Cheth
/xɛt/noun
Cheth is an alternative English transliteration of ḥet, the eighth letter of the Hebrew alphabet.
Did you know?In Jewish gematria, cheth has the numerical value eight, a number traditionally associated with what extends beyond the ordinary cycle of seven.
Etymological Timeline
Early 2nd millennium BCE
Proto-Sinaitic
𐤇
“A sign possibly depicting a fence or enclosure; the exact original image and name remain debated.”
Late 2nd millennium BCE
Proto-Canaanite
𐤇
“A consonantal sign representing a Semitic guttural sound, conventionally reconstructed as ḥ.”
11th–10th century BCE
Phoenician
𐤇 ḥēt
“The eighth letter of the Phoenician alphabet, representing a voiceless pharyngeal consonant.”
1st millennium BCE
Biblical Hebrew
חֵת ḥēt
“The eighth Hebrew letter, representing the consonant ḥ; its name is also written חֵית in later Hebrew tradition.”
8th–5th century BCE
Ancient Greek
ἦτα ēta
“Greek adopted the Phoenician letter as eta, eventually using it for a long e-vowel rather than the original Semitic consonant.”
Modern English
English
cheth
“A scholarly transliteration of Hebrew ח, alongside forms such as chet, het, and heth.”