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אֶתְנַן

𐤀𐤕𐤍𐤍

ʼethnan

H868 noun

SILEX Entry

Root תנן to give, to grant, to pay

Definition

A payment given as compensation for sexual services, specifically referring to the fee or hire of a prostitute. The term is also used figuratively to denote offerings or profits derived from cultic prostitution or idolatrous practices. Depending on context, can refer to a literal price, reward, or wage paid for services considered illicit or morally charged within biblical literature.

Semantic Range

payment for prostitute's services, hire from prostitution, reward derived from idolatrous or illicit practices, profit from cultic sexual rites

Root / Etymology

Root/Etymology: Derived from the root תָּנָן (tnn), core meaning 'to give, to grant, to pay.' The form אֶתְנַן appears as a noun from this root, referring specifically to a payment or wage, especially one arising from prostitution. The root itself carries the base idea of giving or granting something in exchange.

Historical & Contextual Notes

In the Hebrew Bible, אֶתְנַן nearly always appears in contexts involving prostitution—either literal (harlotry) or figurative (cultic or idolatrous practices, often depicted metaphorically as spiritual unfaithfulness). Most references (notably Deuteronomy 23:19[18], Isaiah 23:17-18, Micah 1:7) use the word to emphasize the illicit or abominated character of such payments, and legal texts prohibit bringing an אֶתְנַן as an offering to the temple. Later translations (including LXX and Vulgate) often use terms that convey 'wages' or 'hire' but may blur the word's specific connection to prostitution. English translations frequently use 'hire,' 'wages,' or 'reward,' but these terms may understate the stigmatized and specifically sexual nature of the original term. אֶתְנַן is distinct from general words for wage or fee (like שָׂכָר, sakhar), which have a broader, neutral semantic range. Over time, especially in post-biblical Hebrew, the term's morally charged associations became even more pronounced, reinforcing its linkage not just to illicit sex but to improper or forbidden profit more generally.

Original Strong's Gloss (1890)

the same as אֶתְנָה; a gift (as the price of harlotry or idolatry); hire, reward.

Bantu Hebrew

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Root Family

תנן (t-n-n) — to give, to grant, to pay

Strong's Lemma SIBI-P1
H8579 תִּנְיָנוּת second occurrence

Word Forms

6 distinct forms

SIDANCE Surface Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1 Occurrences
H868-01 אֶתְנַ֨ן etenan HNcmsc hire prostitute-payment 6
H868-05 וְ/אֶתְנַ֛ן veetenan HC/Ncmsa and payment and prostitute-hire 1
H868-04 מֵ/אֶתְנַ֤ן meetenan HR/Ncmsc from wage from prostitute-hire of 1
H868-03 לְ/אֶתְנַנָּ֑/ה leetenanah HR/Ncmsc/Sp3fs to her harlot's wages to her prostitute-payment 1
H868-02 אֶתְנַנֶּ֨י/הָ֙ etenaneyha HNcmpc/Sp3fs earnings of her her prostitution payments 1
H868-06 וְ/אֶתְנַנָּ֗/הּ veetenanah HC/Ncmsc/Sp3fs and her hire and her prostitute-hire 1

Occurrences in Scripture

11 total occurrences

SIDANCE Reference Word Transliteration Morphology Common SIBI-P1
H868-01 Deuteronomy 23:19 אֶתְנַ֨ן etenan HNcmsc hire prostitute-payment
H868-03 Isaiah 23:17 לְ/אֶתְנַנָּ֑/ה leetenanah HR/Ncmsc/Sp3fs to her harlot's wages to her prostitute-payment
H868-06 Isaiah 23:18 וְ/אֶתְנַנָּ֗/הּ veetenanah HC/Ncmsc/Sp3fs and her hire and her prostitute-hire
H868-01 Ezekiel 16:31 אֶתְנָֽן etenan HNcmsa hire prostitute-payment
H868-01 Ezekiel 16:34 אֶתְנָ֗ן etenan HNcmsa payment prostitute-payment
H868-05 Ezekiel 16:34 וְ/אֶתְנַ֛ן veetenan HC/Ncmsa and payment and prostitute-hire
H868-01 Ezekiel 16:41 אֶתְנַ֖ן etenan HNcmsa hire prostitute-payment
H868-01 Hosea 9:1 אֶתְנָ֔ן etenan HNcmsa a prostitute's wages prostitute-payment
H868-02 Micah 1:7 אֶתְנַנֶּ֨י/הָ֙ etenaneyha HNcmpc/Sp3fs earnings of her her prostitution payments
H868-04 Micah 1:7 מֵ/אֶתְנַ֤ן meetenan HR/Ncmsc from wage from prostitute-hire of
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