Hebrew word · H4517

מְנַעֲנֵעַ

uvimna'an'im

castanets

This word occurs only here. It comes from the root nuaʿ, 'to shake, totter', with the syllable repeated (naʿ-naʿ) to suggest repeated shaking. So it was a shaken rattle, most likely the sistrum: a U-shaped or loop-shaped metal frame on a handle, with loose crossbars or discs that jingle.

Appears once in the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

1) a kind of rattle

1a) a kind of rattle used as a musical instrument

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 2 Samuel 6:5

Range of meaning

This word occurs only here. It comes from the root nuaʿ, 'to shake, totter', with the syllable repeated (naʿ-naʿ) to suggest repeated shaking. So it was a shaken rattle, most likely the sistrum: a U-shaped or loop-shaped metal frame on a handle, with loose crossbars or discs that jingle.

Against the English

KJV 'cornets' is a horn and simply wrong. WEB 'castanets' and NASB/ESV 'castanets' are closer but still guesses. BSB 'sistrums' fits the root and the archaeology best.

How it drifted

Early English translators had no clear tradition for this rare word. The Latin Vulgate's 'sistrum' was more accurate than KJV's 'cornets'.

Used elsewhere in the period

Sistrums are well known from Egypt, where they were used in cult processions (especially for Hathor). Clay and metal rattles have been found at Israelite and Canaanite sites. The Vulgate translates the word as sistris.

Where it appears

2 Samuel · 1

  1. 2 Samuel 6:5 וּבִמְנַֽעַנְעִ֖ים and on rattles

    David and all the house of Israel were celebrating before the LORD with all kinds of wood instruments, harps, stringed instruments, tambourines, sistrums, and cymbals.

    Here: This word appears only here in the Bible. It comes from a root meaning 'to shake', so it was a shaken rattle, most likely a sistrum: a handle with a frame holding loose metal pieces that jingle when shaken. KJV's 'cornets' (a horn) is a mistake.

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