שָׁנָה (sha.neh)
sha.neh
year
H:N-FQuick Reference
- Language
- Biblical Hebrew
- Testament
- Old Testament
- Occurrences
- 600 verses
- Root
- —
- Part of speech
- H:N-F
Word Overview
The Hebrew noun shanah denotes a year, functioning as the primary unit for measuring time in the Old Testament. Derived from a root meaning to turn or repeat, it captures the cyclical nature of seasons and agricultural cycles. While most often translated simply as "year," its usage extends beyond mere chronology to mark significant durations of human existence.
Lexical sources highlight that shanah serves multiple roles: it divides time into manageable periods, measures the length of events, and indicates age. This flexibility is evident in genealogies, where it tracks the lifespan of patriarchs from Genesis 5, and in historical narratives like Kings, where it dates royal reigns. The word can also refer to a full lifetime, emphasizing the completeness of one’s years rather than just their count.
A notable feature of shanah is its association with divine timing and human longevity. In passages such as Genesis 1:14, it establishes the calendar system for marking festivals and seasons. Translators sometimes render it as "age" or "lifetime" when context suggests a person’s entire span of years, as seen in the detailed records of early biblical figures. This semantic range underscores its importance in structuring both religious observance and historical memory.
Based on public-domain lexicons (Strong's, Thayer, Gesenius, Brown-Driver-Briggs and others).
What This Word Means for Your Faith
The word shanah marks the turning of time, rooted in the idea of repetition and cycles. In Genesis 1:14, God uses this concept to establish seasons and years for human life. This gives our days structure and meaning, reminding us that time is a gift from Him rather than a random flow of events.
When we read the long lifespans in Genesis 5, such as Adam living nine hundred thirty years, the word shanah measures not just age but fullness of life. These records show God’s patience and the value He places on every generation. Your own years are held in His hands, whether they feel long or short.
This Hebrew term invites us to view our lives within God’s larger story. It encourages gratitude for each season and trust in His timing. We can find peace knowing that our time here is purposeful and seen by the Creator who set the stars in place.
How it's translated
How this word is rendered word-by-word in the 600 verses where it appears, by frequency.
- year[s]298×
- years121×
- in/ year55×
- year53×
- a year51×
- in the/ year48×
- year/ its19×
- [the] year of17×
- the/ year15×
- [the] years of15×
- and/ in the/ year13×
- in/ a year12×
Forms in the text
The inflected forms of this word as they appear in Scripture, by frequency.
- שָׁנָ֔ה91×
- שָׁנָ֑ה78×
- שָׁנָ֖ה64×
- שָׁנָה֙57×
- שָׁנָֽה\׃34×
- שָׁנִ֔ים28×
- שָׁנִ֖ים23×
- שָׁנָ֛ה22×
- שָׁנִֽים\׃19×
- בִּ/שְׁנַ֣ת19×
- שָׁנִים֙15×
- בִּ/שְׁנַ֨ת15×
Key Verses
-
Genesis 1:14
God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs to mark seasons, days, and years;
This verse establishes shanah as a divine marker for seasons and festivals, showing time is ordered by God's design.
-
Genesis 5:5
All the days that Adam lived were nine hundred thirty years, then he died.
Here the word measures Adam’s complete lifespan, emphasizing the fullness of his days before death.
-
Genesis 5:23
All the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty-five years.
Enoch’s three hundred sixty-five years are counted, highlighting a life fully walked with God within a specific temporal span.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does shanah mean in the Old Testament?
Why are lifespans so long in Genesis 5?
How is shanah different from other time words?
Every Occurrence (600 verses across 31 books)
Genesis 103 verses
God said, “Let there be lights in the expanse of the sky to divide the day from the night; and let them be for signs to…
Genesis 5:3Adam lived one hundred thirty years, and became the father of a son in his own likeness, after his image, and named him…
Genesis 5:4The days of Adam after he became the father of Seth were eight hundred years, and he became the father of other sons…
Genesis 5:5All the days that Adam lived were nine hundred thirty years, then he died.
Genesis 5:6Seth lived one hundred five years, then became the father of Enosh.
Genesis 5:7Seth lived after he became the father of Enosh eight hundred seven years, and became the father of other sons and…
Genesis 5:8All of the days of Seth were nine hundred twelve years, then he died.
Genesis 5:9Enosh lived ninety years, and became the father of Kenan.
Genesis 5:10Enosh lived after he became the father of Kenan eight hundred fifteen years, and became the father of other sons and…
Genesis 5:11All of the days of Enosh were nine hundred five years, then he died.
Genesis 5:12Kenan lived seventy years, then became the father of Mahalalel.
Genesis 5:13Kenan lived after he became the father of Mahalalel eight hundred forty years, and became the father of other sons and…
Genesis 5:14and all of the days of Kenan were nine hundred ten years, then he died.
