Yom () is a

Biblical Hebrew Biblical Hebrew ( or ), also called Classical Hebrew, is an archaic form of the Hebrew language, a language in the Canaanite languages, Canaanitic branch of the Semitic languages spoken by the Israelites in the area known as the Land of Isra ...

word which occurs in the

Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' Modern Modern may refer to: History *Modern history ** Early Modern period ** Late Modern period *** 18th century *** 19th century *** 20th century ** Contemporary history * Moderns, a faction of Freemasonry that existed in the 18th century Philosophy ...

and Biblical Hebrew.

Overview

Although ''yom'' is commonly rendered as

day A day is the time rotation period, period of a full Earth's rotation, rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours (86,400 seconds). As a day passes at a given location it experiences morning, afternoon, evening, ...

in English translations, the word can be used in different ways to refer to different time spans: *A point of time (a specific day) *A time period of a half or whole day: **Period of light (as contrasted with the period of darkness) **

Sunrise Sunrise (or sunup) is the moment when the upper rim of the Sun appears on the horizon in the morning, at the start of the Sun path. The term can also refer to the entire process of the solar disk crossing the horizon. Terminology Although the S ...

sunset Sunset (or sundown) is the disappearance of the Sun at the end of the Sun path, below the horizon of the Earth (or any other astronomical object in the Solar System) due to its Earth's rotation, rotation. As viewed from everywhere on Earth, it ...

**Sunset to next sunset *A general term for

time Time is the continuous progression of existence that occurs in an apparently irreversible process, irreversible succession from the past, through the present, and into the future. It is a component quantity of various measurements used to sequ ...

(as in "days of our lives") *A

year A year is a unit of time based on how long it takes the Earth to orbit the Sun. In scientific use, the tropical year (approximately 365 Synodic day, solar days, 5 hours, 48 minutes, 45 seconds) and the sidereal year (about 20 minutes longer) ...

(in the plural use, as in "lived a lot of days") *A time period of unspecified length *A long, but finite, span of time Biblical Hebrew has a limited

vocabulary A vocabulary (also known as a lexicon) is a set of words, typically the set in a language or the set known to an individual. The word ''vocabulary'' originated from the Latin , meaning "a word, name". It forms an essential component of languag ...

, with fewer words than other

language Language is a structured system of communication that consists of grammar and vocabulary. It is the primary means by which humans convey meaning, both in spoken and signed language, signed forms, and may also be conveyed through writing syste ...

s, such as

English English usually refers to: * English language * English people English may also refer to: Culture, language and peoples * ''English'', an adjective for something of, from, or related to England * ''English'', an Amish ter ...

Spanish Spanish might refer to: * Items from or related to Spain: **Spaniards are a nation and ethnic group indigenous to Spain **Spanish language, spoken in Spain and many countries in the Americas **Spanish cuisine **Spanish history **Spanish culture ...

. Hence words often have multiple meanings, with the exact meaning determined by context. In Strong's Lexicon, ''yom'' is Hebrew #3117 יוֹם, from an unused root that means "to be hot, as the warm hours of the day." Thus ''yom'', in its context, is sometimes translated as: "time" (Gen 4:3, Is. 30:8); "year" (I Kings 1:1, 2 Chronicles 21:19, Amos 4:4); "age" (Gen 18:11, 24:1 and 47:28; Joshua 23:1 and 23:2); "always" (Deuteronomy 5:29, 6:24 and 14:23, and in 2 Chronicles 18:7); "season" (Genesis 40:4, Joshua 24:7, 2 Chronicles 15:3); either "epoch" or 24-hour "day", depending on interpretation (Genesis 1:5,8,13,19,23,31) – see , below. ''Yom'' relates to the concept of time, and is used not just for "day" or "days", but for time in general. How ''yom'' is translated depends on context, using

hermeneutics Hermeneutics () is the theory and methodology of interpretation, especially the interpretation of biblical texts, wisdom literature, and philosophical texts. As necessary, hermeneutics may include the art of understanding and communication. ...

.The Hebrew Word “Yom” Used with a Number in Genesis 1, What does “yom” mean in Genesis 1?
Rodney Whitefield, Ph.D. 12 June 2006 The word ''day'' is used somewhat the same way in the English language, as in "In my grandfather's day, cars did not go very fast" or "In the day of the dinosaurs there were not many mammals." The word ''Yom'' is used in the names of various

Jewish feast Jewish holidays, also known as Jewish festivals or ''Yamim Tovim'' (, or singular , in transliterated Hebrew []), are holidays observed by Jews throughout the Hebrew calendar.This article focuses on practices of mainstream Rabbinic Judaism. ...

days; as,

Yom Kippur Yom Kippur ( ; , ) is the holiest day of the year in Judaism. It occurs annually on the 10th of Tishrei, corresponding to a date in late September or early October. For traditional Jewish people, it is primarily centered on atonement and ...

, the Day of Atonement; and Yom Teruah (lit., day of shouting), the biblical name for Rosh Hashannah, the Feast of Trumpets. ''Yom'' is also used in the name of each of the

days of the week A day is the time period of a full rotation of the Earth with respect to the Sun. On average, this is 24 hours (86,400 seconds). As a day passes at a given location it experiences morning, afternoon, evening, and night. This daily cycle drive ...

in the

Hebrew calendar The Hebrew calendar (), also called the Jewish calendar, is a lunisolar calendar used today for Jewish religious observance and as an official calendar of Israel. It determines the dates of Jewish holidays and other rituals, such as '' yahrze ...

Notes

References

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Overview

See also

Creationism

Notes

References

Further reading