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רִצְפָּה

𐤓𐤑𐤐𐤄

Ritsepah

H7532 noun

SILEX Entry

Root רצף to overlay, to arrange, to pave

Definition

A personal name, feminine: Ritspah, used specifically as the name of a woman from the Saulide period. Refers to a particular Israelite woman, identified as a concubine of King Saul and mother of two sons by Saul. In this nominative usage, the term operates as a proper noun and is not associated with the common noun meaning 'pavement' or 'mosaic floor.'

Semantic Range

personal name (female), proper noun referring to a specific Israelite woman; not used in the common noun sense (pavement, mosaic, tiled surface) in this form

Root / Etymology

From the Hebrew root רָצַף (r-ts-p), commonly associated with the sense 'to pave' or 'to arrange stones.' The word רִצְפָּה as a common noun means 'pavement' or 'mosaic,' but as a proper name, Ritspah, the etymological link to the root may be symbolic or aesthetic rather than functional; it does not indicate an occupational or descriptive meaning in its attested narrative context.

Historical & Contextual Notes

Ritspah appears in the narrative of 2 Samuel 3:7 and 21:8,10–11, identified as a concubine of Saul and mother to two sons executed in the context of a famine. In early monarchy narratives, personal names often derive from nouns or adjectives with positive associations, but the specific significance of 'pavement/floor' for a woman's name is uncertain. The Septuagint and later translations rendered the name phonetically, and English translations have consistently used 'Rizpah.' Note that the English gloss 'Jewess' is anachronistic and does not reflect the Israelite or Saulide-era identity. There is no evidence that the name indicated geographic or ethnic identity beyond its Israelite context. The juxtaposition with the common noun (pavement/floor) may be coincidental or reflect a conventional practice of name formation in the period.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

the same as רִצְפָּה; Ritspah, an Israelitess; Rizpah.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

רצף (r-ts-p) — to overlay, to arrange, to pave

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H4837 מַרְצֶפֶת paved-stone flooring of
H7528 רָצַף stone-paved
H7530 רֶצֶף and Retseph

Word Forms

1 distinct form

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H7532-01 רִצְפָּ֣ה ritsepah HNp Rizpah Ritspah 4

Occurrences in Scripture

4 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H7532-01 2 Samuel 3:7 רִצְפָּ֣ה ritsepah HNp Rizpah Ritspah
H7532-01 2 Samuel 21:8 רִצְפָּ֤ה ritsepah HNp Rizpah Ritspah
H7532-01 2 Samuel 21:10 רִצְפָּה֩ ritsepah HNp Rizpah Ritspah
H7532-01 2 Samuel 21:11 רִצְפָּ֥ה ritsepah HNp Rizpah Ritspah
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