Hebrew word · H7073

קְנַז

kenaz

Kenaz

Personal and clan name. Its meaning is uncertain.

Appears 11 times in 11 verses of the Hebrew Old Testament. ·

What it means

A man of the Edomites living at the time of the Patriarchs, first mentioned at Gen.36.11;

son of: Eliphaz (H0464);

brother of: Teman (H8487), Omar (H0201), Zepho (H6825), Gatam (H1609), Amalek (H6002H) and Korah (H7141H)

§ Kenaz = "hunter"

1) son of Eliphaz and grandson of Esau; one of the dukes of Edom

2) a brother of Caleb and father of Othniel

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 4:15

Range of meaning

Personal and clan name. Its meaning is uncertain.

Against the English

Translations simply transliterate it. That loses the link to "the Kenizzites" which a Hebrew reader would hear at once.

Used elsewhere in the period

The Kenizzites appear among the peoples of the land promised to Abraham (Genesis 15:19). Kenaz is also an Edomite chief, a grandson of Esau (Genesis 36:11, 15, 42). Caleb son of Jephunneh is repeatedly "the Kenizzite" (Numbers 32:12; Joshua 14:6, 14). Othniel, Judah's first judge, is "son of Kenaz" and closely related to Caleb (Joshua 15:17; Judges 1:13; 3:9; 1 Chronicles 4:13).

Where it appears

Genesis · 3

  1. Genesis 36:11 וּקְנַֽז׃ and Kenaz

    The sons of Eliphaz were Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz.

  2. Genesis 36:15 קְנַֽז׃ Kenaz

    These are the chiefs among the sons of Esau. The sons of Eliphaz the firstborn of Esau: Chiefs Teman, Omar, Zepho, Kenaz,

  3. Genesis 36:42 קְנַ֛ז Kenaz

    Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar,

Joshua · 1

  1. Joshua 15:17 קְנַ֖ז Kenaz

    So Othniel son of Caleb’s brother Kenaz captured the city, and Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to him in marriage.

    Here: A personal name that is also the name of the clan ancestor of the Kenizzites. Caleb is called 'the Kenizzite' (Josh 14:6, 14), so Othniel belongs to Caleb's own clan.

Judges · 3

  1. Judges 1:13 קְנַ֔ז Kenaz

    So Othniel son of Caleb’s younger brother Kenaz captured the city, and Caleb gave his daughter Acsah to him in marriage.

  2. Judges 3:9 קְנַ֔ז Kenaz

    But when the Israelites cried out to the LORD, He raised up Othniel son of Caleb’s younger brother Kenaz as a deliverer to save them.

    Here: A personal name and also the ancestor of the Kenizzites, a group listed among non-Israelite peoples in Genesis 15:19 and linked with Edom in Genesis 36:11, 15. Their clan had joined Judah.

  3. Judges 3:11 קְנַֽז׃ פ Kenaz

    So the land had rest for forty years, until Othniel son of Kenaz died.

1 Chronicles · 4

  1. 1 Chronicles 1:36 קְנַ֖ז Kenaz

    The sons of Eliphaz: Teman, Omar, Zepho, Gatam, and Kenaz; and by Timna, Amalek.

  2. 1 Chronicles 1:53 קְנַ֛ז Kenaz

    Kenaz, Teman, Mibzar,

  3. 1 Chronicles 4:13 קְנַ֔ז Kenaz

    The sons of Kenaz: Othniel and Seraiah. The sons of Othniel: Hathath and Meonothai.

  4. 1 Chronicles 4:15 וּקְנַֽז׃ and Kenaz

    The sons of Caleb son of Jephunneh: Iru, Elah, and Naam. The son of Elah: Kenaz.

    Here: Elah's son. Kenaz is the name of the founder of the Kenizzite clan Caleb belonged to, so it comes back in Caleb's line. The "and" in front of it is a textual puzzle (see notes).

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