H0414 H0414
Ela, personal name (possibly 'terebinth')
Father of Shimei, one of Solomon's twelve district officers mentioned in 1 Kings 4:18. The name is identical to אֵלָה (terebinth tree), though whether this represents a botanical name, shortened theophoric element, or other meaning remains uncertain. Such brevity in personal names was common, and tree names often served as personal designations in ancient Israel.
Senses
1. sense 1 — Patronymic designation identifying Shimei by his father's name in Solomon's administrative structure. In 1 Kings 4:18, Ela serves solely to distinguish this Shimei from others, functioning as genealogical marker. The multilingual transliteration (Ela) preserves the name without interpretation, though BDB's equation with אֵלָה (terebinth) suggests possible meaning. As with many biblical names appearing once, Ela's significance lies in genealogical continuity rather than narrative development. 1×
AR["أَيلاَ"]·ben["এলার"]·DE["Ela"]·EN["Ela"]·FR["Ela"]·heb["אלא"]·HI["एला"]·ID["Ela"]·IT["Ela"]·jav["Éla"]·KO["엘라의"]·PT["'Ela"]·RU["Элы"]·ES["Ela"]·SW["Ela"]·TR["Ela'nın"]·urd["ایلا-کا"]
Related Senses
G3588 1. definite article (18298×)H0853 1. definite direct object marker (10915×)G2532 1. (8312×)H3068 1. YHWH (the divine name) (6522×)H0834a 1. relative pronoun (who/which/that) (4839×)H3588a 1. causal: because, for (3498×)G1161 1. and (2806×)H3478 1. Israel (proper name and nation) (2507×)G4771 1. you (plural address) (1853×)H1931 1. personal pronoun he/she/it (1431×)G3739 1. relative pronoun who/which/that (1149×)H1732 1. David (proper name) (1075×)H2088 1. this, this one (demonstrative) (1059×)G1063 1. (1047×)G3778 1. this thing, these things (1003×)H???? 2. (1002×)G2424 1. (924×)G3754 1. that (content clause) (881×)H2009 1. presentative particle: behold, look (881×)H0589 1. I (first person singular pronoun) (874×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† אֵלָא n.pr.m. father of an officer of Solomon 1 K 4:18 (= ii. אֵלָה terebinth?).