Benjamin J. Noonan, «Hide or Hue? Defining Hebrew #x$ At%A», Vol. 93 (2012) 580-589
The word #$xAtA% has long puzzled Hebrew lexicographers. The present paper evaluates the most common definitions for this elusive Hebrew word, focusing particularly on Stephanie Dalley’s recent consideration of this term. Dalley’s proposal that #$xAtA%A% is derived from Akkadian dušû and means «faience beadwork» falls short linguistically as well as contextually. More plausibly, Hebrew #$xAtA% originates with Egyptian ths, a term used with reference to leather. This well suits the contexts in which #$xAtA% occurs and reflects Egyptian influence on the tabernacle and its terminology.
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Hide or Hue? Defining Hebrew #$xAtA%%
The word #$xA tA% has long puzzled Hebrew lexicographers. It occurs
fourteen times in the Hebrew Bible, almost exclusively in the descriptions
of the tabernacle. In all but two of its occurrences (Num 4,25; Ezek
16,10), #$xA tA% occurs in construct with rw( (“skin, hideâ€), demonstrating
that it relates to animal skins. It appears generally as a material used for
making the tabernacle (Exod 25,5; 35,7. 23) but also appears specifically
with reference to the outer covering of the tabernacle (Exod 26,14; 36,19;
39,34; Num 4,25) and a material used to cover the tabernacle’s accou-
trements (Num 4,6.8.10-12.14). The only exception is Ezek 16,10, in
which #$xA tA% appears with reference to sandals.
The present paper evaluates the most common definitions for this elusive
Hebrew word, focusing particularly on Stephanie Dalley’s recent consider-
ation of this term 1, an influential article that William H.C. Propp labels “a
tour de force marshalling of philological and archaeological evidence†2.
I. Hebrew #$xAtA% as a Color
The oldest extant traditions surrounding Hebrew #$xAtA% understand it as
a color. This is the testimony, for example, of the ancient versions: the
Septuagint and Vulgate read u9aki/nqinov and ianthinus, respectively (both
meaning “dark red, dark blueâ€), and the Peshitta and Targums render #$xAt%A%
as )NwGSS and Nwgss, respectively (both meaning “vermillionâ€). The
same understanding appears in Josephus (A.J. 3.102).
In recent years, several scholars have revived this explanation of #$xAtA %
with reference to Akkadian. Shmuel Ahituv and Hayim Tadmor, for exam-
ple, consider Hebrew #$xAtA%% cognate with Akkadian dušû, duḫšû, a color term
related to Sumerian DUŠIA and Hurrian tuḫšiwe 3. Notably, Akkadian dušû
S. DALLEY, “Hebrew taḥaÅ¡, Akkadian duḫšu, Faience and Beadworkâ€,
1
Journal of Semitic Studies 45 (2000) 1-19.
W.H.C. PROPP, Exodus 19-40. A New Translation with Introduction and
2
Commentary (AB 2A; New York 2006) 375.
S. AHITUV ‒ H. TADMOR, l( tw(ydyh rcw) :ty)rq hydpwlqycn)
3
“#$xAtAâ€, wtpwqtw )rqmh (Jerusalem 1950-1988) VIII, 520-521. Already in
%
the late 1800s Franz Delitzsch suggested a connection between Hebrew and
Akkadian dušû, but he incorrectly thought that the Akkadian term denoted
an animal skin rather than a color (F. DELITZSCH, “Specimen Glossarii
BIBLICA 93.4 (2012) 580-589
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