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Most of my searches claim that Magadalen/Magdalene/Magdalena derive from the meaning "of Magdala", which is a town in Galilee. Thus Mary Magdalene was called because she was Mary of Magdala.
However, I'm currently reading a book where Mary Magdalene's name is depicted as Mariamne (as she is called in some Gnostic texts) and the book alludes that she receives the title Magdal-eder or Migdal-eder. From my additional research I have found this passage:
Micah 4:8:
And you, O Magdal-eder,
hillock of daughter Zion!
Unto you shall it come;
the former dominion shall be restored,
the kingdom of daughter Jerusalem.
This source states that Mary Magdalene’s name means the tower derived from the Hebrew root word Magdal. "In some translations we find her also called “Mary of Magdala”, but this does not appear to be a correct designation. The Jewish scholar Hayyim ben Yehoshua informs us that the town called Magdala was known as Taricheae until second century Christians renamed it, believing that the town may have been the Magdalene’s home, since in ancient times the town of Taricheae had been known as “Migdal Nunayya” - Tower of the Fishermen, so named because it was a place where fish was salted for trade.
The name Magdalene contains the Greek ending ‘n’ which does not render into ‘of Magdala’. Magdalene then, appears to be a discipleship appellation given by Jesus in the same manner as other known titles Jesus assigned, such as Peter designating Simon bar Jonah as a stone. The designation of this Mary as the tower implies that she was being honored with the title of “Mary the Great.” Iconographers have demonstrated this obliquely by portraying Mary Magdalene as taller than the apostles, which is indeed fitting for the one who was chosen to be witness to the resurrected Christ and the first sent apostle to deliver the Good News to the world."
Any thoughts? Do you think Magdalen refers to "of Magdala" (thus, of the tower) or a reference to Mary Magdalene BEING the tower of the disciple, the apostle to the apostles?
However, I'm currently reading a book where Mary Magdalene's name is depicted as Mariamne (as she is called in some Gnostic texts) and the book alludes that she receives the title Magdal-eder or Migdal-eder. From my additional research I have found this passage:
Micah 4:8:
And you, O Magdal-eder,
hillock of daughter Zion!
Unto you shall it come;
the former dominion shall be restored,
the kingdom of daughter Jerusalem.
This source states that Mary Magdalene’s name means the tower derived from the Hebrew root word Magdal. "In some translations we find her also called “Mary of Magdala”, but this does not appear to be a correct designation. The Jewish scholar Hayyim ben Yehoshua informs us that the town called Magdala was known as Taricheae until second century Christians renamed it, believing that the town may have been the Magdalene’s home, since in ancient times the town of Taricheae had been known as “Migdal Nunayya” - Tower of the Fishermen, so named because it was a place where fish was salted for trade.
The name Magdalene contains the Greek ending ‘n’ which does not render into ‘of Magdala’. Magdalene then, appears to be a discipleship appellation given by Jesus in the same manner as other known titles Jesus assigned, such as Peter designating Simon bar Jonah as a stone. The designation of this Mary as the tower implies that she was being honored with the title of “Mary the Great.” Iconographers have demonstrated this obliquely by portraying Mary Magdalene as taller than the apostles, which is indeed fitting for the one who was chosen to be witness to the resurrected Christ and the first sent apostle to deliver the Good News to the world."
Any thoughts? Do you think Magdalen refers to "of Magdala" (thus, of the tower) or a reference to Mary Magdalene BEING the tower of the disciple, the apostle to the apostles?
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Replies
This is a very interesting theory indeed. I checked a couple of dictionaries (e.g. Walter Bauer, Wörterbuch zum Neuen Testament) and encyclopedias, and none of the claimed, that MAGDALENE actually meant “from Magdala,” but rather “probably ‘from M.’.” H.Schumacher, Die Namen der Bibel has „exalted“ as a second possible meaning.
I don’t know, whether the added N could somehow indicate the geographic origin, the only parallel I could think of is Kyrenaios (Acts 11:20), from Cyrene, but this name has already got the N. So let Greek experts speak here. (I would be surprised though, if scholars had been misled for centuries, if this wasn’t a linguistic option)
On the other hand, I can’t think of any title containing such an N, the only example given in the text quoted here is Peter, Petros, Kepha(s) in Aramaic. So what exactly does “in the same manner” mean here? What’s the explanation for the additional N? Plus we have no indication that Jesus attributed any title or byname to this Mary (Maria, Mariam and Mariamma are indeed interchangeable; Mariamne seems to be a misspelling of the latter in later manuscripts of Josephus’s works). And if he did, why wouldn’t he use “Migdal,” the Hebrew word for tower? In the Greek New Testament, this would probably appear as “Pyrgos,” possibly “Pyrgé.” (Just like James, Peter, and John are referred to as “the pillars” in Galatians 2:9, “styloi” in Greek and “ammudim/ammudin” in Hebrew/Aramaic. This was not a name, though.)
