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Meaning, origin and etymology of the name Ephah


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Ephah Ephah

The name Ephap occurs three times in the Bible. The first Ephah is a a son of Midian, son of Abraham with Keturah. The second Ephah is a concubine of Caleb (1 Chr 2:46). The third Ephah is mentioned in the genealogy of Judah (1 Chr 2:47).

The name Ephah comes from up (`up 1582-1583):

up (`up 1582) means to fly (used for birds, angels). Derivative up ('op 1582a) denotes flying creatures; insects and birds. Derivative apap ('ap'ap 1582b) means eyelid in all the straight-forward uses of the body part, but also, curiously enough, as the "eyelids of dawn," i.e. the breaking of dawn (Job 3:9).
up (`up 1583) means to be dark. Derivatives of the latter are gloom and darkness; Isa 8:22; Job 11:17; Job 10:21; Am 4:13. The later two texts uses the derivation Ephah (epa 1583d) which is the same as the name.

What the original name giver meant to say with the name Ephah is not clear, but it means both Volant and Dark One. Here at Abarim Publications we suggest that the two meanings of up are connected in a fundamental meaning of to cover (see note below). That way, the name Ephah may mean Covering.

Note: None of the sources reports a connection between the two meanings of up, but we would like to submit the following:
Perhaps the eye lid is connected with flight through its wing-like properties and thus came to denote the organ that makes the eye dark, hence that phenomenon that places the sun under the horizon. But perhaps darkness was seen as a winged entity that covered light with its wings, and hence it was applied back to birds. We note that up is one of a few words for darkness, and the existence of these suggests specification. Other words for darkness:
pl ('opel 145), darkness with all the various symbolic connotations of gloom and spiritual darkness.
arapel ('arapel 1701), darkness from a verb that means drip, hence the derivative arapel ('arip 1701a), cloud.
hashak (hoshek 769a), darkness, from a root that also yields the word hashak (hasok 769b), obscure.
salmawet (salmawet 1921b), deep darkness, from the root salal (salal 1921), be or grow dark, which is identical to the verb salal (salal 1920), sink, be submerged), and which also yields sel (sel 1921a), shadow).
In addition we note that the more usual word for wings or winged creature is knp (kanap 1003a). The verb connected to this word is used by Isaiah to mean hide or enclose (30:20).
Our conclusion is that the base, even recessive, meaning of up lies in a covering or stretching out overhead.



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