Malakh - Etymology

Etymology

Hebrew "malak" (מַלְאָךְ) is the standard Hebrew Bible word for "messenger", both human and divine, though it is less used for human messengers in Modern Hebrew. In the King James Bible the noun malak is rendered "angel" 111x, "messenger" 98x, "ambassadors" 4x. The noun derives from the verbal consonantal root l-'-k (ל-א-ך), meaning "to send". This root is attested in Hebrew only in this noun and in the noun "Melakah" (מְלָאכָה), meaning "work". The term "Malak" therefore simply means one who is sent, often translated as "messenger" when applied to humans; for instance, "Malak" is the root of the name of the prophet Malachi, whose name means "my messenger". In modern Hebrew, malak is the general word for "angel"; it is also the word for "angel" in Arabic (malak ملاك), Aramaic and Ethiopic.

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