אבא

See also: Appendix:Variations of "aba"

Aramaic

Alternative forms

• Syriac: ܐܒܐ

Etymology 1

From Proto-Semitic *ʔabw-.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʔab.bɑʔ/

Noun

אַבָּא • (ʾaḇā) m (plural אֲבָהָתָא, singular construct אֲבוּ, feminine counterpart אִמָּא)

1. father, ancestor, progenitor
   • c. 1001, Targum Onkelos, B'midbar 27:6-7:

     וַאֲמַר יְיָ לְמשֶׁה לְמֵימָר: יָאוּת בְּנַת צְלָפְחָד מְמַלְּלָן מִתַּן תִּתֵּן לְהוֹן אֲחוּדַת אַחֲסָנָא בְּגוֹ אֲחֵי אֲבוּהֶן וְתַעֲבַר יָת אַחֲסָנַת אֲבוּהֶן לְהֵן:

     waʔămar yəyā ləmōše ləmēmār - yāʔūθ bənaθ sˁəlāp̄ħāð məmalləlān mittan tittēn ləhōn ʔăħūðaθ ʔaħăsānā bəɣō ˀăħē ʔăvūhen wəθaˤăvar yāθ ʔaħăsānaθ ʔăvūhen ləhēn.

     And Hashem spoke to Moshe to say, "What Tselofkhad's daughters say is correct; you shall certainly give them the inheritance of property among the brothers of their father and you will transfer their father's property to them."

2. teacher
3. chief, leader
4. author, originator

Descendants

• → Ancient Greek: ἀββα (abba) (see there for further descendants)
• → Hebrew: אבא (ába)

Etymology 2

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ʔɛbɑʔ/

Noun

אבא • (transliteration needed) m (plural אבנא or אבא)

1. thicket, woods, grove
2. produce, fruit, vegetable

References

• “ˀb”, in The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon Project, Cincinnati: Hebrew Union College, 1986–
• Jastrow, Marcus (1903), A Dictionary of the Targumim, the Talmud Babli and Yerushalmi, and the Midrashic Literature‎^[1], London, New York: Luzac & Co., G.P. Putnam's Sons
• Payne Smith, Jessie (1903), A Compendious Syriac Dictionary Founded Upon the Thesaurus Syriacus of R. Payne Smith, D.D., Oxford: Clarendon Press

Hebrew

Etymology

Borrowed from Aramaic אַבָּא (ʾabbā). Ultimately from Proto-Semitic *ʾab-. Doublet of אָב ('áv), which is inherited.

Pronunciation

• (Tiberian Hebrew) IPA^(key): /ˈʔab.bɔː/ [ˈʔaːb.bɔː]
• (Yemenite Hebrew) IPA^(key): /ˈʔab.bɔ/ [ˈʔæːb.bɔː]
• (Persian Hebrew) IPA^(key): /ˈ(ʔ)æb.bɒ/
• (Iraqi Hebrew) IPA^(key): /ˈʔab.ba/
• (Sephardi Hebrew) IPA^(key): /ˈʔab.ba/ (East), /ˈ(ʔ)a.ba/ (West)
• (Ashkenazi Hebrew) IPA^(key): /ˈ(ʔ)a.bɔ/
• (Modern Israeli Hebrew) IPA^(key): /ˈ(ʔ)a.ba/

  • Audio (Israel):

    (file)

Noun

אַבָּא • (ába) m (plural indefinite אָבוֹת, feminine counterpart אמא)

1. (colloquial) father (a male parent, especially of a human; a male who parents a child (which he has sired, adopted, fostered, taken as his own, etc.))
   • 2009 November 22, Eviatar Banai, “אבא [Father]”, in לילה כיום יאיר [The Night will be as Bright as the Day], →OCLC:

     אַבָּא, אֲנִי רוֹצֶה לַעֲמוֹד מוּלְךָ
     לְהַאֲמִין שֶׁאַתָּה אַבָּא טוֹב
     אַבָּא, אֲנִי צָרִיךְ לָדַעַת שֶׁאַתָּה אוֹהֵב אוֹתִי
     כָּכָה סְתָם אַבָּא טוֹב

     Abbá, aní rotseh la'amód mulkhá
     l'ha'amín she-atá abbá tov
     Abbá, aní tsaríkh ladá'at she-atá ohév oti
     kákha stám ábba tov

     Father, I want to stand before you
     to believe that you are a good father
     Father, I need to know that you love me,
     just like that, good father

2. (Rabbinic Hebrew) Father, especially the speaker's own father.
   • a. 217 C.E., Mishnah. Sanhedrin, section 4.5:

     שֶׁלֹּא יֹאמַר אָדָם לַחֲבֵרוֹ אַבָּא גָדוֹל מֵאָבִיךָ

     she-ló yomár adám la-ḥaveró ábba gadól me-avíkha

     that no man may say to his fellow, "My father is greater than your father."

Usage notes

This word, just as אִמָּא (íma, “mom”), never takes the definite article, as it always refers to a specific and to the speaker known person, meaning that it is definite by itself.

Related terms

• אב