ZEEZROM
| Lehite PN | 1. | Lawyer and convert from AMMONIHAH, ca. 82 BC (Alma 10:31; 11:21 (x2), 22, 26, 28, 30, 32, 34, 35, 38, 46; 12:1, 2, 3, 7, 8; 14:2, 6; 15:3, 5, 11, 12; 31:6, 32; Helaman 5:10, 41) |
| Lehite GN | 2. | City, probably named from No. 1, ca. 65 BC (Alma 56:14) |
Etymology
ZEEZROM may be parallel to the Hebrew zeh Sinai, "he of Sinai"[1] (i.e., God) (Judges 5:5; Psalm 68:8) and may have the meaning "he of the EZROM." EZROM/EZRUM is a NEPHITE term mentioned in Alma 11:6, 12, and is a unit silver measure. As a silver measure (which, in Hebrew, is kesep, "silver; money"), it may be the equivalent of money as well, indicating the meaning "he of silver, money," and suggesting ZEEZROM's obsession with money or his willingness to resort to bribing ALMA and AMULEK with money to deny their belief in God (Alma 11:22).[2]
It is also possible that ZEEZROM is a combination with Zeez- from the PNs Zizah (zīzāh, 1 Chronicles 23:11) or Ziza (zīza, [ 2 Chronicles 11:20]), and rām, "exalted," or -rom, the latter coming from the common Semitic rām, "to raise up, exalt." The sommon West-Semitic zz, a weight or coin, would make sense, especially if metonymy is involved.
Some commentaries have suggested the name of the 3rd Dynasty EGYPTIAN king, Djoser, written dsr in EGYPTIAN (LID, 28; see Approach to the Book of Mormon, 231). However, unless the double inital vowel in the orthography represents a long vowel and not two separate vowels (as the "Pronouncing Guide" suggests), the connection with the EGYPTIAN dsr seems problematical.
Cf. Book of Mormon ZORAM, SEEZORAM, ESROM, EZROM/EZRUM, et al.
See also Zeezrom / Zeezrum Variants
Variants
Zeezrum, Zeezru(), Zee(z um), (Z)e(ez)rum, (Z )
Deseret Alphabet: 𐐞𐐀𐐇𐐞𐐡𐐊𐐣 (ziɛzrʌm)
Notes
- ↑ Cf. Edward Lipiński, Semitic Languages: Outline of a Comparative Grammar (Leuven: Peeters, 1997), 326, who observes that zeh is the oblique form of the archaic nominative zu.
- ↑ See, e.g., Andrzej Strus, Nomen-omen: la stylistique sonore des noms propres dan le Pentaeuque (Rome: Biblical Institute Press, 1978).
