Home›Open Questions›What do the Babylonian-derived Hebrew month names Kislev, Shevat, Tammuz and Tevet literally mean?Open QuestionsWhat do the Babylonian-derived Hebrew month names Kislev, Shevat, Tammuz and Tevet literally mean?Citation FormatsGeneral ReferenceGeneral Reference Citation TextDivinity Atlas. "What do the Babylonian-derived Hebrew month names Kislev, Shevat, Tammuz and Tevet literally mean?." Accessed August 30, 2026. https://www.divinityatlas.com/open-questions-index/hebrew-months-babylonian-etymology.Copy General ReferenceAPA StyleAPA Style Citation TextDivinity Atlas. (n.d.). What do the Babylonian-derived Hebrew month names Kislev, Shevat, Tammuz and Tevet literally mean?. Retrieved August 30, 2026, from https://www.divinityatlas.com/open-questions-index/hebrew-months-babylonian-etymologyCopy APA StyleBibTeXBibTeX Citation Text@misc{divinityatlas-what-do-the-babylonian-derived-hebrew-mo, author = {Divinity Atlas}, title = {What do the Babylonian-derived Hebrew month names Kislev, Shevat, Tammuz and Tevet literally mean?}, year = {2026}, url = {https://www.divinityatlas.com/open-questions-index/hebrew-months-babylonian-etymology}, note = {Accessed August 30, 2026} }Copy BibTeXOpen QuestionCross-Tradition ConnectionsSourcesComments (0)Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)Open QuestionSeveral Hebrew month names carry an accepted native gloss (Adar, mighty; Av, father; Elul, search or inquiry; Iyar, blossoming), already recorded on this atlas. Kislev, Shevat, Tevet and, separately, the deity name Tammuz do not: their Babylonian origin is well established but no settled etymology for the specific Hebrew forms is recorded in the sources consulted for this pass.What would resolve this An Assyriological or comparative Semitic source tracing each Babylonian calendar-month name to its own root meaning, matched against the accepted glosses already recorded for the other months in the same cycle.OpenAssyriology and comparative Semitic philologyMichael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik (eds.), Encyclopaedia Judaica, 2nd editionCross-Tradition ConnectionsQuestion OnKislev, Hebrew Months Well-attested Source Encyclopaedia Judaica, 2nd editionMichael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik (eds.)tier 1Shevat, Hebrew Months Well-attested Source Encyclopaedia Judaica, 2nd editionMichael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik (eds.)tier 1Tammuz, Hebrew Months Well-attested Source Encyclopaedia Judaica, 2nd editionMichael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik (eds.)tier 1Tevet, Hebrew Months Well-attested Source Encyclopaedia Judaica, 2nd editionMichael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik (eds.)tier 1SourcesEncyclopaedia Judaica, 2nd editiontier 1Michael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik (eds.), Macmillan Reference USA, 2007View the SourceComments (0)No comments yet. Be the first to share a thought.Sign in to join the discussion.Reader Challenges (0 open reader challenges)No disputes yet. Spotted an error or a better source? Open the first one.Sign in to dispute this or suggest a correction.View At A Past YearThe atlas records no dated fact of its own for this entry, so there is no other year to choose.Show This Year