אֶלְקָנָה
Elkanah, the name of several Israelites
Definition
Elkanah is a proper name meaning 'God has obtained' or 'God has created.' It refers to several different men in the Old Testament. The most prominent is Elkanah, the husband of Hannah and father of the prophet Samuel, whose story is central to the opening chapters of 1 Samuel (1 Samuel 1:1-2:11). Another significant figure is a Levite, a descendant of Kohath, mentioned in Exodus 6:24 and 1 Chronicles 6:23-28. Other men bearing this name appear in various genealogical lists, such as in 1 Chronicles 9:16 and 2 Chronicles 28:7, indicating its use across different Israelite tribes.
Biblical Usage
The name Elkanah is used exclusively as a personal name for Israelite men, appearing 20 times in the Old Testament. Its usage is concentrated in the narratives of 1 Samuel 1-2, where it refers to Samuel's father, and in genealogical records, particularly in Exodus, 1 Chronicles, and 2 Chronicles. The pattern shows it is a name borne by both Levites (like Samuel's father, a Levite from the hill country of Ephraim) and other Israelites, appearing in contexts of family lineage and priestly descent.
Etymology
The name Elkanah (אֶלְקָנָה) is a compound of two Hebrew elements: 'El' (אֵל, H410), meaning 'God,' and 'qanah' (קָנָה, H7069), a verb meaning 'to obtain, acquire, or create.' Thus, the name literally translates to 'God has obtained' or 'God has created.' It is a theophoric name, common in Israelite culture, which explicitly acknowledges God's sovereign action, similar to names like Elijah ('Yahweh is my God').
Semantic Range
The name Elkanah, meaning 'God has obtained,' is theologically significant as it reflects a core Israelite belief in God's sovereign provision and creation. This is vividly illustrated in the story of Samuel's birth (1 Samuel 1), where the childless Hannah prays for a son, and God 'obtains' or 'creates' Samuel in answer to her prayer. The name serves as a constant reminder that children, and indeed all blessings, are ultimately gifts from God. Understanding this Hebrew meaning enriches the reading of 1 Samuel, framing Samuel's life as one divinely obtained for God's purposes.
In ancient Israelite culture, names were often descriptive and carried significant meaning, reflecting circumstances of birth, parental hopes, or attributes of God. Elkanah, as a theophoric name, identifies the bearer and his family as worshippers of Yahweh. The prominence of the name in Levitical lines (Exodus 6:24, 1 Chronicles 6) suggests it may have been particularly favored among priestly families, emphasizing their special relationship and dedication to God.
Eliyahu (Elijah, H452) — A name meaning 'Yahweh is my God,' sharing the theophoric element but with a different divine name (Yahweh instead of El). Yehonatan (Jonathan, H3083) — A name meaning 'Yahweh has given,' sharing a similar structure of acknowledging God as the source of a gift.
Word Details
How this works
Hebrew definitions are from Brown-Driver-Briggs (1906) and Strong's Exhaustive Concordance (1890), both public domain. BDB was groundbreaking for its era but reflects 19th-century assumptions about Semitic etymology. Modern scholarship (HALOT, DCH) has revised many entries. Use these definitions as a starting point for exploration, not as the final word on a term's meaning in context.
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