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אֲבִיהוּא

𐤀𐤁𐤉𐤄𐤅𐤀

Avihu

H30 noun

SILEX Entry

Root אב, הוא father, he (is)

Definition

A personal name used in the Hebrew Bible, meaning 'my father is he' or 'my father, he is.' It refers specifically to Abihu, the son of Aaron, who is most prominently featured in the priestly narratives. Beyond the proper name, the term does not carry other lexical senses in biblical usage.

Semantic Range

personal name referring to Abihu, son of Aaron; 'my father is he'; (by implication, potentially theophoric but not explicitly divine); no attested use outside of the personal name

Root / Etymology

Compound of אָב ('av, 'father') and הוּא (hu', 'he'); thus, 'my father is he' or 'he is my father.' The name is theophoric by implication but lacks the explicit divine element present in similar names (e.g., 'my father is YHWH' or 'my father is El').

Historical & Contextual Notes

The name אֲבִיהוּא appears exclusively as a proper name for the son of Aaron and Elisheba in the Torah (notably in Leviticus 10 and related priestly texts). While some traditions and older translations have interpreted the name as 'father of Him' (with the 'Him' referring to God), the more likely and linguistically appropriate rendering is 'my father is he.' In the Priestly source, Abihu (with Nadab, his brother) dies after offering unauthorized incense—an event central to the narrative of priestly sanctity and ritual boundaries. The structure of the name is consistent with other early Israelite theophoric or descriptive personal names, although the divine element is ambiguous. Later traditions sometimes interpret 'he' as referring specifically to deity, but this is not explicit in the text. The term is not used for any common noun or other concept; it is strictly a personal name. English translations retain the transliterated form 'Abihu,' but this loses the semantic nuances of the original Hebrew construction.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from אָב and הוּא; father (i.e. worshipper) of Him (i.e. God); Abihu, a son of Aaron; Abihu.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

אב, הוא (ʾ-b; h-w-ʾ) — father, he (is)

Word Forms

2 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H30-02 וַ/אֲבִיה֔וּא vaavihu HC/Np and Abihu My Father Is He 10
H30-01 אֲבִיה֔וּא avihu HNp Abihu My-Father-Is-He 2

Occurrences in Scripture

12 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H30-01 Exodus 6:23 אֲבִיה֔וּא avihu HNp Abihu My-Father-Is-He
H30-02 Exodus 24:1 וַ/אֲבִיה֔וּא vaavihu HC/Np and Abihu My Father Is He
H30-02 Exodus 24:9 וַ/אֲבִיה֔וּא vaavihu HC/Np and Abihu My Father Is He
H30-02 Exodus 28:1 וַ/אֲבִיה֛וּא vaavihu HC/Np and Abihu My Father Is He
H30-02 Leviticus 10:1 וַ/אֲבִיה֜וּא vaavihu HC/Np and Abihu My Father Is He
H30-02 Numbers 3:2 וַ/אֲבִיה֕וּא vaavihu HC/Np and Abihu My Father Is He
H30-02 Numbers 3:4 וַ/אֲבִיה֣וּא vaavihu HC/Np and Abihu My Father Is He
H30-01 Numbers 26:60 אֲבִיה֑וּא avihu HNp Abihu My-Father-Is-He
H30-02 Numbers 26:61 וַ/אֲבִיה֑וּא vaavihu HC/Np and Abihu My Father Is He
H30-02 1 Chronicles 5:29 וַ/אֲבִיה֔וּא vaavihu HC/Np and Abihu My Father Is He
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