Benjamin

Benjamin
Benjamin m
English (also French and German): of biblical origin. Benjamin was one of the founders of the twelve tribes of Israel, the youngest of the twelve sons of Jacob. His mother Rachel died in giving birth to him, and in her last moments she named him Benoni, meaning ‘son of my sorrow’. His father, however, did not wish him to bear such an ill-omened name, and renamed him Benyamin (Genesis 35: 16–18; 42: 4). This means either ‘son of the right hand’ or more likely ‘son of the south’ (Hebrew yamin can also mean ‘south’), since Benjamin was the only child of Jacob born in Canaan and not in Mesopotamia to the north. Another tradition is that the second element of the name is a variant of the Hebrew word yamim which means ‘days’ but is used idiomatically to mean ‘year’ or ‘years’. The name would then mean ‘son of (my) old age’ and refer to the fact that Benjamin was Jacob's youngest child. In the Middle Ages the name was often given to sons whose mothers had died in childbirth. Today it has no such unfortunate associations, but is still mainly a Jewish name. In the Scottish Highlands it has been used as an Anglicized form of the Gaelic name BEATHAN (SEE Beathan).
Variant: Jewish: Binyamin (the modern Hebrew form).
Cognate: Russian: Venyamin.
Short form: English: Ben.
Pet forms: English: Benny, Bennie, Benji(e).

First names dictionary. 2012.

Игры ⚽ Поможем написать реферат

Look at other dictionaries:

  • Benjamin — (Hebrew Name|בִּנְיָמִין|Binyamin|Binyāmîn) in the Book of Genesis, is a son of Jacob, the second (and last) son of Rachel, and the founder of the Israelite Tribe of Benjamin [Genesis 35:18] ; in the Biblical account, unlike Rachel s first son… …   Wikipedia

  • BENJAMIN — (Heb. בִּנְיָמִין), youngest son of jacob by rachel (Gen. 35:16–18), and the eponym of the tribe of Benjamin. Benjamin was the only one of Jacob s sons to be born in Canaan. Little is told of his life and personality. Our preserved texts… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • benjamin — benjamin, ine [ bɛ̃ʒamɛ̃, in ] n. • fin XVIIe « enfant préféré »; nom du plus jeune fils de Jacob, littéralt « fils du bonheur » 1 ♦ Le, la plus jeune d une famille, d un groupe. ⇒ cadet, dernier né. La benjamine de la famille, de la classe. 2 ♦… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Benjamin — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Benjamin hace referencia a: Benjamin Amos, futbolista inglés; Benjamin Biolay, cantautor y productor discográfico francés; Benjamin Britten, compositor británico; Benjamin Constant de Rebecque, político y escritor… …   Wikipedia Español

  • BENJAMIN (W.) — Penseur engagé sur plusieurs fronts et circulant volontiers de l’un à l’autre, Walter Benjamin doit son irrésistible fulgurance à la mobilité avec laquelle il se déplace. Ses sauts de tigre (la dialectique passe toujours chez lui par la voie… …   Encyclopédie Universelle

  • Benjamin — • The youngest son of Jacob born of Rachel Catholic Encyclopedia. Kevin Knight. 2006. Benjamin     Benjamin     † …   Catholic encyclopedia

  • Benjamin — (hebr. „Glückskind“, „Kind des Glücks“) bezeichnet: Benjamin (Vorname); männlicher Vorname, siehe dort Etymologie, Varianten und Namensträger Benjamin (Familienname); Träger des Nachnamens Benjamin (Bibel), der jüngste Sohn des Patriarchen Jakob… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • benjamin — BENJAMÍN s.m. (Rar) Cel mai mic copil al unei familii; cel mai tânăr membru al unui grup. – Din fr. benjamin. Trimis de paula, 02.06.2002. Sursa: DEX 98  benjamín s. m., pl. benjamíni Trimis de siveco, 10.08.2004. Sursa: Dicţionar ortografic … …   Dicționar Român

  • Benjamín — Saltar a navegación, búsqueda Para otros usos de este término, véase Benjamín (desambiguación). Del hebreo Ben iamin: hijo de la diestra. Se refiere a la derecha como símbolo de fuerza o virtud. Según la Biblia es el hijo menor del patriarca… …   Wikipedia Español

  • BENJAMIN II — (originally Israel Joseph Benjamin; 1818–1864), Romanian explorer and writer born in Falticeni, Moldavia. He engaged first in the lumber trade (for this reason he was nicknamed Chiristigiu or Lumberjack ) but after some initial success, he lost… …   Encyclopedia of Judaism

  • Benjamin II — was the pen name of a Romanian traveler; born at Fălticeni, Moldavia (now in Romania), in 1818; died at London May 3, 1864. Married young, he engaged in the lumber business, but losing his modest fortune, he gave up commerce. Being of an… …   Wikipedia

Share the article and excerpts

Direct link
Do a right-click on the link above
and select “Copy Link”