גולית

Hebrew

Alternative forms

• גוליית

Etymology

Uncertain, ostensibly borrowed from Philistine. Has been connected to names such as Ancient Greek Ἀλυάττης (Aluáttēs) from Lydian 𐤥𐤠𐤩𐤥𐤤𐤯𐤤𐤮 (walwetes), via Philistine 𐤀𐤋𐤅𐤕 (ʾlwt) and/or 𐤅𐤋𐤕 (wlt), which are thought to be names. (Can this⁽⁺⁾ etymology be sourced?)

Alternatively, Thomas Schneider proposes a Greek etymology for the name with two possible etymons

• From an unattested Greek name *Γαϝλαϝιτας (*Gawlawitas), “he who boastfully assigns booty,” from γαϝ (gaw, “boast, pride”) and λαϝιτας (lawitas, “providing/in charge of booty”).

• It is possibly a metathesized form of Ancient Greek λᾱϝᾱγετας (lāwāgetas) (cf. Mycenaean Greek 𐀨𐀷𐀐𐀲 (ra-wa-ke-ta /⁠lāwāgetās⁠/), Doric Ancient Greek λᾱγέτᾱς (lāgétās)), which has been traditionally understood to be the title given to a figure analogous to a king’s second-in-command in Mycenaean society. The shift is likely to have occurred as lāwāgetās to *gāwāletās. If this were the case, this would possibly render גׇּלְיָת as a title rather than a proper name.

Pronunciation

• (Modern Israeli Hebrew) IPA^(key): /ɡolˈjat/

Proper noun

גולית / גׇּלְיָת • (golyát) m

1. (biblical) Goliath