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מַלְכָּה

𐤌𐤋𐤊𐤄

malkâh

H4436 noun

SILEX Entry

Root מלך to reign, rule, be king/queen

Definition

A female sovereign, or the principal woman in a royal household; specifically, the female ruler of a monarchy or the wife (or sometimes mother) of a male king. The term can also refer to the consort of a foreign king, and occasionally denotes a woman of high status in a ruling household. Used both for reigning queens and for royal consorts, the term's meaning depends on context, distinguishing women exercising executive authority from those who hold their position by marriage or birth.

Semantic Range

queen (reigning female sovereign), queen consort (wife of a king), queen mother (mother of a reigning king), principal woman of a royal household, foreign queen, woman of high rank in ruling family

Root / Etymology

From the root מ-ל-ך (מלך), which generally means 'to reign, rule, be king.' מַלְכָּה is the feminine form of מֶלֶךְ ('king'), formed with the feminine ending -ָה (-ah). This formation parallels typical Hebrew nominal patterns designating feminine counterparts to masculine roles.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In the Hebrew Bible, מַלְכָּה most frequently refers to royal women such as the wife or mother of a king—e.g., the queen mother in monarchic Israel and Judah, or the queen consort of foreign kings (notably, the Queen of Sheba in 1 Kings 10). In Second Temple/Post-exilic periods and Aramaic portions (e.g., Daniel, Ezra), מַלְכָּה usually denotes the reigning queen or queen consort within foreign courts, reflecting changes in court structures and political realities. The term overlaps with גְּבִירָה (gĕvīrāh, 'lady, mistress'), especially in references to the queen mother, but מַלְכָּה tends to denote official royal status, whether as ruler or as the recognized consort of a king, whereas גְּבִירָה highlights authority within the royal family. Later translations sometimes use 'queen' or 'queen mother' without distinction; English 'queen' can obscure the range from ruling monarch to consort or dowager. In later periods (e.g., LXX, Vulgate), the translation may introduce terms like 'regina' or 'basilissa,' which reflect contemporary understandings but cannot always clarify whether the reference is to a sovereign queen or the king's wife/mother.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

feminine of מֶלֶךְ; a queen; queen.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

מלך (m-l-k) — to reign, rule, be king/queen

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H3230 יַמְלֵךְ He-Will-Reign
H4409 מַלּוּךְ to Reigning-One
H4427 מָלַךְ in his reigning
H4428 מֶלֶךְ among the kings
H4429 מֶלֶךְ the sovereign

Word Forms

7 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H4436-02 הַ/מַּלְכָּ֔ה hamalekah HTd/Ncfsa the queen the reigning-woman 23
H4436-04 מַֽלְכַּת malekat HNcfsc queen queen of 4
H4436-06 וּ/מַֽלְכַּת umalekat HC/Ncfsc and the queen and queen of 2
H4436-05 מְּלָכ֔וֹת melakhot HNcfpa queens queens 2
H4436-03 לְ/מַֽלְכַּת lemalekat HR/Ncfsc to queen-of to queen-of 2
H4436-07 וְ/הַ/מַּלְכָּֽה vehamalekah HC/Td/Ncfsa and the queen and the queen 1
H4436-01 בַּ/מַּלְכָּ֖ה bamalekah HRd/Ncfsa to the queen in the queen 1

Occurrences in Scripture

35 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H4436-06 1 Kings 10:1 וּ/מַֽלְכַּת umalekat HC/Ncfsc and-the-queen and queen of
H4436-04 1 Kings 10:4 מַֽלְכַּת malekat HNcfsc queen queen of
H4436-04 1 Kings 10:10 מַֽלְכַּת malekat HNcfsc the queen queen of
H4436-03 1 Kings 10:13 לְ/מַֽלְכַּת lemalekat HR/Ncfsc to-queen-of to queen-of
H4436-05 Song of Songs 6:8 מְּלָכ֔וֹת melakhot HNcfpa queens queens
H4436-05 Song of Songs 6:9 מְלָכ֥וֹת melakhot HNcfpa queens queens
H4436-02 Esther 1:9 הַ/מַּלְכָּ֔ה hamalekah HTd/Ncfsa the queen the reigning-woman
H4436-02 Esther 1:11 הַ/מַּלְכָּ֛ה hamalekah HTd/Ncfsa the queen the reigning-woman
H4436-02 Esther 1:12 הַ/מַּלְכָּ֣ה hamalekah HTd/Ncfsa the queen the reigning-woman
H4436-01 Esther 1:15 בַּ/מַּלְכָּ֖ה bamalekah HRd/Ncfsa to the queen in the queen
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