דרור

Hebrew

Root
ד־ר־ר (d-r-r)

Etymology

Borrowed from Akkadian 𒀭𒁺𒊏𒊒 (andurāru, “remission of debts, manumission of slaves, cancelling of illegal impositions on free persons”) or 𒁕𒊏𒊒 (darāru, “freedom; to become free of a task, to move about freely, to run off”).

Pronunciation

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Noun

דְּרוֹר • (d'rór) m (plural indefinite דְּרוֹרִים, singular construct דְּרוֹר־, plural construct דְּרוֹרֵי־)

1. liberty, freedom
   • Tanach, Leviticus 25:10, with translation of the Jewish Publication Society:

     וְקִדַּשְׁתֶּם אֵת שְׁנַת הַחֲמִשִּׁים שָׁנָה וּקְרָאתֶם דְּרוֹר בָּאָרֶץ לְכָל־יֹשְׁבֶיהָ יוֹבֵל הִוא תִּהְיֶה לָכֶם וְשַׁבְתֶּם אִישׁ אֶל־אֲחֻזָּתוֹ וְאִישׁ אֶל־מִשְׁפַּחְתּוֹ תָּשֻׁבוּ׃

     v-qidashtém et shnat ha-ḥamishím shana u-qrátem drór ba-áretz l-khol yoshvé-ha yovél hi tihyéh lakhém v-shavtém ish el aḥuzat-ó v-el mishpaḥt-ó tashúvu.

     And ye shall hallow the fiftieth year, and proclaim liberty throughout the land unto all the inhabitants thereof; it shall be a jubilee unto you; and ye shall return every man unto his possession, and ye shall return every man unto his family.

   • a. 500 C.E., Babylonian Talmud, Kiddushin 38b:

     בִּזְמַן שֶׁהַדְּרוֹר נוֹהֵג בָּאָרֶץ נוֹהֵג בְּחוּצָה לָאָרֶץ אֵין דְּרוֹר נוֹהֵג בָּאָרֶץ אֵינוֹ נוֹהֵג בְּחוּצָה לָאָרֶץ

     Bi-zmán she-ha-dror nohég ba-árets nohég b-ḥútsa la-árets; ein drór nohég ba-árets ein-ó nohég b-ḥútsa la-áretz.

     When the liberty applies in the land, it applies outside the land; when the liberty doesn't apply in the land, it doesn't apply outside the land.

2. sparrow, swallow
   • Tanach, Psalms 84:4, with translation of the Jewish Publication Society:

     גַּם־צִפּוֹר מָצְאָה בַיִת וּדְרוֹר קֵן לָהּ אֲשֶׁר־שָׁתָה אֶפְרֹחֶיהָ אֶת־מִזְבְּחוֹתֶיךָ יְהוָה צְבָאוֹת מַלְכִּי וֵאלֹהָי׃

     gam tsippór máts'a váyit u-dror qen lah ashér shatá efroḥ-eha et mizb'ḥotékha Adonái Tsva'ót malkí v-elohái.

     Yea, the sparrow hath found a house, and the swallow a nest for herself, where she may lay her young; thine altars, O LORD of hosts, my King, and my God.

   • a. 500 C.E., Babylonian Talmud, Gittin 56b:

     וּכְשֶׁמֵּת פָּצְעוּ אֶת מוֹחוֹ וּמָצְאוּ בּוֹ כְּצִפּוֹר דְּרוֹר מִשְׁקַל שְׁנֵי סְלָעִים

     u-kh-she-met pats'ú et moḥ-ó u-matz'ú bo k-tsippór drór mishqál s'la'im.

     And when he died, they split his skull and found in it like a sparrow bird weighing two sela.

Synonyms

• (freedom): חופש / חֹפֶשׁ (khófesh)
• (freedom): חֵרוּת (kherút)
• (sparrow): אַנְקוֹר (ankór)

Proper noun

דְּרוֹר • (d'rór) m

1. a male given name, Dror

References

• H1865 in Strong, James (1979) Strong’s Exhaustive Concordance to the Bible
• “דרור” in the Hebrew Terms Database of the Academy of Hebrew Language

Further reading

• דרוריים on the Hebrew Wikipedia.Wikipedia ^he