Genesis 5:15Mahalalel lived sixty-five years, then became the father of Jared.
Genesis 5:16Mahalalel lived after he became the father of Jared eight hundred thirty years, and became the father of other sons and…
Genesis 5:17All of the days of Mahalalel were eight hundred ninety-five years, then he died.
Genesis 5:18Jared lived one hundred sixty-two years, then became the father of Enoch.
Genesis 5:19Jared lived after he became the father of Enoch eight hundred years, and became the father of other sons and daughters.
Genesis 5:20All of the days of Jared were nine hundred sixty-two years, then he died.
Genesis 5:21Enoch lived sixty-five years, then became the father of Methuselah.
Genesis 5:22After Methuselah’s birth, Enoch walked with God for three hundred years, and became the father of more sons and…
Genesis 5:23All the days of Enoch were three hundred sixty-five years.
Genesis 5:25Methuselah lived one hundred eighty-seven years, then became the father of Lamech.
Genesis 5:26Methuselah lived after he became the father of Lamech seven hundred eighty-two years, and became the father of other…
Genesis 5:27All the days of Methuselah were nine hundred sixty-nine years, then he died.
Genesis 5:28Lamech lived one hundred eighty-two years, then became the father of a son.
Genesis 5:30Lamech lived after he became the father of Noah five hundred ninety-five years, and became the father of other sons and…
Genesis 5:31All the days of Lamech were seven hundred seventy-seven years, then he died.
Genesis 5:32Noah was five hundred years old, then Noah became the father of Shem, Ham, and Japheth.
Genesis 6:3Yahweh said, “My Spirit will not strive with man forever, because he also is flesh; so his days will be one hundred…
Genesis 7:6Noah was six hundred years old when the flood of waters came on the earth.
Genesis 7:11In the six hundredth year of Noah’s life, in the second month, on the seventeenth day of the month, on that day all the…
Genesis 8:13In the six hundred first year, in the first month, the first day of the month, the waters were dried up from the earth.…
Genesis 9:28Noah lived three hundred fifty years after the flood.
Genesis 9:29All the days of Noah were nine hundred fifty years, and then he died.
Genesis 11:10This is the history of the generations of Shem: Shem was one hundred years old when he became the father of Arpachshad…
Genesis 11:11Shem lived five hundred years after he became the father of Arpachshad, and became the father of more sons and…
Genesis 11:12Arpachshad lived thirty-five years and became the father of Shelah.
Genesis 11:13Arpachshad lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Shelah, and became the father of more sons and…
Genesis 11:14Shelah lived thirty years, and became the father of Eber.
Genesis 11:15Shelah lived four hundred three years after he became the father of Eber, and became the father of more sons and…
Genesis 11:16Eber lived thirty-four years, and became the father of Peleg.
Genesis 11:17Eber lived four hundred thirty years after he became the father of Peleg, and became the father of more sons and…
Genesis 11:18Peleg lived thirty years, and became the father of Reu.
Genesis 11:19Peleg lived two hundred nine years after he became the father of Reu, and became the father of more sons and daughters.
Genesis 11:20Reu lived thirty-two years, and became the father of Serug.
Genesis 11:21Reu lived two hundred seven years after he became the father of Serug, and became the father of more sons and daughters.
Genesis 11:22Serug lived thirty years, and became the father of Nahor.
Genesis 11:23Serug lived two hundred years after he became the father of Nahor, and became the father of more sons and daughters.
Genesis 11:24Nahor lived twenty-nine years, and became the father of Terah.
Genesis 11:25Nahor lived one hundred nineteen years after he became the father of Terah, and became the father of more sons and…
Genesis 11:26Terah lived seventy years, and became the father of Abram, Nahor, and Haran.
Genesis 11:32The days of Terah were two hundred five years. Terah died in Haran.
Genesis 12:4So Abram went, as Yahweh had told him. Lot went with him. Abram was seventy-five years old when he departed from Haran.
Genesis 14:4They served Chedorlaomer for twelve years, and in the thirteenth year they rebelled.
Genesis 14:5In the fourteenth year Chedorlaomer and the kings who were with him came and struck the Rephaim in Ashteroth Karnaim,…
Genesis 15:13He said to Abram, “Know for sure that your offspring will live as foreigners in a land that is not theirs, and will…
Genesis 16:3Sarai, Abram’s wife, took Hagar the Egyptian, her servant, after Abram had lived ten years in the land of Canaan, and…
Genesis 16:16Abram was eighty-six years old when Hagar bore Ishmael to Abram.
