← H5481 H5483 →

סְוֵנֵה

𐤎𐤅𐤍𐤄

Seveneh

H5482 noun

SILEX Entry

Root uncertain place name, border town, geographic location

Definition

Proper noun referring to a location in southern Egypt, known in antiquity as Syene. Primary sense is the designation of a border town marking Egypt's southern boundary.

Semantic Range

Syene (ancient Egyptian city), border town at Egypt's southern frontier; location in Upper Egypt; Aswan

Root / Etymology

Of Egyptian derivation. The Hebrew word סְוֵנֵה (S'veneh) reflects the Egyptian place name, possibly from Egyptian 'Swenet' or 'Sweneh,' referring to the ancient city near the First Cataract of the Nile, the site of modern Aswan. The spelling variants (סְוֵנֵה, סְוֵנָה) represent efforts to reproduce the foreign pronunciation in Hebrew script. Root: uncertain – the word is a direct borrowing from Egyptian and does not derive from a native Hebrew root.

Historical & Contextual Notes

סְוֵנֵה appears in Ezekiel 29:10 and 30:6 as a geographical reference marking the southern limit of Egypt, alongside other locations in Egypt's north-south axis. It was the southernmost city of ancient Egypt, later known in Greek as Syene (modern Aswan). The name is used exclusively as a place name and does not have a broader semantic application in biblical Hebrew. In most English translations, the term is rendered as 'Syene,' which accurately reflects the Greek tradition but may obscure its original Egyptian identity and significance. The location was a strategic frontier outpost throughout the biblical, Egyptian, and later periods. The term does not overlap with terms for Israelite, Judahite, or other indigenous population names, and reflects a foreign geographical designation preserved in the Hebrew Bible.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

(rather to be written סְוֵנָה; for סְוֵן; i.e to Seven); of Egyptian derivation; Seven, a place in Upper Egypt; Syene.

Bantu Hebrew

No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.

+ Add Bantu Hebrew Word

Root Family

uncertain (uncertain) — place name, border town, geographic location

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H1085 בִּלְדַּד Bildad
H1095 בֵּלְטְשַׁאצַּר Belteshatsar
H1114 בִּלְשָׁן Bilshan
H1150 בִּנְעָא Bin'a
H116 אֱדַיִן and then

Word Forms

1 distinct form

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H5482-01 סְוֵנֵ֖ה seveneh HNp Syene Syene 2

Occurrences in Scripture

2 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H5482-01 Ezekiel 29:10 סְוֵנֵ֖ה seveneh HNp Syene Syene
H5482-01 Ezekiel 30:6 סְוֵנֵ֗ה seveneh HNp Syene Syene
← H5481 Hebrew Lexicon H5483 →