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מַלְכִּיָּה

𐤌𐤋𐤊𐤉𐤄

Malekiyah

H4441 noun

SILEX Entry

Root מלך to rule, to be king, to reign

Definition

Personal name meaning 'My king is Yah' or 'The king belongs to Yah'. Used as the name for multiple individuals in the Hebrew Bible, all Israelites who bear this theophoric name as an indication of religious allegiance or family devotion to YHWH. The word does not signify kingship as an office, but rather expresses the relationship or association of an individual to the deity YHWH through the name, either as a statement of faith or a parental wish for divine patronage.

Semantic Range

personal name meaning 'My king is Yah', the king (belongs to) Yah, my king is Yahweh; used as a theophoric given name for multiple Israelite individuals

Root / Etymology

From the root מ-ל-ך (מלך) meaning 'to rule, be king' and the theophoric element יָהּ (Yah), which is a shortened form of the divine name YHWH. The name is a compound, typical of Israelite anthroponymy, combining a possessive or relational element ('my king' or 'the king of') with the divine name.

Historical & Contextual Notes

The name מַלְכִּיָּה (Malkîyâh) appears in variant forms: מַלְכִּיָּה (found e.g. in Nehemiah 3:11) and מַלְכִּיָּהוּ (Malchiah; Jeremiah 38:6). Both are theophoric names, characteristic of the monarchic and post-exilic periods when invoking the deity in names was especially common. There is no evidence that bearers of the name held royal office. Rather, the name is individual and familial, not political. Some later translations and Christian traditions render the name as 'Malchijah' or 'Malchiah,' and in Second Temple or later Greco-Roman contexts, the name is sometimes Hellenized or adapted. The English term 'Jew' is sometimes used in translation for bearers in late biblical contexts, but historically the biblical bearers are Israelites or Judahites. The name illustrates the common Israelite practice of theophoric naming and reflects wide usage across social strata.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

or מַלְכִּיָּהוּlemma מַלְכִּיָהוּ missing dagesh, corrected to מַלְכִּיָּהוּ; (Jeremiah [38:6), from מֶלֶךְ and יָהּ; king of (i.e. appointed by) Jah; Malkijah, the name of ten Israelites; Malchiah, Malchijah.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

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

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

4 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H4441-02 מַלְכִּיָּ֔ה malekiyah HNp Malchijah My King is Yah 10
H4441-04 וּ/מַלְכִּיָּה֙ umalekiyah HC/Np and Malchijah And My-King-is-Yah 4
H4441-03 מַלְכִּיָּ֣הוּ malekiyahu HNp Malchiah My King is Yah 1
H4441-01 לְ/מַלְכִּיָּה֙ lemalekiyah HR/Np to Malchijah to My-King-is-Yah 1

Occurrences in Scripture

16 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H4441-02 Jeremiah 21:1 מַלְכִּיָּ֔ה malekiyah HNp Malkijah My King is Yah
H4441-02 Jeremiah 38:1 מַלְכִּיָּ֑ה malekiyah HNp Malchiah My King is Yah
H4441-03 Jeremiah 38:6 מַלְכִּיָּ֣הוּ malekiyahu HNp Malchiah My King is Yah
H4441-04 Ezra 10:25 וּ/מַלְכִּיָּה֙ umalekiyah HC/Np and Malchijah And My-King-is-Yah
H4441-04 Ezra 10:25 וּ/מַלְכִּיָּ֖ה umalekiyah-2 HC/Np and Malchijah And My-King-is-Yah
H4441-02 Ezra 10:31 מַלְכִּיָּ֖ה malekiyah HNp Malchijah My King is Yah
H4441-02 Nehemiah 3:11 מַלְכִּיָּ֣ה malekiyah HNp Malchijah My King is Yah
H4441-02 Nehemiah 3:14 מַלְכִּיָּ֣ה malekiyah HNp Malchijah My King is Yah
H4441-02 Nehemiah 3:31 מַלְכִּיָּה֙ malekiyah HNp Malchijah My King is Yah
H4441-04 Nehemiah 8:4 וּ/מַלְכִּיָּ֛ה umalekiyah HC/Np and Malchijah And My-King-is-Yah
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