🔼The name Ozni: Summary
- Meaning
- He Gives Ear, My Hearing
- Etymology
- From the verb אזן (azen), to balance or listen to.
🔼The name Ozni in the Bible
There's only one man named Ozni in the Bible. He was a descendant of Gad, the seventh son of Jacob and the first one of Zilpah, and by the time of the second census of Israel, his progeny had become a sub-clan in his tribe, namely that of the אזני, the Oznites, which is spelled the same as the name Ozni (Numbers 26:16).
In Genesis 46:16 occurs the same Gadite son list, with some small differences. The man who's named Ozni in Numbers 26:16 is named Ezbon (אצבון) in Genesis 46:16.
🔼Etymology of the name Ozni
The name Ozni probably comes from either of the two verbs אזן ('azan):
אזן
The verb אזן ('azan) means to balance or equalize. Noun מאזן (m'zn) describes a merchant's scale or balance and noun אזן ('ozen) means ear. The denominative verb אזן ('azan) means to harken or hear and obviously describes the turning of one's face to where sound comes from.
The letter י (yod) upon which our name ends, may either create an adjective (pointy), a possessive form (my ear), or may be a remnant of יה (Yah), which is short for יהוה, YHWH, or Yahweh.
🔼Ozni meaning
For a meaning of the name Ozni, NOBSE Study Bible Name List reads Gives Ear. Jones' Dictionary of Old Testament Proper Names proposes Hearing. And BDB Theological Dictionary suggests My Hearing or My Ear, but adds a question mark to indicate that this is by no means the only possible interpretation.