מִתְרְדָת
𐤌𐤕𐤓𐤃𐤕
Miteredat
H4990 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A personal name of Persian origin, borne by two officials mentioned in the Hebrew Bible. The lexical meaning is not Hebrew but adopted from Old Persian, commonly understood as 'gift of Mithra' (a Persian deity). The name denotes a non-Israelite, specifically Persian, individual.
Semantic Range
personal name of Persian official, bearer of temple vessels, Persian signatory to letter against Jerusalem; specifically refers to Persian individuals during the Achaemenid period
Root / Etymology
Persian origin; not a Hebrew root. The name derives from Old Persian 'Mithradāta,' composed of 'Mithra' (name of a Persian deity) + 'dāta' (gift), meaning 'gift of Mithra.'
Historical & Contextual Notes
מִתְרְדָת (Mithredath) appears in Ezra 1:8 and Ezra 4:7 as the name of two distinct Persians: one is a treasurer under Cyrus the Great who was responsible for returning the temple vessels to Sheshbazzar, the other is a signatory to an official letter opposing the rebuilding of Jerusalem. The name is thoroughly Persian, introduced into the Hebrew text during the post-exilic (Achaemenid Persian) period. Later English translations sometimes use the spelling 'Mithridates,' but this is anachronistic for the biblical period. The word does not denote any Israelite or Judean identity, and it is strictly a personal name. Its use highlights foreign (especially Persian) influence and presence in the post-exilic territorial province of Yehud.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
of Persian origin; Mithredath, the name of two Persians; Mithredath.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
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N/A (N/A) — non-Hebrew personal name of Persian origin
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H4990-01 |
מִתְרְדָ֣ת | miteredat | HNp |
Mithredath | Mithredath | 2 |
Occurrences in Scripture
2 total occurrences