Hebrew word · H3621

כְּלוּבָ֑י

keluvai

Chelubai

A personal or clan name, almost certainly a variant of Caleb (kālēb, H3612). Caleb is related to the common word for 'dog' (keleb); some scholars instead connect it to a root meaning 'heart' or 'whole-hearted', and this remains uncertain. The -ay ending is often a family-name (gentilic) suffix.

Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. · Updated November 14, 2026

What it means

A man of the tribe of Judah living at the time of Egypt and Wilderness, first mentioned at 1Ch.2.9;

son of: Hezron (H2696H);

brother of: Ram (H7410), Jerahmeel (H3396), Segub (H7687H) and Ashhur (H0806); married to Azubah (H5806H), Jerioth (H3408), Ephrathah (H0672), Ephah (H5891H) and Maacah (H4601L);

father of: Hur (H2354), Jesher (H3475), Shobab (H7727H), Ardon (H0715), Mareshah@1Ch.2.42 (H4337), Haran (H2771B), Moza (H4162), Gazez (H1495), Jahdai (H3056), Sheber (H7669), Tirhanah (H8647), Shaaph (H8174H), Sheva (H7724) and Achsah (H5915H); also called Carmi (NIV: Karmi) at 1Ch.4.1(?); Chelubai at 1Ch.2.9;

Another name of ka.lev (כָּלֵב "Caleb" H3612H)

§ Chelub ai = "my caged one"

son of Hezron of Judah; also 'Caleb'

Abridged from Brown, Driver and Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (1906), via STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0).

In depth

From the study of 1 Chronicles 2:9

Range of meaning: A personal or clan name, almost certainly a variant of Caleb (kālēb, H3612). Caleb is related to the common word for 'dog' (keleb); some scholars instead connect it to a root meaning 'heart' or 'whole-hearted', and this remains uncertain. The -ay ending is often a family-name (gentilic) suffix.
Against the English: KJV, WEB, YLT, ESV and NASB keep the Hebrew form 'Chelubai'. BSB, NIV and NLT print 'Caleb', which matches 2:18 and 2:42 but hides the unusual form in the Hebrew.
How it drifted: Printing 'Caleb' leads many readers to assume this is the famous spy Caleb son of Jephunneh (Num 13:6; Josh 14). Chronicles does not say so, and the relationship between the two Calebs is disputed.
Used elsewhere in the period: 1 Chr 2:18 and 2:42 call him Caleb, 'brother of Jerahmeel'. The Septuagint here already reads Chaleb. The Calebites appear as a distinct group around Hebron (Josh 15:13–19; 1 Sam 25:3 'Nabal was a Calebite'; 1 Sam 30:14 'the Negev of Caleb'). Caleb son of Jephunneh is called a Kenizzite (Num 32:12; Josh 14:6, 14), and Kenaz is an Edomite name (Gen 36:11, 42).

Where it appears

1 Chronicles · 1

1 Chronicles 2:9 כְּלוּבָֽי׃ Celubai

The sons who were born to Hezron: Jerahmeel, Ram, and Caleb.

Here: A variant form of Caleb. The same man is called Caleb in 2:18 and 2:42 ('Caleb the brother of Jerahmeel'). The ending -ay may be a family-name form ('the Calebite'), as if the clan's name stood for its founder.

Word data: STEPBible.org (CC BY 4.0), main text only.