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Tarshish

contemplation; examination

תַּרְשִׁישׁ tar.shish

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Tarshish (Hebrew: תַּרְשִׁישׁ, tar.shish) means “contemplation; examination”, by traditional interpretation. Four men in scripture bear the name; the best attested belongs to the Patriarchal period. In United States birth records the name is below the reporting threshold. Appears in the same passages as Abagtha.

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Which Tarshish?

Four men in scripture bear this name. Here is each of them.

  1. Tarshish

    Second Temple · king · 1 verse

  2. Tarshish

    Second Temple · 1 verse

  3. Tarshish

    Patriarchal · 2 verses

    son of Javan

  4. Tarshish

    Divided Kingdom · tribe of Benjamin · 1 verse

    son of Bilhan

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At a glance

Verses
4 across 3 books
Bearers
4 distinct people in scripture
Testament
Old
Era
Patriarchal
SSA · public domainBirths in year

Using it today

In United States birth records this name is below the reporting threshold. The Social Security Administration does not publish counts under five, so a name given to four children looks the same as one given to none.

Merged person graph4 verse pairs

In scripture

FactDetail
First appearsGenesis 10:4
Last appearsEsther 1:14
Cross-references47 linked passages
Computed · A2/A3Rationale generated

Names connected to this one

  • Elishah attested sibling Attested sibling — both named as children of Javan.
  • Elishah co-occurrence Appears with Elishah in Genesis 10.
  • Dodanim co-occurrence Appears with Dodanim in Genesis 10.
  • Kittim co-occurrence Appears with Kittim in Genesis 10.
  • Carshena co-occurrence Appears with Carshena in Esther 1.
  • Admatha co-occurrence Appears with Admatha in Esther 1.
  • Shethar co-occurrence Appears with Shethar in Esther 1.
  • Marsena co-occurrence Appears with Marsena in Esther 1.

Origin & meaning

Strong's number H8659I
Hebrew תַּרְשִׁישׁ
Transliteration tar.shish

A man of the tribe of Benjamin living at the time of Divided Monarchy, only mentioned at 1Ch.7.10;
son of: Bilhan (H1092H);
brother of: Jeush (H3266H), Benjamin (H1144H), Ehud (H0164H), Chenaanah (H3668H), Zethan (H2133) and Ahishahar (H0300)
§ Tarshish or Tharshish = "yellow jasper"
1) son of Javan
2) a Benjamite, son of Bilhan
3) one of the wise men close to king Ahasuerus of Persia
4) a city of the Phoenicians in a distant part of the Mediterranean Sea to which the prophet Jonah was trying to flee
1a) perhaps in Cyprus or Spain
5) a city somewhere near and accessible to the Red Sea to which ships constructed at Ezion-geber on the Elanitic Gulf on the Red Sea were to sail

Tarshish was a son of Bilhan, a descendant of Benjamin.

The biblical story

Tarshish is mentioned in 1Ch.7.10 as a son of Bilhan. Bilhan was a descendant of Benjamin, making Tarshish a member of the tribe of Benjamin. This passage lists the sons of Jediael, tracing the genealogy of Benjamin.

Key verses

Tarshish appears in 1 verse. Here are some of the most notable:

  1. The sons also of Jediael; Bilhan: and the sons of Bilhan; Jeush, and Benjamin, and Ehud, and Chenaanah, and Zethan, and Tharshish, and Ahishahar.

    1 Chronicles 7:10
Show all 1 reference

1 Chronicles (1)

  • 1 Chronicles 7:10