H0344 H0344
falcon, hawk, kite (bird of prey known for keen eyesight)
A bird of prey listed among unclean birds in Levitical law, encompassing various falcon or hawk species. The term may be onomatopoetic, echoing the bird's cry. Leviticus and Deuteronomy prohibit eating this raptor 'according to its kind,' suggesting multiple species fell under this category. Job mentions it as exemplifying extraordinary vision—able to spot prey from great heights—symbolizing perception beyond human capacity. The falcon's sharp sight made it a natural metaphor for insight that penetrates what is hidden.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Leviticus 11:14 and Deuteronomy 14:13 classify the falcon among unclean birds, using the phrase 'according to its kind' to indicate a whole family of raptors. Job 28:7 invokes the falcon's legendary eyesight in describing a hidden path 'that no bird of prey knows, and the falcon's eye has not seen'—emphasizing mysteries beyond even the sharpest natural vision. The bird symbolizes both the boundaries of created perception and the dietary boundaries that set Israel apart. 3×
AR["الحِدَأَةِ", "الْبَازِيَ", "الْحَدَأَةُ"]·ben["-বাজপাখি", "এবং-শকুন", "চিলের"]·DE["[איה]", "der-falcon"]·EN["falcon", "the-falcon"]·FR["le-falcon", "איה"]·heb["אייה", "ה-איה"]·HI["गिद्ध", "चील", "चील-की"]·ID["elang", "rajawali"]·IT["falcon", "il-falcon"]·jav["elang-laut", "manuk-alap-alap"]·KO["그-소리개를", "그-솔개와", "솔개의"]·PT["de-falcão.", "o-falcão"]·RU["-сокол", "коршуна", "ястреба"]·ES["el-halcón", "halcón"]·SW["mwewe", "shakwe"]·TR["atmaca", "şahinin"]·urd["-چیل", "باز", "باز-نے"]
Related Senses
H6629 1. flock, sheep/goats (small livestock) (274×)H1241 1. cattle, herd (bovine livestock) (183×)H0352a 1. ram (male sheep) (156×)H6499 1. young bull, bullock (130×)H3532 1. lamb, young male sheep (105×)H2543 1. donkey (male ass) (96×)H7794 1. ox, bull (79×)H7462b 1. shepherd (agent noun) (76×)H5795 1. she-goat(s), female goat(s) (68×)H7462b 2. to shepherd, tend, pasture (60×)H1581 1. camel (domestic animal) (54×)H0738b 1. lion (46×)G4263 1. sheep (39×)H5739 1. flock or herd of livestock (38×)H5695 1. calf, young bull (35×)H0738a 1. lion (large predatory feline) (34×)H0860 1. female donkey (34×)H3611 1. dog (animal) (32×)H3715a 1. young lion, lion cub (31×)G0721 1. Lamb (29×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† I. אַיָּה n.f. hawk, falcon, kite (perhaps from cry; cf. Arabic يُؤْيُؤ, a kind of hawk) Lv 11:14; Dt 14:13 generic, cf.לְמִינָהּ & Di; Jb 28:7 (keen-sighted).