Page 27 - HaMizrachi #9 Yom HaAtzmaut 5779

What's in a Word

David Curwin

DEGEL ל ֶג ֶדּ

egel, ל ֶ ג ֶ ּ ד, is an interesting unit”. The verb “camped” renders the ArtScroll also offers “division” for degel,
word. In Modern Hebrew, the translation of degel more likely as “unit” with a slight variation in translation from
D only meaning is “flag” But that than “standard.” Judaica Press: “Every division shall have
has not always been the case. for itself a sign, namely, a colored sheet
Daat Mikra also agrees that “unit” is the of cloth hanging in its midst.” The main
In the Tanach, the word degel primarily meaning of degel here, writing that this difference is how they translate ot –
appears in the beginning of the book was the meaning not only in the Tanach, ArtScroll says that the ot was the cloth.
Bamidbar, in the section describing the but in Rabbinic Hebrew as well, as in In their notes on Rashi on 1:52, they
arrangement of the camp (1:52): the Midrash (Shmot Rabba 16:7): ןי ֵ א write: “Unlike other commentators, who
ת ֹוא ָ ב ְ צ א ָּ ל ֶ א םי ִ ל ָ ג ְ ּ ד, “Degalim means none
ֹול ְ ג ִ ּ ד ל ַ ע ׁשי ִ א ְ ו ּוה ֵנ ֲ ח ַ מ ל ַ ע ׁשי ִ א ל ֵ א ָ ר ְ ׂשִי י ֵנ ְּ ב ּונ ָ ח ְ ו other than troops”. Unlike Milgrom, understand ל ֶ ג ֶ ּ ד as ‘flag’, Rashi sees it as
.ם ָ תֹא ְ ב ִ צ ְ ל Daat Mikra claims that the meaning of ‘division, disposition of forces, military
formation.’ This is indicated by his
“flag” is secondary, and derived from the
The JPS translation is: “The Israelites comments to 2:2 ... See Rashi to Isaiah
shall encamp troop by troop, each man original meaning of “division, unit.” 5:26, s.v. םִי ֹוּג ַ ל ס ֵנ, where he describes
with his division and each under his Either the development from “flag” to a flag in detail, yet never once uses the
standard”. The translation of degel here is “the unit under the flag”, or from “unit” word ל ֶ ג ֶ ּ ד.”
“standard”, which originally meant a “flag to “the flag representing the unit” is easy
or other conspicuous object to serve as a to accept. However, most scholars say Who are these “other commentators”?
rallying point for a military force”. that throughout the Tanach, degel meant The earliest one I could find is Ibn Ezra,
who writes that “the insignia were on
unit.
However Prof. Jacob Milgrom, in every degel” and goes on to describe the
his JPS commentary on Bamidbar, Apparently, the adoption of degel as images on the degel of each tribe.
disagrees with the translation of degel as “flag” happened in the post-Talmudic
“standard”: period. Where do we first find it? One In the 19th century, Shadal wrote:
“Degel didn’t originally mean banner
possibility is Rashi, who writes on
“Hebrew degel possibly originally meant Bamidbar 2:2: or flag, because that is the meaning
a military banner. This is supported by of ot, as in ‘each with his degel, under
the Akkadian dagalu, ‘to look’ ... The . ֹו ּ ב ה ָיּול ְּ ת ה ָ עּוב ְ צ ה ָּ פ ַ מ ת ֹוא ֹול ה ֶי ְ הִי ל ֶ ג ֶ ּ ד ל ָּ כ the banners (otot)’. But rather it is like
meaning ‘banner’ was later extended by Onkelos and all the early translations,
association to include the army division, The problem is how do we translate this ‘an ordered grouping’ ... and you will see
just as shevet and matteh, the two terms Rashi? that throughout the section degel refers
for ‘tribe’, were probably derived from Metsudah translates: “Each banner shall to people, not banners ... But after time,
the ‘rod’ that served as the official tribal have [as] its insignia a colored cloth the word was borrowed for the meaning
insignia ... The meaning ‘unit’ better fits hanging from it.” They translate degel as ‘flag’, since every degel had a flag...”
the context here, as verse 3 shows.”
“banner”, which is certainly the popular And in the end, Ben-Yehuda writes that
Verse 3 that Milgrom refers to says: understanding of the word. However, it today, in both speech and literature, the
is difficult in this context – why would a only meaning of degel is “flag.”
ה ָ דּוהְי ה ֵנ ֲ ח ַ מ ל ֶ ג ֶ ּ ד ה ָ ח ָ ר ְז ִ מ ה ָ מ ְ ד ֵ ק םי ִנֹח ַ ה ְ ו banner have a cloth hanging from it?
.ם ָ תֹא ְ ב ִ צ ְ ל So we’ve seen a word transform from
Judaica Press changes the translation, referring to an actual group of people, to
The JPS translates it as “Camped on so that degel means division: “Every a flag that symbolizes them.
the front, or east side: the standard. of division shall have its own flag staff,
the division of Judah, troop by troop.” with a colored flag hanging on it.” They David Curwin is a writer living in Efrat,
But Milgrom notes that the translation translate ot, ת ֹוא, as “flag staff”, which is and the author of the Balashon blog
should read rather, “camped ... the likely to having a flag hanging from it. balashon1@gmail.com

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