← H5617 H5619 →

סֹפֶרֶת

𐤎𐤐𐤓𐤕

Soferet

H5618 noun

SILEX Entry

Root ספר to count, enumerate, write, record

Definition

Proper name: Sophereth, an individual listed among the Nethinim, likely the matriarch of a designated temple-servant family during the post-exilic period. Lexically, as a feminine participle or noun derived from the root, the word could denote a female scribe or recorder, but in the biblical context it serves as a proper name.

Semantic Range

female scribe, recorder (rare/lexical); proper name of a Nethinim family in post-exilic lists; designation of a family's ancestor or matriarch

Root / Etymology

From the root סָפַר (s-f-r), meaning 'to count, recount, record, write.' סֹפֶרֶת is the feminine participle or noun form, generally rendered as 'female scribe' or 'recorder'. In this instance, it is used as a proper name and assigned to one of the Nethinim families returning from exile (Ezra 2:55; Nehemiah 7:57).

Historical & Contextual Notes

The term סֹפֶרֶת appears exclusively as a proper name in the post-exilic lists of returnees (Ezra 2:55; Nehemiah 7:57) and designates an ancestral house among the Nethinim—temple servants of non-Israelite descent, given to the service of the temple. There is no evidence that the word carried its lexical sense of 'female scribe' as a vocation in the context of Ezra/Nehemiah; rather, it functions as a family name, possibly derived from an ancestor who was a scribe or similar functionary. English translations preserve the proper name without interpretation, though in ancient tradition, later interpreters sometimes connected the name with scribal service. The use of a feminine form as a family name probably reflects the name of an ancestress. The practice of using feminine participles as family or group names is paralleled elsewhere in post-exilic genealogical lists.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

feminine active participle of סָפַר; a scribe (properly, female); Sophereth, a temple servant; Sophereth.

Bantu Hebrew

No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.

+ Add Bantu Hebrew Word

Root Family

ספר (s-p-r) — to count, enumerate, recount, record, write

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H4557 מִסְפָּר in counted number of
H4558 מִסְפָּר counted total
H4559 מִסְפֶּרֶת Mispereth
H5601 סַפִּיר in the blue precious stones
H5608 סָפַר I will recount

Word Forms

2 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H5618-02 סוֹפֶ֖רֶת soferet HNp Sophereth Female recorder 1
H5618-01 הַ/סֹּפֶ֖רֶת hasoferet HTd/Np sons of Hassophereth the Female Recorder 1

Occurrences in Scripture

2 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H5618-01 Ezra 2:55 הַ/סֹּפֶ֖רֶת hasoferet HTd/Np sons of Hassophereth the Female Recorder
H5618-02 Nehemiah 7:57 סוֹפֶ֖רֶת soferet HNp Sophereth Female recorder
← H5617 Hebrew Lexicon H5619 →