תרשיש

Hebrew

Etymology 1

Borrowed from a native Tartessian endonym. Cognate with Ancient Greek Ταρτησσός (Tartēssós, “Tartessos”).

Proper noun

תרשיש • (transliteration needed)

1. Andalusia, the southern part of the Iberian peninsula

Etymology 2

A special development from Hebrew תַּרְשִׁישׁ‬‎ (“Andalusia”), from the reanalysis of the phrase ‮אֳנִיָּה תַּרְשִׁישׁ‬‎ ʾǒniyyā taršīš ‘ship (for reaching) Tartessos’ to ‘oceanic ship’.

Adjective

תרשיש • (transliteration needed)

1. oceanic

Etymology 3

A special development of Hebrew תַּרְשִׁישׁ‬‎ (“oceanic”), from the reanalysis of the phrase ‮אֶבֶן תַּרְשִׁישׁ‬‎ ʾeb̠en taršīš “stone (from the) oceanic vessel”, reinterpreted by listeners unfamiliar with the maritime origin of amber to mean “taršīš-stone”, such that taršīš became the name of the particular type of stone acquired over oceanic trade. See Ayil below.

Noun

תרשיש • (transliteration needed)

1. (Baltic) amber

See also

• Ancient Greek Ταρτησσός (Tartēssós, “Tartessos”)

References

• Ayil, Ephraim S. (2024). "Chapter 12 ‮תַּרְשִׁישׁ‬‎ Taršīš—Amber". In Identifying the Stones of Classical Hebrew. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. https://doi.org/10.1163/9789004678002_013