Tarshish

English

Etymology

Borrowed from Biblical Hebrew תַּרְשִׁישׁ.

Pronunciation

• (Canada) IPA^(key): /ˈtɑɹʃɪʃ/

Proper noun

Tarshish

1. The biblical name for Andalusia, from which was imported vast quantities of important metals to Phoenicia and Israel. Identical with Ancient Greek Ταρτησσός (Tartēssós, “Tartessos”).
   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Jonah 1:1–3:

     Now the word of the Lord came vnto Ionah the sonne of Amittai, saying,
     Arise, goe to Nineueh that great citie, and cry against it: for their wickednes is come vp before me.
     But Ionah rose vp to flee vnto Tarshish, from the presence of the Lord, and went downe to Ioppa, and he found a ship going to Tarshish: so he payed the fare thereof, and went downe into it, to goe with them vnto Tarshish from the presence of the Lord.

   • 1708, Edward Wells, An Historical Geography of the Old and New Testament: In Two Volumes‎^[1], volume I, Oxford: Clarendon Press, published 1809, →OCLC, page 75:

     There remain now only the colonies of Tarſhiſh to be ſpoken of. And whereſoever elſe they ſeated themſelves, it is highly probable, that Tarteſſus, a city and adjoining country in Spain, and much celebrated by the ancients for its wealth, was a colony of Tarſhiſh. For the name Tarſhiſh is, by an eaſy and frequent change, turned into Tartiſh ; from whence Tarteſſus is regularly enough framed.

   • 1851 November 14, Herman Melville, chapter 9, in Moby-Dick; or, The Whale, 1st American edition, New York, N.Y.: Harper & Brothers; London: Richard Bentley, →OCLC:

     “And now the time of tide has come; the ship casts off her cables; and from the deserted wharf the uncheered ship for Tarshish, all careening, glides to sea.

   • For more quotations using this term, see Citations:Tarshish.

Further reading

• “Tarshish”, in Collins English Dictionary.
• “Tarshish”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.
• “Tarshish”, in Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: Merriam-Webster, 1996–present.
• “Tarshish” in TheFreeDictionary.com, Huntingdon Valley, Pa.: Farlex, Inc., 2003–2024.