ע
ABARIM
Publications
Discover the meanings of thousands of Biblical names in Abarim Publications' Biblical Name Vault: Kain

Kain meaning

קין

Source: https://www.abarim-publications.com/Meaning/Kain.html

🔼The name Kain: Summary

Meaning
Spear, Enfranchised
Etymology
From the noun קין (qyn), spear, from the verb קין (qyn), to fit together.

🔼The name Kain in the Bible

There are one town and one people named Kain in the Bible, but it should be noted that in Hebrew the name Kain is identical to the name Cain:

  • Kain the town is mentioned in Joshua 15:57, among the towns of the hill country that would be allotted to the tribe of Judah.
  • Kain the people is the same as the Canaanite tribe of the Kenites. They are collectively called Kain in Numbers 24:22 and Judges 4:11.

🔼Etymology of the name Kain

The name Kain is the same as the word קין (qyn) meaning spear, coming from the following root cluster:

Excerpted from: Abarim Publications' Biblical Dictionary
קנן

The verb קנן (qanan) isn't used in the Bible but it appears to tell of the weaving of many strands into a dynamic and interlocked network. These strands may be reeds and twigs that a bird weaves into a nest, or it may be acts of trade and routes of commerce that together combine into a bustling economy. Noun קן (qen) means nest, and verb קנן (qinnen) means to make a nest.

Verb קנה (qana) means to obtain, i.e. to acquire or in some instances to create. It's the regular verb for a commercial purchase. Noun קנין (qinyan) describes an item acquired (or created). Noun מקנה (migneh) means cattle (as unit of commerce). Noun מקנה (miqna) means purchase or purchase-price. Noun קנה (qaneh) denotes some herb on a stalk, or any rod, reed, branch- or stalk-like item (in this sense, a plant "acquires" its branches).

The verb קין (qyn), which isn't used in the Bible, occurs in cognate language with the meaning of to fit together, fabricate or forge (often of metal things). In the Bible occurs only the noun קין (qayin), meaning spear. Note that our modern word "franchise" comes from a word that meant spear, and originally denoted a free man, i.e. one who had the authority to bear arms, own property and thus conduct trade. The earliest republican government of Rome was called curia, literally spear-bearers, and the link between bearing a spear or other such ceremonial weapon and a senatorial government (a government by tribal elders) appears to have been pretty much globally understood throughout history.

Noun קינה (qina) denotes a kind of sad poem; a dirge or lamentation, which both had to be fabricated and could, presumably, pierce a person's soul like a spear (which is an obvious Biblical figure of speech; see Luke 2:35). The denominative verb קונן (qonen) means to do a dirge, which could be either to chant or compose one.

The verb תקן (taqan) means to make or become straight.

🔼Kain meaning

The name Kain probably means Spear and may even be interpreted as Enfranchised and refer to a kind of rudimentary senatorial government. See our article on the name Cain for more details.