Targum
/ˈtɑːr.ɡəm/noun
A paraphrastic Aramaic translation or interpretation of the Hebrew Bible.
Did you know?Targumim were not mere word-for-word translations; in Jewish tradition they often functioned as authoritative oral interpretation, and the Aramaic title itself is linked to the act of translating or rendering meaning.
Etymological Timeline
Proto-Semitic
PSem
*trgm
“to interpret or translate, likely in the sense of rendering speech into another form”
Imperial Aramaic
Aramaic
targem
“to translate, explain, or interpret”
Late Antiquity
Aramaic
targūm
“translation, interpretation; especially an Aramaic rendering of Scripture”
Medieval Hebrew
Hebrew
targūm
“an Aramaic translation or paraphrase of biblical text”
Modern English
English
targum
“a Targum; an Aramaic paraphrase of Scripture”