סְבָא
𐤎𐤁𐤀
Seva
H5434 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Proper name designating (1) Seba, a son of Cush listed among the peoples descended from Ham; and (2) the territory or nation traditionally understood as settled by his descendants, likely located in the region of the upper Nile, identified with an African people or land to the south of Egypt. The term functions both as an ethnonym (a people group) and a toponym (their land).
Semantic Range
personal name (son of Cush), designation of an African people, designation of a territory south of Egypt/Nubia, generic reference to distant foreign peoples
Root / Etymology
Of foreign (non-Semitic) origin, as indicated by scriptural genealogies placing Seba among the descendants of Cush (Genesis 10:7; 1 Chronicles 1:9). Not derived from a known Hebrew root; etymology uncertain.
Historical & Contextual Notes
Seba appears in genealogical contexts as a son of Cush, indicating an association with the peoples bordering the ancient Near East to the south, most likely the region corresponding to Upper Egypt or Nubia. In lists of nations (e.g., Isaiah 43:3, Psalm 72:10), Seba is grouped with Egypt (Mizraim) and Cush, suggesting an African region. During the monarchic and later biblical periods, Seba was known through trade, tribute, and possibly military encounters. English translations typically render Seba as a proper name, but historical identification points to a people or country in Africa; subsequent Jewish, Greco-Roman, and later Christian traditions sometimes conflated Seba with Sheba or other southern peoples, but these are distinct in the Hebrew texts. The English word 'Jew' is unrelated and is not used in these passages. The term's precise historical referent is debated, but it is consistently associated with the southern borderlands of Egypt and Nubia.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
of foreign origin; Seba, a son of Cush, and the country settled by him; Seba.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
סבא (s-b-ʾ) — proper name; Seba; African people/land south of Egypt
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H5433 | סָבָא | deep-drinkers |
| H5435 | סֹבֶא | their intoxicating drink |
| H5436 | סְבָאִי | and Sebaites |
Word Forms
2 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5434-01 |
סְבָא֙ | seva | HNp |
Seba | Seba | 2 |
H5434-02 |
וּ/סְבָ֖א | useva | HC/Np |
and Seba | and Seba | 2 |
Occurrences in Scripture
4 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H5434-01 |
Genesis 10:7 | סְבָא֙ | seva | HNp |
Seba | Seba |
H5434-02 |
Isaiah 43:3 | וּ/סְבָ֖א | useva | HC/Np |
and Seba | and Seba |
H5434-02 |
Psalms 72:10 | וּ֝/סְבָ֗א | useva | HC/Np |
and Seba | and Seba |
H5434-01 |
1 Chronicles 1:9 | סְבָא֙ | seva | HNp |
Seba | Seba |