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עֵפֶר

𐤏𐤐𐤓

Efer

H6081 noun

SILEX Entry

Root עפר to be dusty, to cover with dust, (root connected with 'dust')

Definition

Epher, a personal name applied to two individuals in the Hebrew Bible—one a descendant of Midian (and thus linked to Arabian tribes), and another a descendant of Ephraim—as well as possibly a clan or lineage. The term functions as a proper noun. It is sometimes suggested to be related by wordplay or origin to terms for 'dust' (עָפָר) or 'fawn/gazelle' (עֹפֶר), but is primarily used as a name without direct reference to these common nouns in the biblical text.

Semantic Range

personal name, clan name, eponymous ancestor; no common noun usage; possibly related in wordplay or folk etymology to 'dust' or 'fawn'

Root / Etymology

Root is uncertain. The name עֵפֶר has been linked by some scholars to several roots: עָפָר ('dust, soil'), as a possible descriptive or eponymous name, and עֹפֶר ('fawn, young stag'), possibly as an animal designation or a play on animal imagery. There is no definitive linguistic derivation. The lexeme as it occurs in the Bible is only used as a proper name.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In the Hebrew Bible, עֵפֶר appears primarily as a personal or clan name. In Genesis 25:4 and 1 Chronicles 1:33, Epher is listed among the sons of Midian, an Arabian people, indicating an ancestral figure for a Midianite or Arabian group. In 1 Chronicles 5:24, an Epher is an Ephraimite, ancestor of a prominent clan east of the Jordan during the monarchic period. English translations traditionally transliterate the name as 'Epher.' There is no indication in the biblical context that these figures are connected to the common noun for 'dust' or 'gazelle,' despite the superficial resemblance and some scholarly association. The use of animal names as personal names is attested elsewhere in Semitic cultures, but for עֵפֶר the connection remains speculative. The term does not function as a common noun in the Hebrew Bible, nor does it carry the ethnographic or religious associations tied to later terms such as 'Jew' or 'Judean.' Distinguish carefully from עָפָר ('dust') and עֹפֶר ('fawn').

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

probably a variation of עֹפֶר; gazelle; Epher, the name of an Arabian and of two Israelites; Epher.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

עפר (ʿ-p-r) — dust, to be dusty, to cover with dust

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H5777 עוֹפֶרֶת the dusty-metal (lead)
H6080 עָפַר and he dusted
H6082 עֹפֶר fawn of
H6083 עָפָר dust
H6084 עׇפְרָה Doe

Word Forms

2 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H6081-02 וְ/עֵ֣פֶר veefer HC/Np and Epher And Epher 2
H6081-01 וָ/עֵ֨פֶר֙ vaefer HC/Np and Epher Epher 2

Occurrences in Scripture

4 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H6081-01 Genesis 25:4 וָ/עֵ֨פֶר֙ vaefer HC/Np and Epher Epher
H6081-01 1 Chronicles 1:33 וָ/עֵ֨פֶר֙ vaefer HC/Np and Epher Epher
H6081-02 1 Chronicles 4:17 וְ/עֵ֣פֶר veefer HC/Np and Epher And Epher
H6081-02 1 Chronicles 5:24 וְ/עֵ֡פֶר veefer HC/Np and-Epher And Epher
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