מכבי

See also: מכּבי

Hebrew

Etymology

Not conclusively known. The name, which was a personal epithet of Judas Maccabeus and not an inherited surname, may derive from the Aramaic [script needed] (makkaba, “hammer”), in reference to Judas’s ferocity in battle.

Conversely, the traditional Jewish explanation is that מַכַּבִּי (makkabbī) is an acronym both of מִי־כָמֹכָה בָּאֵלִם יְהוָה (mí khamókha ba'elím YHVH, “Who is like You among the heavenly powers, YHWH!”) — from Exodus 15:11, which was the Maccabees’ battle-cry — and of מַתִּתְיָהוּ בֶּן יוֹחָנָן הַכֹּהֵן (Matityahu ben Yokhanan HaKohen, “Mattathias”). Yet another possibility is that the name is a corruption of מַכְבַּנַּי (makhbanáy, “Machbanai”).

Pronunciation

Noun

מַכַּבִּי • (makabí) m (plural indefinite מַכַּבִּים)

  1. (biblical) a Maccabee

Descendants

  • → Ancient Greek: Μᾰκκᾰβαῖος (Măkkăbaîos)
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