יְרַח
a month
Definition
The Hebrew word יְרַח (yᵉrach) means 'a month,' specifically referring to a lunar month in the biblical calendar. It is the Aramaic form of the Hebrew word יֶרַח (yerach, H3391), used in the same sense. In its two occurrences, it denotes a specific period of time, marking the completion of a project in Ezra 6:15 and the duration of a divine proclamation in Daniel 4:29. The term consistently refers to a calendar unit, with no significant variation in meaning between its uses.
Biblical Usage
This Aramaic noun is used only twice in the Old Testament, both in post-exilic texts written during the Persian period. In Ezra 6:15, it marks the completion date of the Jerusalem temple: 'this house was finished on the third day of the month Adar.' In Daniel 4:29, it specifies the duration of King Nebuchadnezzar's pride before his humbling: 'at the end of twelve months.' Its usage is strictly chronological, denoting elapsed time within an official or prophetic narrative.
Etymology
יְרַח (yᵉrach) is an Aramaic noun directly corresponding to the Hebrew יֶרַח (yerach, H3391), both meaning 'month.' Both words derive from the root ירח, related to the moon (יָרֵחַ, yareach, H3394), reflecting the lunar basis of the ancient calendar. The Aramaic form appears in biblical passages influenced by Aramaic language settings, such as the imperial decrees in Ezra and the court narratives in Daniel.
Semantic Range
In the ancient Near East, a month (יְרַח) was a lunar cycle, typically about 29.5 days, from one new moon to the next. This contrasts with modern solar-based months. Biblical months were often named numerically (e.g., 'the third month') or later by Babylonian names (e.g., 'Adar' in Ezra 6:15). The term anchors events in a religious and agricultural calendar, tying timekeeping to God's created order (Psalm 104:19).
חֹדֶשׁ (chodesh, H2320) — The more common Hebrew word for 'month,' emphasizing the new moon and renewal. יֶרַח (yerach, H3391) — The Hebrew equivalent, also lunar-based, used primarily in poetry (e.g., Deuteronomy 33:14).
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.
Full methodology & sources →