• Aaron

    Pronunciation

    • GenAm IPA: /ˈɛɹ.É™n/, /ˈæɹ.É™n/
    • RP IPA: /ˈɛəɹən/
    • Rhymes: -ɛɹən, -æɹən
    • Homophones: Erin, Aran, Arran in some pronunciations
    note on the pronunciationThe Hebrew etymon of Aaron, אהרן, was pronounced /aharon/; it was transliterated into Greek as Ἀαρών (), and into Latin as Aaron. In Ecclesiastical Latin, the name was and is pronounced with two separate "a" sounds.1937, Michael de Angelis, The correct pronunciation of Latin according to Roman usageThe pronunciation of the "aa" as a single sound, , , originated when the Bible was anglicised, hence modern guides to the pronunciation of Biblical names, including those of the Church of England, the BBC,2006, L. Olausson and C. Sangster, Oxford BBC Guide to Prounciation (Oxford University Press), page 1.The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints,the Oxford English DictionaryOxford English Dictionary (2013)and Harper Collins1994, Bible Pronunciation Guide (edited by William O. Walker III, published by Harper Collins, ISBN 0060689625)specify the modern English pronunciation as , where the first syllable sounds like the word air.The variant form Aron (see Wikipedia) derives from the same Hebrew root, but via Scandinavian and/or Celtic languages; it is pronounced (like the unrelated but homophonous Celtic names Aran and Arran), for which reason Aaron is sometimes pronounced that way, too. In the UK, that pronunciation is sometimes regarded as having chav connotations (like its rhymes, Darren and Sharon).Chav: A Branded Guide to Britain's New Elite (Crombie Jardine Publishing Limited, ISBN 1905102011)

    Origin

    From Hebrew אהרן (Ahărōn), of unknown meaning, possibly meaning "bearer of martyrs", or perhaps also, or instead, related to the Ancient Egyptian "aha rw" ("warrior lion"), though it has been suggested to also mean "elevated", "exalted" or "high mountain", or "woe to this pregnancy".

    Full definition of Aaron

    Proper noun

    Aaron

    (plural Aarons)
    1. The elder brother of Moses in the Book of the Exodus, and in the Quran.
      • Authorized Version|Exodus|4|14:And the anger of the LORD was kindled against Moses, and he said, is not Aaron the Levite thy brother? I know that he can speak well.
    2. .
      • 1969 Philip Roth, Portnoy's Complaint, Random House, 2002, page 145:- - - the Junior Prom with boys whose names are right out of the grade-school reader, not Aaron and Arnold and Marvin, but Johnny and Billy and Jimmy and Tod. Not Portnoy or Pincus, but Smith and Jones and Brown!

    Usage notes

    The given name was exclusively Jewish in the Middle Ages, taken up by Gentiles in the 17th century, and popular among both in the end of the 20th century.

    Derived terms

    Related terms

    © Wiktionary
    • © 2013 - 2023 All Rights Reserved