The Migdal-Eder connection unfortunately does not answer the N-question either, I am afraid. First of all, I cannot find any reference to Magdal-Eder, only Migdal (same in Micah 4:8). Migdal-Eder can be the technical term for a tower used to take refuge to when attacked by bandits. It can be a place name (Genesis 25:31), a city in the south of Judah, possibly near Bethlehem. For that reason some see a connection to the coming of the Messiah. In Micah 4:8 Migdal-eder seems to be a symbolic address of Jerusalem as the “flock tower” (parallel to “fortress”; Young’s Literal Translation has “tower of Eder,” a personal name). I haven’t been able to find any evidence for Migdal-eder as a title for a person. Maybe others know more here…
I don’t know, whether the added N could somehow indicate the geographic origin, the only parallel I could think of is Kyrenaios (Acts 11:20), from Cyrene, but this name has already got the N. So let Greek experts speak here. (I would be surprised though, if scholars had been misled for centuries, if this wasn’t a linguistic option)
On the other hand, I can’t think of any title containing such an N, the only example given in the text quoted here is Peter, Petros, Kepha(s) in Aramaic. So what exactly does “in the same manner” mean here? What’s the explanation for the additional N? Plus we have no indication that Jesus attributed any title or byname to this Mary (Maria, Mariam and Mariamma are indeed interchangeable; Mariamne seems to be a misspelling of the latter in later manuscripts of Josephus’s works). And if he did, why wouldn’t he use “Migdal,” the Hebrew word for tower? In the Greek New Testament, this would probably appear as “Pyrgos,” possibly “Pyrgé.” (Just like James, Peter, and John are referred to as “the pillars” in Galatians 2:9, “styloi” in Greek and “ammudim/ammudin” in Hebrew/Aramaic. This was not a name, though.)
The Migdal-Eder connection unfortunately does not answer the N-question either, I am afraid. First of all, I cannot find any reference to Magdal-Eder, only Migdal (same in Micah 4:8). Migdal-Eder can be the technical term for a tower used to take refuge to when attacked by bandits. It can be a place name (Genesis 25:31), a city in the south of Judah, possibly near Bethlehem. For that reason some see a connection to the coming of the Messiah. In Micah 4:8 Migdal-eder seems to be a symbolic address of Jerusalem as the “flock tower” (parallel to “fortress”; Young’s Literal Translation has “tower of Eder,” a personal name). I haven’t been able to find any evidence for Migdal-eder as a title for a person. Maybe others know more here…
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Very interesting post, viveza! First let me say I’ve liked the name Magdalene ever since I can remember, mostly because Mary Magdalene has long been one of my favorite saints!
To add to your theory of Magdala known as Taricheae, and not being where Mary was from, but instead a title - I had a thought while reading your post. Some Biblical scholars argue that Mary was actually from Bethany. Some agree that Lazarus and Martha were the siblings of Mary Magdalene, who are also described as being from Bethany. If Mary was from Bethany, why would they call her Mary of Magdala? Perhaps the title Magdal-eder, answers this question.
To add to your theory of Magdala known as Taricheae, and not being where Mary was from, but instead a title - I had a thought while reading your post. Some Biblical scholars argue that Mary was actually from Bethany. Some agree that Lazarus and Martha were the siblings of Mary Magdalene, who are also described as being from Bethany. If Mary was from Bethany, why would they call her Mary of Magdala? Perhaps the title Magdal-eder, answers this question.
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Mary, Miriam, Mariamne ... all extremely popular versions of the same name; there would have been plenty of Marys in Bethany, Bethlehem, Magdala, Jerusalem etc, etc and there is no reason to imagine that biblical writers were even slightly modern in their approach to scholarly referencing - unfortunately. Look at Salome - important enough to attend a crucifixion; not important enough to rate a reference. The only avenue to explore, sensibly, is where the -ene ending came from and whether it can have a figurative meaning - tower - rather then just a geographical one.
Instinct tells me that it is so odd to call a woman from Bethany a woman from Magdala that she probably wasn't a woman from Bethany in the first place ... if we're lucky, some nice, scholarly person will be able to help us out with the Greek (and/or Aramaic).
Instinct tells me that it is so odd to call a woman from Bethany a woman from Magdala that she probably wasn't a woman from Bethany in the first place ... if we're lucky, some nice, scholarly person will be able to help us out with the Greek (and/or Aramaic).
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