Genesis 17:1When Abram was ninety-nine years old, Yahweh appeared to Abram and said to him, “I am God Almighty. Walk before me and…
Genesis 17:17Then Abraham fell on his face, and laughed, and said in his heart, “Will a child be born to him who is one hundred…
Genesis 17:21But I will establish my covenant with Isaac, whom Sarah will bear to you at this set time next year.”
Genesis 17:24Abraham was ninety-nine years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
Genesis 17:25Ishmael, his son, was thirteen years old when he was circumcised in the flesh of his foreskin.
Genesis 21:5Abraham was one hundred years old when his son, Isaac, was born to him.
Genesis 23:1Sarah lived one hundred twenty-seven years. This was the length of Sarah’s life.
Genesis 25:7These are the days of the years of Abraham’s life which he lived: one hundred seventy-five years.
Genesis 25:17These are the years of the life of Ishmael: one hundred thirty-seven years. He gave up his spirit and died, and was…
Genesis 25:20Isaac was forty years old when he took Rebekah, the daughter of Bethuel the Syrian of Paddan Aram, the sister of Laban…
Genesis 25:26After that, his brother came out, and his hand had hold on Esau’s heel. He was named Jacob. Isaac was sixty years old…
Genesis 26:12Isaac sowed in that land, and reaped in the same year one hundred times what he planted. Yahweh blessed him.
Genesis 26:34When Esau was forty years old, he took as wife Judith, the daughter of Beeri the Hittite, and Basemath, the daughter of…
Genesis 29:18Jacob loved Rachel. He said, “I will serve you seven years for Rachel, your younger daughter.”
Genesis 29:20Jacob served seven years for Rachel. They seemed to him but a few days, for the love he had for her.
Genesis 29:27Fulfill the week of this one, and we will give you the other also for the service which you will serve with me for…
Genesis 29:30He went in also to Rachel, and he loved also Rachel more than Leah, and served with him seven more years.
Genesis 31:38“These twenty years I have been with you. Your ewes and your female goats have not cast their young, and I haven’t…
Genesis 31:41These twenty years I have been in your house. I served you fourteen years for your two daughters, and six years for…
Genesis 35:28The days of Isaac were one hundred eighty years.
Genesis 37:2This is the history of the generations of Jacob. Joseph, being seventeen years old, was feeding the flock with his…
Genesis 41:1At the end of two full years, Pharaoh dreamed, and behold, he stood by the river.
Genesis 41:26The seven good cattle are seven years; and the seven good heads of grain are seven years. The dream is one.
Genesis 41:27The seven thin and ugly cattle that came up after them are seven years, and also the seven empty heads of grain blasted…
Genesis 41:29Behold, seven years of great plenty throughout all the land of Egypt are coming.
Genesis 41:30Seven years of famine will arise after them, and all the plenty will be forgotten in the land of Egypt. The famine will…
Genesis 41:34Let Pharaoh do this, and let him appoint overseers over the land, and take up the fifth part of the land of Egypt’s…
Genesis 41:35Let them gather all the food of these good years that come, and store grain under the hand of Pharaoh for food in the…
Genesis 41:36The food will be to supply the land against the seven years of famine, which will be in the land of Egypt; so that the…
Genesis 41:46Joseph was thirty years old when he stood before Pharaoh king of Egypt. Joseph went out from the presence of Pharaoh,…
Genesis 41:47In the seven plenteous years the earth produced abundantly.
Genesis 41:48He gathered up all the food of the seven years which were in the land of Egypt, and laid up the food in the cities. He…
Genesis 41:50To Joseph were born two sons before the year of famine came, whom Asenath, the daughter of Potiphera priest of On, bore…
Genesis 41:53The seven years of plenty, that were in the land of Egypt, came to an end.
Genesis 41:54The seven years of famine began to come, just as Joseph had said. There was famine in all lands, but in all the land of…
Genesis 45:6For these two years the famine has been in the land, and there are yet five years, in which there will be no plowing…
Genesis 45:11There I will provide for you; for there are yet five years of famine; lest you come to poverty, you, and your…
Genesis 47:8Pharaoh said to Jacob, “How old are you?”
Genesis 47:9Jacob said to Pharaoh, “The years of my pilgrimage are one hundred thirty years. The days of the years of my life have…
Genesis 47:17They brought their livestock to Joseph, and Joseph gave them bread in exchange for the horses, and for the flocks, and…
Genesis 47:18When that year was ended, they came to him the second year, and said to him, “We will not hide from my lord how our…
Genesis 47:28Jacob lived in the land of Egypt seventeen years. So the days of Jacob, the years of his life, were one hundred…
Genesis 50:22Joseph lived in Egypt, he, and his father’s house. Joseph lived one hundred ten years.
Genesis 50:26So Joseph died, being one hundred ten years old, and they embalmed him, and he was put in a coffin in Egypt.