffix -î commonly denotes first-person singular possessive ('my'), yielding the meaning 'my bread' or 'one belonging to bread.' The proper noun may be a shortened form, or possibly a scribal variant, of more compound names such as יָשֻׁבִי לֶחֶם (Yashubi-lechem) or בֵּית הַלֶּחֶם (Bethlehemite, 'man of Bethlehem'), but the etymology is ultimately from לחם. There is some uncertainty as to whether this is a standard personal name or a scribal confusion for a longer place-based designation.
Historical & Contextual Notes
Lachmi (לַחְמִי) appears only in 1 Chronicles 20:5, where the Chronicler names Lahmi as the brother of Goliath the Gittite, contrasting with the Samuel narrative which refers to 'the brother of Goliath' more obliquely (2 Samuel 21:19). The Chronicler's form may clarify or reinterpret an ambiguous or corrupted phrase in Samuel. Some scholars suggest that לַחְמִי is not a traditional Israelite personal name but either a brief West Semitic name or, more likely, an editorial reconstruction meant to resolve a difficult text. There is a phonetic similarity to the place-name Bethlehem (בֵּית לֶחֶם) and to other personal names incorporating לחם. English versions sometimes render the name Lahmi or conflate with 'Bethlehemite.' Care must be taken not to retroject later identity terms (such as 'Jew' or 'Judean') onto this character, as the context is Philistine. The name encapsulates the broader semantic field of לחם but in this context operates simply as a proper noun, not conveying its etymological sense directly.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from לֶחֶם; foodful; (or perhaps erroneous transcription) for בֵּית הַלַּחְמִי; Lachmi, an Israelite; or rather probably a brief form; Lahmi. See also יָשֻׁבִי לֶחֶם.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
לחם (l-ḥ-m) — bread, food, sustenance; possibly to press, to knead (separate root: to fight)
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H1035 | בֵּית לֶחֶם | bread |
| H3433 | יָשֻׁבִי לֶחֶם | bread |
| H3894 | לָחוּם | his edible portion |
| H3898 | לָחַם | in his waging-war |
| H3899 | לֶחֶם | in the bread |
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H3902-01 |
לַחְמִי֙ | lachemi | HNp |
Lahmi | my bread | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 total occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H3902-01 |
1 Chronicles 20:5 | לַחְמִי֙ | lachemi | HNp |
Lahmi | my bread |