בִּגְתָן
𐤁𐤂𐤕𐤍
Bigetan
H904 noun
SILEX Entry
Definition
Proper name designating one of the royal officials (court eunuchs) at the Persian court of Ahasuerus (Xerxes I), specifically mentioned in the book of Esther. This personal name is used to refer to a courtier involved in a plot against the king. Its lexical meaning is limited to the identification of the individual bearing the name, rather than possessing an inherent meaning in Hebrew.
Semantic Range
proper name (male court official of Persian king); individual courtier name; personal name
Root / Etymology
Uncertain. The name is not derived from a standard Hebrew root but is likely of Old Persian origin. It resembles other Persian court names and is possibly related to Old Persian Bagadana, meaning 'given by god' or 'gift of god' (from baga = god, and dâna = given). The similarity to Hebrew forms is due to transliteration and adaptation into the biblical text.
Historical & Contextual Notes
The name בִּגְתָן (Bigthân) appears in the book of Esther (Esther 2:21; 6:2) as one of two royal eunuchs who plotted against Ahasuerus (Xerxes I). In some manuscripts (notably some Septuagint and later Masoretic texts), the spelling appears as בִּגְתָנָא (Bigthanâʼ). The occurrence of such names reflects the influence of Persian administration terminology and personal names in biblical texts composed or set in the Persian period. The presence of Persian names for royal officials reflects the broader setting of Esther and Daniel. Standard English translations transliterate the name but may render it as 'Bigthan' or 'Bigthana'; the use of 'eunuch' reflects the function of the official, not a lexical aspect of the name itself. No evidence connects the personal name with any habitual noun or meaning in Hebrew. This distinguishes it from similar-appearing Hebrew words or roots. The meaning and use of the name is tightly limited to the Persian period and does not occur earlier in Israelite history.
Original Strong's Gloss (1890)
or בִּגְתָנָא; of similar derivation to בִּגְתָא; Bigthan or Bigthana, a eunuch of Xerxes; Bigthan, Bigthana.
Bantu Hebrew
No Bantu Hebrew comparisons have been submitted for this word yet.
+ Add Bantu Hebrew WordRoot Family
— (—) — uncertain; not derived from a Hebrew verbal root
| Strong's | Lemma | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|
| H116 | אֱדַיִן | then |
| H133 | אַדְמָתָא | Admatha |
| H175 | אַהֲרוֹן | and in Aharon |
| H1834 | דַּמֶּשֶׂק | Damascus |
| H1867 | דָּֽרְיָוֵשׁ | Darius |
Word Forms
2 distinct forms
| SIDANCE | Surface | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 | Occurrences |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H904-02 |
בִּגְתָ֣נָא | bigetana | HNp |
Bigthana | Bigthana | 1 |
H904-01 |
בִּגְתָ֨ן | bigetan | HNp |
Bigthan | Bigthan | 1 |
Occurrences in Scripture
2 total occurrences
| SIDANCE | Reference | Word | Transliteration | Morphology | Common | SIBI-P1 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
H904-01 |
Esther 2:21 | בִּגְתָ֨ן | bigetan | HNp |
Bigthan | Bigthan |
H904-02 |
Esther 6:2 | בִּגְתָ֣נָא | bigetana | HNp |
Bigthana | Bigthana |