תְּפוֹצָה
𐤕𐤐𐤅𐤑𐤄
tᵉphôwtsâh
H8600 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
A state or act of being scattered or dispersed, particularly referring to the movement or scattering of a people from their original homeland. The term commonly denotes the condition or process by which groups (especially Israelites) become geographically separated from the land of Israel, whether through exile, forced migration, or voluntary spreading. It can also refer to the scattered people themselves or the regions where they have settled, though this use is less frequent.
Semantic Range
dispersion, scattering, diaspora (in a proto-sense), state of being scattered, distributed population
Root / Etymology
From the root פּוּץ (pûts), which means 'to scatter, disperse, spread out.' The noun תְּפוֹצָה is formed by applying a nominalizing prefix and suffix to the root, giving the meaning of 'scattering' or 'dispersion.'
Historical & Contextual Notes
In biblical usage, תְּפוֹצָה refers specifically to the dispersal of peoples—most often Israelites—due to exilic or migratory circumstances, such as those after military defeat or collapse of political power. The noun is primarily post-monarchic and appears in exilic or post-exilic contexts (e.g., Nehemiah 1:8), where it is used to describe the widespread scattering of Israelite communities. Unlike גָּלוּת (galut, 'exile'), which emphasizes the condition of banishment or the experience of being outside the ancestral land, תְּפוֹצָה focuses on the state or extent of the scattered population. In later Jewish tradition, תְּפוֹצָה (tpotsah) sometimes overlaps semantically with the concept of 'diaspora,' but its biblical use predates the established meaning of 'Diaspora' as used in later periods. English translations sometimes render תְּפוֹצָה simply as 'dispersion' or 'scattering,' which may not fully convey its communal and geographic connotations in biblical texts.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
from פּוּץ; a dispersal; dispersion.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
פוץ (p-w-ts) — to scatter, to disperse, to spread out
Word Forms
1 distinct form
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H8600-01 |
וּ/תְפוֹצ֣וֹתִי/כֶ֔ם | utefotsotikhem | HC/Ncfpc/Sp2mp |
your dispersions | your scatterings | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
1 total occurrence
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H8600-01 |
Jeremiah 25:34 | וּ/תְפוֹצ֣וֹתִי/כֶ֔ם | utefotsotikhem | HC/Ncfpc/Sp2mp |
your dispersions | your scatterings |