Bible Word Study
גּוּנִי
Gûwnîy · Guni, the name of two Israelites
גּוּנִי
Guni, the name of two Israelites
Definition
Guni is a proper name given to two individuals in the Old Testament. Primarily, it refers to a son of Naphtali, the sixth son of Jacob, as listed in the genealogy of Genesis 46:24 and Numbers 26:48. This Guni is the founder of the clan known as the Gunites. A second individual named Guni appears in 1 Chronicles 5:15 as a Gadite, a descendant of the tribe of Gad. The name carries the sense of 'protected' or 'defended,' reflecting its etymological root.
Biblical Usage
The name Guni is used exclusively in genealogical lists within the Old Testament. It appears in the foundational tribal list of Genesis 46:24, the military census of Numbers 26:48, and the post-exilic genealogical records of 1 Chronicles 5:15 and 7:13. Its usage is consistent, serving to identify individuals within the lineages of the tribes of Naphtali and Gad, contributing to the biblical record of Israel's tribal structure and heritage.
Etymology
The name Guni (גּוּנִי) is likely derived from the Hebrew root גָּנַן (gānan, H1598), which means 'to cover, protect, or defend.' It is related to words like 'garden' (גַּן, gan), a protected enclosure. As a personal name, it probably functioned as a statement or prayer, meaning 'my protection' or 'protected one,' a common theme in Hebrew onomastics.
Semantic Range
While the name Guni itself is not theologically loaded, its presence in the biblical genealogies is significant. It underscores the importance of lineage and covenant identity in Israel's story. Each named individual, like Guni, represents a link in the chain of God's faithfulness to the promises made to the patriarchs. Understanding these names reminds the reader that God works through specific families and historical people to accomplish His redemptive purposes. In ancient Israelite culture, personal names often carried meaning, reflecting character, circumstances, or parental hopes. A name like Guni ('protected') likely expressed a desire for divine safeguarding. Its use in multiple tribal lists highlights the cultural importance of genealogy for establishing identity, inheritance rights, and social standing within the covenant community. As a proper name, Guni has no direct synonyms. It is related etymologically to: גָּנַן (gānan, H1598) — the root verb meaning 'to cover or protect.'
Word Details
How this works
Definitions are from the Brown-Driver-Briggs Hebrew Lexicon (BDB, 1906, public domain). Concordance and morphology data are from the OSHB (Open Scriptures Hebrew Bible).
Full methodology & sources →References
- Abbott-Smith, G. (1921) A Manual Greek Lexicon of the New Testament. Edinburgh: T&T Clark. [Public Domain]
- Brown, F., Driver, S.R. and Briggs, C.A. (1906) A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament. Oxford: Clarendon Press. [Public Domain]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Tyndale Brief lexicon of Extended Strongs for Greek (TBESG). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Tyndale House, Cambridge (n.d.) Translators Formatted full LSJ (TFLSJ). STEPBible. Available at: https://www.stepbible.org. [CC BY 4.0]
- Thayer, J.H. (1889) A Greek-English Lexicon of the New Testament. [Public Domain]
- Gesenius, W. (1846) Gesenius' Hebrew-Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament. [Public Domain]
- Dodson, J. (2010) Greek Lexicon. Biblical Humanities. [CC0]