H5373 H5373
nard, an aromatic plant from India; used for perfume and anointing
This noun refers to nard (or spikenard), a highly valued aromatic plant imported from India through Persia. The beloved in Song of Songs says 'while the king was at his table, my nard gave forth its fragrance' (1:12)—evoking intimate presence through expensive perfume. Nard appears in the garden's spice inventory: 'nard and saffron, calamus and cinnamon' (4:13-14). The plant's East Asian origin made it a luxury item in the ancient Mediterranean world. New Testament readers remember Mary's anointing of Jesus with pure nard (Mark 14:3), 'very costly'—the same exotic substance celebrated here for its fragrance and rarity.
Senses
1. sense 1 — All three occurrences are in Song of Songs' celebration of fragrance and beauty. The possessive 'my nard' (1:12) suggests personal possession of costly perfume. The plural 'nards' (4:13) may indicate multiple varieties or simply poetic intensification alongside other aromatics. The final mention (4:14) lists it first among exotic spices. Cross-linguistic renderings are straightforward transliterations (Nardo, Nard, Narde), reflecting the plant's foreign origin—a borrowed word for a borrowed luxury. The fragrance evokes intimacy, beauty, and the beloved's worth. 3×
AR["نِرَدِيم", "نِرْدِي", "نِيرْدّ"]·ben["-জটামাংসীর।", "আমার-জটামাংসী", "জটামাংসী"]·DE["Narde", "[נרדי]", "[נרדים]"]·EN["my-nard", "nard"]·FR["Nard", "du-nard.", "mon-nard"]·heb["נרד", "נרדי", "נרדים"]·HI["जटामांसी", "मेरी-जटामांसी"]·ID["Narwastu", "narwastu", "narwastu-ku"]·IT["nardo", "nardo-mio"]·jav["Narwastu", "narwastu", "narwastu-kula"]·KO["나드-와", "나드들", "내-나드-가"]·PT["Nardo", "meu-nardo", "nardos"]·RU["Нард", "нард-мой", "нардами."]·ES["Nardo", "mi-nardo", "nardos"]·SW["nardo", "nardo-yangu"]·TR["nard", "nardim", "nardlar"]·urd["جٹاماسی", "میری-ناردین"]
Related Senses
H8081 1. oil (substance) (180×)H3196 1. wine (fermented grape juice) (141×)H1706 1. honey (54×)H4682 1. unleavened bread/cakes (53×)H2461 1. milk (42×)H8492 1. new wine / must (38×)H0400 1. food, nourishment (36×)G3631 1. wine (34×)H3978 1. food, nourishment (30×)H1314 1. spice / perfume / balsam (29×)H7416 1. pomegranate (fruit/ornament) (28×)H3323 1. fresh oil, olive oil (23×)H2964 1. prey, torn flesh (19×)H3899 2. food, sustenance (19×)G1033 1. food (17×)G5160 1. food (16×)H5561 1. spices, aromatic substances (16×)H0402 1. food, nourishment (14×)G2219 1. leaven (13×)H4478a 1. manna (13×)
BDB / Lexicon Reference
† נֵרְדְּ n.m. nard, an odorif. plant from India (via Presia) (Skr. naladâ; Pers. nârdîn; Sab. Arabic transp. رَنْد according to DHMBurgen u. Schlosser 975 (SB xcvii) v. also Sab.Denkm. 82; Gk. νάρδος [so 𝔊] (through Semites) LewyFremdwörter 40; cf. LöwNo. 316 LagM. ii. 25);—abs. נ׳ Ct 4:14; sf. נִרְדִּי נָתַן רֵיחוֹ 1:12; pl. נְרָדִים 4:13.