Saraph
/ˈsɛr.əf/noun
A seraph, especially one of the fiery celestial beings described in the Hebrew Bible.
Did you know?In Isaiah 6, the plural seraphim are described with six wings and surround God’s throne, crying “holy, holy, holy”; the Hebrew term is connected with burning.
Etymological Timeline
Biblical Hebrew
Hebrew
שָׂרָף (śārāph)
“A burning creature or fiery serpent; the noun derives from a root meaning “to burn.””
8th–6th Century BCE
Hebrew
שְׂרָפִים (śərāphīm)
“Fiery beings or serpentine creatures; in Isaiah, winged beings attending the divine throne.”
3rd–2nd Century BCE
Greek
σεραφίμ (seraphim)
“The plural name for the celestial beings, preserved in the Greek translation of the Hebrew Scriptures.”
4th–5th Century CE
Latin
seraphim
“A plural term for a high order of angels in Christian biblical and theological writing.”
Middle English
English
seraph
“A celestial or angelic being, singularized from the biblical plural form.”
Modern English
English
saraph
“A learned or transliterated variant of seraph, retaining the Hebrew form and its association with fiery beings.”