מָדַי
𐤌𐤃𐤉
Maday
H4074 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Madai refers to an ethnic group originating from the region known as Media in central-western Iran, as well as a descendant of Japheth according to biblical tradition. In biblical texts, מָדַי may designate the progenitor of the Medes or denote the Medes as a people, as well as the territory they inhabited.
Semantic Range
ancestral progenitor (Genesis 10:2), people-group or ethnic designation (Medes), geographic territory (Media)
Root / Etymology
Most likely of foreign (non-Semitic, Indo-Iranian) origin; etymology uncertain. The form מָדַי is adopted into biblical Hebrew possibly through contact with neighboring peoples. The root is not native to Hebrew and is not clearly connected to any identifiable Semitic root.
Historical & Contextual Notes
מָדַי first appears in Genesis 10:2 as an eponymous ancestor, listed among the descendants of Japheth, and therefore classified within the framework of biblical genealogies as a distinct ethnic group rather than a geographic designation. Elsewhere, such as in 2 Kings, Isaiah, Jeremiah, and Daniel, מָדַי designates both the people ('Medes') and, synonymously with מֵדִיָה ('Media'), the geographical region that became a significant power in the late Neo-Assyrian and Neo-Babylonian periods. English translations often render the term as 'Medes' or 'Media,' but this may obscure the word's nuanced function in narratives: sometimes it points primarily to the people or polity, other times to the territory. In later periods, particularly the Second Temple era, the term's significance is predominantly historical, recalling the Medes' role in the overthrow of Babylon. There is no direct evidence the term מָדַי was ever used by Israelites to refer to themselves or their neighbors outside the context of this specific people-group and its land.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
of foreign derivation; Madai, a country of central Asia; Madai, Medes, Media.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
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מדי (m-d-y) — proper name referring to Madai, the Medes, Media
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H4076 | מָדַי | in Madai |
Word Forms
2 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H4074-01 |
מָדָֽי | maday | HNp |
Media | Madai | 10 |
H4074-02 |
וּ/מָדַ֖י | umaday | HC/Np |
and Media | and Madai | 6 |
Occurrences in Scripture
16 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H4074-02 |
Genesis 10:2 | וּ/מָדַ֖י | umaday | HC/Np |
and Madai | and Madai |
H4074-01 |
2 Kings 17:6 | מָדָֽי | maday | HNp |
of the Medes | Madai |
H4074-01 |
2 Kings 18:11 | מָדָֽי | maday | HNp |
of the Medes | Madai |
H4074-01 |
Isaiah 13:17 | מָדָ֑י | maday | HNp |
the Medes | Madai |
H4074-01 |
Isaiah 21:2 | מָדַ֔י | maday | HNp |
O Media | Madai |
H4074-01 |
Jeremiah 25:25 | מָדָֽי | maday | HNp |
Media | Madai |
H4074-01 |
Jeremiah 51:11 | מָדַ֔י | maday | HNp |
of Media | Madai |
H4074-01 |
Jeremiah 51:28 | מָדַ֔י | maday | HNp |
Media | Madai |
H4074-02 |
Esther 1:3 | וּ/מָדַ֗י | umaday | HC/Np |
and Media | and Madai |
H4074-02 |
Esther 1:14 | וּ/מָדַ֗י | umaday | HC/Np |
and Media | and Madai |