Patriarchs: Name Meanings

Question

Shalom,

I would like to hear from a Rabbi (using the Tanakh, not the internet), the names of the Patriarchs listed in order from Adam to Noah, and especially the meanings of their names listed in order.

For instance, in Bereshit (Genesis) – Chapter 3 verse 20 “And the man named his wife Eve, because she was the mother of all life” seems to imply that the Tanakh itself defines the name Eve as meaning “the mother of all life”.
https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/8167/jewish/Chapter-3.htm

Adam appears to mean man (in my humble opinion, but cannot point to a specific definition verse as explicitly stated for Eve). Actually Bereshit (Genesis) – Chapter 5 verse 2 may be an acceptable definition for Adam means “man”
https://www.chabad.org/library/bible_cdo/aid/8169/jewish/Chapter-5.htm

Please show (at least 1 verse for each Patriarch) where the Tanakh defines their name meanings.

Thank you very much.

0

Answers

  1. The Just Ask! - AskTheRabbi.org Team

    There are three Patriarchs in Judaism: Abraham, Isaac and Jacob. The names of the spiritual leaders of the generations are found in chapters five and eleven in Genesis. Chapter five lists the ten generations from Adam to Noah, and chapter eleven lists the ten generations from Noah to Abraham.

    The Rabbis teach that the name Adam originates from the Hebrew word “adamah,” which means earth (as in the earth that we walk on). The reason is that Adam was created from different portions of earth that were taken from different geographic locations. The Bible uses the Adam as a generic term for human beings.

    Best wishes from the AskTheRabbi.org Team