9

As far as I can tell, these are the exact same word, down to the cantillation marks. And H121 even says, "the same as H120".

From Strong's:

H120 - 'adam אָדָם, from אָדַם (H119):

man, mankind

  1. man, human being
  2. man, mankind (much more frequently intended sense in OT)
  3. Adam, first man
  4. city in Jordan valley

and

H121 - 'adam אָדָם, the same as אָדָם (H120):

Adam = "red"

  1. first man
  2. city in Jordan valley

Why the two separate entries?

1 Answer 1

16

Strong’s is distinguishing between the proper noun and the common noun.* See also, for instance, other pairs:

  • H127 אֲדָמָה (ground)
  • H128 אֲדָמָה (Adamah, a city in Naphtali)

or

  • H168 אֹ֫הֶל (tent)
  • H169 אֹ֫הֶל (Ohel, a name mentioned in 1 Chronicles)

And we’re only on aleph...

By the way, those aren’t really cantillation marks but nekudot, representing vowels.

And since we’re on the topic, please remember that Strong’s is a concordance, not a lexicon.


*For more on how this pair can occasionally be confusing, see another question on this site: Hosea 6.7: “like men”, “like Adam”, or “at Adam”?

1
  • But the glosses it gives seem to indicate both are used as proper nouns!
    – curiousdannii
    Commented Nov 25, 2015 at 1:02

Your Answer

By clicking “Post Your Answer”, you agree to our terms of service and acknowledge you have read our privacy policy.

Not the answer you're looking for? Browse other questions tagged or ask your own question.