אִנּוּן
they
Definition
אִנּוּן is the Aramaic third-person plural pronoun meaning 'they' or 'them.' It is used exclusively in the Aramaic portions of the Old Testament (Ezra and Daniel) to refer to groups of people or objects. In Ezra 5:4, it refers to the Jewish elders ('Then we told them after this manner, what the names of the men were that were making this building'), while in Daniel 2:44, it refers to kingdoms ('And in the days of these kings shall the God of heaven set up a kingdom'). The word functions identically to its Hebrew counterpart, הֵם (H1992), but within the distinct linguistic context of Imperial Aramaic.
Biblical Usage
This word appears only four times, all within the Aramaic sections of the Bible. It is used in narrative and prophetic contexts in the books of Ezra and Daniel. In Ezra 5:4, it identifies a group of people (the elders). In Daniel, it refers to prophetic symbols: kingdoms in Daniel 2:44 and Daniel 7:17, and the accusers of Daniel in Daniel 6:24. Its usage is straightforward as a plural pronoun, with no significant variation in meaning across these passages.
Etymology
אִנּוּן is an Aramaic word, not Hebrew, originating from the common Semitic root for the third-person plural pronoun. It is the direct Aramaic cognate and functional equivalent of the Hebrew pronoun הֵם (H1992, 'they'). The feminine form is אִנִּין. Its adoption in these biblical texts reflects the historical period when Aramaic was the lingua franca of the Persian Empire.
Semantic Range
The use of Aramaic in sections of Ezra and Daniel reflects the Jewish exile experience in Babylon and the Persian Empire, where Aramaic had become the common language of administration and daily life. The presence of this pronoun highlights the linguistic and cultural adaptation of God's people while maintaining their theological identity. It shows that divine revelation was communicated in the vernacular language of the audience.
הֵם (hēm, H1992) — The direct Hebrew equivalent meaning 'they,' used throughout the Hebrew Old Testament. אֲנַחְנוּ (ʼănaḥnû, H587) — Means 'we' or 'us,' the first-person plural pronoun. הֵ֫מָּה (hēmmâ, H1992) — An alternate form of הֵם, also meaning 'they.'
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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