קוּן
𐤒𐤅𐤍
qûwn
H6969 verb
SILEX Entry
Definition
To lament, to utter a mournful song or chant, especially in formal or public contexts such as funerals. The verb can indicate both the act of mourning by making plaintive sounds and specifically performing a lamentation chant, often as part of a communal or ritual expression of grief. While used in reference to wailing or musical notes, its specific lexical meaning centers on the vocal expression of public mourning, typically by women hired for this purpose.
Semantic Range
to intone a lament, to chant (in mourning), to wail (publicly, ritually), to lead formal lamentations, to make mourning sounds
Root / Etymology
From the root קון, whose exact core meaning is 'to wail' or 'to utter a sustained note/cry.' The word appears only in specific, ritualized contexts and is not widely attested outside of the lamentational setting. The root is distinct from roots like קנה ('to acquire, get') or קום ('to arise'), and its precise etymological ancestry is unique within Biblical Hebrew; possible cognates in other Semitic languages are uncertain, making the root's deeper origin unclear.
Historical & Contextual Notes
The verb קוּן is rarely used in the Hebrew Bible, appearing only in poetic or formal settings (e.g., Jeremiah 9:17–20; Amos 5:16), always with reference to lamentation for the dead or for communal disaster. In these contexts, professional mourning women ('wailing women') are called to 'intone a lament' using this verb. The word does not denote mourning in the sense of feeling sadness, but rather refers to the ritual act of lamentation—usually performed aloud and sometimes accompanied by musical intonation. The role of mourning women was an institutionalized practice in ancient Israelite society and is attested in neighboring cultures as well. Later translations sometimes rendered this as 'chant' or 'strike up a lament,' but the association with ritual mourning is primary. The verb is functionally distinct from other Hebrew verbs for mourning, such as אבל (ʾaval, 'to mourn, grieve'), which denotes the experience of grief. There is no evidence the verb refers to general musical performance; its scope is exclusively confined to lamentation rituals.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
a primitive root; to strike a musical note, i.e. chant or wail (at a funeral); lament, mourning woman.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
קון (q-w-n) — to wail, to chant a lament, to utter a mournful cry
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H7013 | קַיִן | his spear |
Word Forms
5 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H6969-03 |
וַ/יְקֹנֵ֣ן | vayeqonen | HC/Vow3ms |
and-lamented | and he chanted a lament | 3 |
H6969-02 |
תְּקוֹנֵ֣נָּה | teqonenah | HVoi3fp |
they-will-lament-it | they will chant laments | 2 |
H6969-04 |
וְ/קוֹנְנ֖וּ | veqonenu | HC/Voq3cp |
and lament | and they chanted a lament | 1 |
H6969-05 |
וְ/ק֣וֹנְנ֔וּ/הָ | veqonenuha | HC/Voq3cp/Sp3fs |
and-they-will-lament-it | and they lamented her | 1 |
H6969-01 |
לַ/מְקוֹנְנ֖וֹת | lameqonenot | HRd/Vorfpa |
for the mourning women | lament-chanting women | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
8 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H6969-03 |
2 Samuel 1:17 | וַ/יְקֹנֵ֣ן | vayeqonen | HC/Vow3ms |
and-lamented | and he chanted a lament |
H6969-03 |
2 Samuel 3:33 | וַ/יְקֹנֵ֥ן | vayeqonen | HC/Vow3ms |
And the king lamented | and he chanted a lament |
H6969-01 |
Jeremiah 9:16 | לַ/מְקוֹנְנ֖וֹת | lameqonenot | HRd/Vorfpa |
for the mourning women | lament-chanting women |
H6969-04 |
Ezekiel 27:32 | וְ/קוֹנְנ֖וּ | veqonenu | HC/Voq3cp |
and lament | and they chanted a lament |
H6969-05 |
Ezekiel 32:16 | וְ/ק֣וֹנְנ֔וּ/הָ | veqonenuha | HC/Voq3cp/Sp3fs |
and-they-will-lament-it | and they lamented her |
H6969-02 |
Ezekiel 32:16 | תְּקוֹנֵ֣נָּה | teqonenah | HVoi3fp |
they-will-lament-it | they will chant laments |
H6969-02 |
Ezekiel 32:16 | תְּקוֹנֵ֣נָּה | teqonenah-2 | HVoi3fp |
they-will-lament-it | they will chant laments |
H6969-03 |
2 Chronicles 35:25 | וַ/יְקוֹנֵ֣ן | vayeqonen | HC/Vow3ms |
and-lamented | and he chanted a lament |