Skip to content

shebanq

טלא ṭālāʾ – to be spotted(?)

Semantic Fields: Colours   
Author(s): John E. Hartley
First published: 2026-05-20
Citation: John E. Hartley, טלא ṭālāʾ – to be spotted(?),
               Semantics of Ancient Hebrew Database (sahd-online.com), 2026

Introduction

Grammatical type: verb.
Occurrences: 8x HB (6/2/0); 0x Sir; 0x Qum; 0x Inscr. (Total: 8x).

  • Tora: Gen 30:32 (2x), 33, 35 (2x), 39;
  • Nebiim: Josh 9:5; Ezek 16:16.

7. Conclusion

A.1 טלא identifies members of a flock, particularly goats, having patches or wide streaks of varying colours. It, thus, references a pattern of colours rather than a specific hue (Brenner 1982:169). טלא also serves to describe resplendent curtains or quilts artfully made out of multicoloured fabrics, and it is used as a descriptor for patched sandals.

For this entry, see further John E. Hartley, The Semantics of Ancient Hebrew Colour Lexemes (2010), 156-159 (Printed publications).

Bibliography

For the abbreviations see the List of Abbreviations.

Brenner 1982
Athalya Brenner, Colour Terms in the Old Testament (JSOTSup, 21), Sheffield: JSOT Press.
Semantics of Ancient Hebrew Database