עַשְׁתָּרוֹת
𐤏𐤔𐤕𐤓𐤅𐤕
Ashetarot
H6252 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
The plural noun עַשְׁתָּרוֹת (ʻAshtaroth) designates: (1) the name of prominent Canaanite and West Semitic goddess-goddesses, specifically the goddess Astarte (fertility and war deity); (2) cultic images or representations associated with her worship; (3) the name of a city east of the Jordan River, notable as a center for such worship. In biblical context, the term can reference either the deity herself (often in plural form), the objects representing her, or the locale identified with her cultus.
Semantic Range
Canaanite goddess Astarte, cultic objects/images of Astarte, city named Ashtaroth, abstract/collective concept of female deity-power associated with fertility; plural designation of foreign goddess or her worship
Root / Etymology
Root: עשתר (AŠTR). Derives from the West Semitic/Proto-Semitic rt. ʻštr (cf. Ugaritic ʻṯtr, Akkadian Ištar, Phoenician ʻštrt, Aramaic ʻtrt), which forms names of goddess figures associated with fertility, love, and war. The Hebrew form is in the feminine plural, marking either plurality of cultic representations or a collective abstraction for the deity and her manifestations. The term is formally related to עַשְׁתְּרָה (singular) but is usually found in the plural as a proper noun or collective term.
Historical & Contextual Notes
In West Semitic religion and textual tradition, ‘Ashtaroth’ is associated with the goddess Astarte, widely worshipped among Canaanite, Phoenician, and neighboring cultures. In the Hebrew Bible, the term most frequently denotes foreign cultic worship condemned by Israelite tradition, often paired with 'the Baalim' as representative of rival Canaanite divine powers (Judg 2:13, 10:6; 1 Sam 7:3–4, etc.). The city ‘Ashtaroth’ (Joshua 9:10; 12:4) east of the Jordan was a prominent urban center in Bashan, inherited in Israelite memory as a locus of Rephaim or Anakim and later of the kingdom of Og. The plural usage, even for the deity, possibly reflects a collective or abstract sense (parallel to Baalim for Baal), or points to multiple images or local manifestations. The English rendering 'Ashteroth' or (anachronistically) ‘Astaroth’ in some translations and later literature flattens important distinctions; English 'Ashteroth' is never used for Israelites as a theonym or for Judeans in later periods. The usage of 'Ashtaroth' as an ethnic marker or as a personal name does not occur in the Hebrew Bible; it is exclusively a cultic or geographical term. Later Greek and Latin traditions developed a mythic demonic persona 'Astaroth' based on the name, but such usage is post-biblical and irrelevant to biblical texts. Compare also עַשְׁתֹּרֶת (Ashtoreth), a hybridized Hebrew form with deliberate vocalic alteration reflecting Israelite polemicization of the name.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
or עַשְׁתָּרֹת; plural of עַשְׁתְּרָה; Ashtaroth, the name of a Sidonian deity, and of a place East of the Jordan; Asharoth, Astaroth. See also בֵּית עַשְׁתָּרוֹת, עַשְׁתֹּרֶת, עַשְׁתְּרֹת קַרְנַיִם.
Bantu Hebrew
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עשתר (ʿ-š-t-r) — to be rich, abundant, multiply (especially of flocks)
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H1203 | בְּעֶשְׁתְּרָה | Ashtoreth-Place |
| H6253 | עַשְׁתֹּרֶת | Ashtoreth, Abundance-Goddess |
| H6254 | עַשְׁתְּרָתִי | the Ashtarothite |
Word Forms
6 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H6252-02 |
בְּ/עַשְׁתָּרֹ֖ת | beashetarot | HR/Np |
in Ashtaroth | in the Ashtaroth | in Ashetarot | 4 |
H6252-03 |
הָ/עַשְׁתָּר֡וֹת | haashetarot | HTd/Np |
the Ashtoreths | the Astarte-goddesses | the Ashetarot | 3 |
H6252-01 |
עַשְׁתָּר֑וֹת | ashetarot | HNp |
Ashtaroth | Abundance-Goddesses | Ashetarot | 2 |
H6252-06 |
וְ/לָ/עַשְׁתָּרֽוֹת | velaashetarot | HC/Rd/Np |
and the Ashtaroth | and to the Ashtaroth-goddesses | and to Ashetarot | 1 |
H6252-04 |
וְ/עַשְׁתָּר֣וֹת | veashetarot | HC/Np |
and Ashtaroth | and Ashtaroth-goddesses | and Ashetarot | 1 |
H6252-05 |
וְ/הָ/עַשְׁתָּר֑וֹת | vehaashetarot | HC/Td/Np |
and the Ashtoreths | and the Astarte-goddesses | and the Ashetarot | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
12 occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H6252-02 |
Deuteronomy 1:4 | בְּ/עַשְׁתָּרֹ֖ת | beashetarot | HR/Np |
in Ashtaroth | in the Ashtaroth | in Ashetarot |
H6252-02 |
Joshua 9:10 | בְּ/עַשְׁתָּרֽוֹת | beashetarot | HR/Np |
at Ashtaroth | in the Ashtaroth | in Ashetarot |
H6252-02 |
Joshua 12:4 | בְּ/עַשְׁתָּר֖וֹת | beashetarot | HR/Np |
in Ashtaroth | in the Ashtaroth | in Ashetarot |
H6252-02 |
Joshua 13:12 | בְּ/עַשְׁתָּר֖וֹת | beashetarot | HR/Np |
in Ashtaroth | in the Ashtaroth | in Ashetarot |
H6252-04 |
Joshua 13:31 | וְ/עַשְׁתָּר֣וֹת | veashetarot | HC/Np |
and Ashtaroth | and Ashtaroth-goddesses | and Ashetarot |
H6252-06 |
Judges 2:13 | וְ/לָ/עַשְׁתָּרֽוֹת | velaashetarot | HC/Rd/Np |
and the Ashtaroth | and to the Ashtaroth-goddesses | and to Ashetarot |
H6252-03 |
Judges 10:6 | הָ/עַשְׁתָּר֡וֹת | haashetarot | HTd/Np |
the Ashtoreths | the Astarte-goddesses | the Ashetarot |
H6252-05 |
1 Samuel 7:3 | וְ/הָ/עַשְׁתָּר֑וֹת | vehaashetarot | HC/Td/Np |
and the Ashtoreths | and the Astarte-goddesses | and the Ashetarot |
H6252-03 |
1 Samuel 7:4 | הָ/עַשְׁתָּרֹ֑ת | haashetarot | HTd/Np |
the Ashtoreths | the Astarte-goddesses | the Ashetarot |
H6252-03 |
1 Samuel 12:10 | הָ/עַשְׁתָּר֑וֹת | haashetarot | HTd/Np |
the Ashtaroth | the Astarte-goddesses | the Ashetarot |