בֵּית הָרָם

𐤁𐤉𐤕 𐤄𐤓𐤌

Bêyth hâ-Râm

H1027 noun

SILEX Entry

Root בנה, רום to build, to be high, to rise

Definition

A toponym meaning 'house of the height' or 'elevated house,' specifically denoting a settlement situated east of the Jordan River. The term is used as a proper place name for a Transjordanian town listed among the territorial allotments given to the tribe of Gad in the Israelite tribal era. Its primary sense refers to a specific locality, not a general architectural feature or family domicile.

Semantic Range

house of elevation, dwelling on a height, name of a settlement east of the Jordan, prominent/raised locality, Beth-aram as a Transjordanian town

Root / Etymology

Compound of two Hebrew words: בֵּית (bêth, 'house') and רָם (rām, 'high,' 'exalted'), with the definite article (הַ, ha-) inserted before the second element. The root of 'house' is בנה (b-n-h), 'to build'; the root of רָם is רום (r-w-m), 'to be high,' 'to rise.' The combination forms a descriptive toponym indicating either physical elevation or prominence.

Historical & Contextual Notes

בֵּית הָרָם appears in Joshua 13:27 as a settled location assigned to Gad in the Transjordan. In later periods (especially post-exilic), the name is attested as Betharamphtha in Hellenistic sources and Betharam in Roman-era documents, eventually known as Julias after a renaming in the first century CE. English translations such as 'Beth-aram' follow transliteration tradition but obscure the meaning inherent in the original Hebrew. The term is distinct from other בֵּית- ('Beth-') toponyms in that רָם ('height') refers most likely to a prominent geographic or topographic feature. Its usage as a place name bears no relevance to ritual or domestic architecture. Later traditions (including LXX and Vulgate) simply transliterate the name, reflecting its function as a geographic marker rather than a lexical item with evolving semantic nuance. The term does not refer to any ethnic or religious group but carries purely geographic and descriptive significance in biblical context.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

from בַּיִת and רוּם with the article interposed; house of the height; Beth-ha-Ram, a place East of the Jordan; Beth-aram.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

בנה (b-n-h) — to build, construct, establish (family)

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H1004 בַּיִת in the houses
H1005 בַּיִת the built-house
H1006 בַּיִת the house
H1007 בֵּית אָוֶן house-of
H1008 בֵּית־אֵל in house of

Word Forms

2 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H1027-01 בֵּ֣ית beyt HNp Beth house-of 1
H1027-02 הָרָם֩ haram HNp haram House-of-the-Height 1

Occurrences in Scripture

2 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H1027-01 Joshua 13:27 בֵּ֣ית beyt HNp Beth house-of
H1027-02 Joshua 13:27 הָרָם֩ haram HNp haram House-of-the-Height