מִקְנֶה76 H4735
Livestock, cattle — domesticated animals as movable wealth; occasionally the act or result of acquisition (from q-n-h, 'to acquire').
Miqneh is the quintessential pastoral-economy word, naming domesticated animals — cattle, sheep, goats, donkeys, camels — as the primary form of movable wealth in the ancient Near East. When Genesis describes Abraham as 'very rich in livestock (miqneh), in silver, and in gold' (Gen 13:2), the word captures both the animals and their economic value. Spanish ganado, French bétail, and German Vieh all render the collective livestock sense. In a handful of passages the root meaning of q-n-h ('to acquire') surfaces: miqneh can denote the act of purchase or the property acquired, as when Jacob's 'acquisition' (miqneh) is distinguished from his herds (Gen 49:32).
Senses
1. livestock, cattle, herds — Collective noun for domesticated livestock — cattle, sheep, goats, donkeys, and camels viewed as movable pastoral property. Spanish ganado, French bétail, and German Vieh all confirm this as the default reading. Abraham's wealth is measured in miqneh (Gen 13:2); the plagues strike Egypt's miqneh (Exod 9:3); and the Transjordan tribes have abundant miqneh requiring pastureland (Num 32:1). 70×
AR["المَواشي","الْ-مَاشِيَةَ","الْمَاشِيَةُ","الْمَوَاشِي","قَطيعٌ","ماشِيَةَ","مَاشِيَةً","مَاشِيَةٌ","مَاشِيَةِ","مَوَاشٍ"]·ben["-পশুদের","পশু","পশু-","পশুদের","পশুপাল"]·DE["Vieh","Vieh-von","Viehzucht","[מקנה]","der-Vieh","des-Viehs","des-Viehs-","die-Herde","von-erwarb"]·EN["cattle","livestock","livestock-of","the-livestock"]·FR["bétail","bétail-de","le-bétail","troupeau"]·heb["ה-מקנה","מקנה"]·HI["पशु","पशु-","पशुओं","पशुओं-की","मवेशी-के","मवेशी-पर"]·ID["peternak","ternak","ternak-"]·IT["[מקנה]","bestiame","gregge","il-livestock","livestock","livestock-di","possesso"]·jav["ingon-ingon","ingon-ingonan","kewan","raja-kaya","rajakaya","rajakaya-","ternak"]·KO["가축","가축과","가축을","가축의","가축의-","가축이","가축이라","그-가축을","소유물"]·PT["gado","gado-de","gado-de-","o-gado","rebanho"]·RU["скот","скота","скота-","скотоводы","скотом","скоту","стадо"]·ES["el-ganado","ganado","ganado-de"]·SW["mifugo","mifugo-ya","wa-nyama","wana-mifugo"]·TR["-sürünün","hayvan","hayvanları","hayvanlarının","mal","sürü","sürü-var","sürüleri","sürünün","sürüsü","sürüsünü","sürüsünün-"]·urd["مویشی","مویشیاں","مویشیاں-ہیں","مویشیوں","مویشیوں-کے","گلہ"]
2. acquisition, purchase, possession — Abstract or commercial sense tied to the root q-n-h ('to acquire'): the act of purchasing, the price of acquisition, or possessions broadly. Spanish compra-de and posesión-de reveal this shift from animals to the concept of acquisition. In Gen 49:32, Jacob's miqneh is listed alongside his burial cave as 'acquisition'; in Gen 26:14, Isaac's miqneh denotes his aggregate possessions, and Job 1:3 uses it to summarize Job's vast holdings. 6×
AR["شِرَاءُ","ماشِيَةُ","مُقْتَناهُ","وَ-قِنْيَةَ-","وَ-ماشِيَةُ","وَمُقْتَناهُ"]·ben["আর-সম্পত্তি","এবং-তার-পশুসম্পদ","ও-পশু-","কেনা","তার-পশুসম্পদ","সম্পত্তি-"]·DE["Herden-","[ומקנה]","[ומקנהו]","[מקנהו]","der-Kauf","und-Herden-"]·EN["and-his-livestock","and-livestock-of-","and-possession-of","his-livestock","possession-of","purchase-of"]·FR["et-possession-de","et-son-troupeau-lui","et-troupeau","possession-de","purchase-de","son-troupeau-lui"]·heb["ו-מקנה","ו-מקנהו","מקנה","מקנהו"]·HI["उसका-पशुधन","और-उसका-पशुधन","और-पशुधन","और-भेड़बकरियाँ-","खरीदा","पशुधन-"]·ID["dan-kawanan-","dan-ternak","dan-ternaknya","pembelian","ternak","ternaknya"]·IT["e-gregge","e-possesso-di","e-possesso-suo","possesso-di","possesso-suo","purchase-di"]·jav["Tumbasan","lan-raja-darbèk","lan-rajakayanipun","lan-rèncang-","raja-darbèk-","rajakayinipun"]·KO["그-가축이","그리고-그-소유가","그리고-소유","그리고-소유-","매매함이다","소유-인"]·PT["Compra-de","e-gado-dele","e-possessão-de","e-rebanho-de-","gado-dele","possessão-de"]·RU["и-стада-","и-стада-его","и-стадо","имущество-его","покупка","стадо"]·ES["Compra-de","posesión-de","su-ganado","y-ganado-de-","y-posesión-de","y-su-ganado"]·SW["makundi-ya","mali-yake","na-makundi-ya","na-mali-yake","nyama-yake","wּmikneh"]·TR["satın-alınmış","sürüsü","ve-edinme-","ve-sürüsü"]·urd["اور-اُس-کا-مال","اور-ریوڑ","اور-مویشی-","اُس-کا-مال","خرید","ریوڑ"]
Related Senses
H3808 1. simple negation (not) (4839×)G1722 1. locative: in, within (2442×)H1004b 1. house, dwelling, building (2015×)G3756 1. not (negation particle) (1635×)H4480a 1. source or separation (1198×)H5892b 1. city, town (1093×)G1519 1. direction: into, to, toward (1061×)H3427 1. Qal: to dwell, inhabit (937×)G1537 1. from, out of (source/origin) (886×)H8034 1. Name (designation / identifier) (856×)G3361 1. subjective negation (not) (834×)G1909 1. on, upon (spatial surface) (757×)H0369 1. existential negation: there is not (738×)H5869a 1. in the eyes/sight of (evaluative) (734×)H5650 1. Servant, attendant, subject (723×)H0408 1. prohibitive negation do-not (712×)G2443 1. so that, in order that (purpose/result) (665×)G0575 1. from (649×)G1223 1. through, by means of (582×)H3541 1. thus, so, in this manner (569×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
מִקְנֶה76 n.m. Ex 10:26 cattle;—abs. מ׳ Gn 46:32 +; cstr. מִקְנֵה Gn 13:7 +; sf. מִקְנֵהוּ Gn 3:18 +, מִקְנֶיךָ Is 30:23 (Ges§ 93 ss), etc.; pl. sf. (but v. Köii. 112 f.) מִקְנַי Ex 17:3 +, מִקְנֵיכֶם Gn 47:16 +, etc.;— 1. cattle in gen., including cows, sheep, horses, asses, camels (any or all of them), as purchasable domestic animals, Gn 47:16(×2), 17(×2); Ex 9:3 + (J), 10:26 (E), Dt 3:19 (not…