דִּבְיוֹן
𐤃𐤁𐤉𐤅𐤍
dibyôwn
H1686 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A term occurring in 2 Kings 6:25 generally understood as denoting a type of plant or plant product, likely a wild or otherwise low-value edible, possibly a bulb or pod, whose precise species is unknown to modern scholarship. The word does not carry the literal meaning 'dove’s dung' but rather references an obscure food item consumed in famine conditions. Its semantic range includes both literal and potentially euphemistic associations with scarcity foods.
Semantic Range
plant bulb, pod, food of little value, famine food, wild edible consumed during scarcity, possibly (but unlikely) literal animal dung
Root / Etymology
The etymology of דִּבְיוֹן (dibyōn) is uncertain. Although it resembles the more commonly attested word חִרְיוֹן (ḥiryōn), their relationship is ambiguous and neither appears elsewhere in biblical Hebrew with a clear definition. The word does not connect clearly to a known Hebrew root and is likely a loanword or a rare term, possibly from a regional dialect.
Historical & Contextual Notes
דִּבְיוֹן appears only in the context of the narrative about the siege of Samaria, where exorbitant prices for famine foods are described (2 Kings 6:25). Historically, traditional translations such as 'dove’s dung' reflect the literal rendering but likely miss the original sense. Most modern scholars view the term as referring to an edible plant or food product of low value available during severe famine, possibly a wild bulb, pod, or similar item (e.g., chickpea pod, locust bean, bulb, or pulse). Some ancient translators, such as those using the Septuagint, rendered the term as ἐνκοπία ('wild pulse'), indicating they too understood it as a scarce food item rather than literal animal waste. The presence of דִּבְיוֹן only in this crisis context, combined with its pairing with the similar-sounding חִרְיוֹן, reinforces its identification as famine fare. Derivation or play on words related to other Hebrew terms for excrement reinforced this as a term for something unclean or undesirable, but the main sense is as a hardship food, not literal dung. English translations such as 'dove’s dung' are literalistic and influenced by later interpretive traditions rather than contemporary Israelite usage.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
in the margin for the textual reading, חֶרְיוֹן; both, (in the plural only and) of uncertain derivation,; probably some cheap vegetable, perhaps a bulbous root; dove's dung.
Bantu Hebrew
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דבון (d-b-y-n) — famine food, low-value edible, scarcity produce
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H1686-01 |
דִּבְיוֹנִ֖ים | diveyonim | HNcmpa |
dove's droppings | famine bulbs | famine bulbs | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | SIBI-P2 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H1686-01 |
2 Kings 6:25 | דִּבְיוֹנִ֖ים | diveyonim | HNcmpa |
dove's droppings | famine bulbs | famine bulbs |