Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Harold R. Holmyard III" <hholmyard AT ont.com>]

Dear Tony,

> Dear Friends, I noticed that there appears to be a variant in the MT 
> for the name David. In some places David is spelled DVD (eg. 2 
> Sam.7:5; Ps.89:21), while in others it is spelled DVYD (eg.1 
> Chron.15:1-3; Hos.3:5), with the yod between the vav (or waw) and 
> daleth. Why the inclusion of the yod? Is this a later development as 
> a variant in the name of David? BDB (sv.DVD) states that these 
> variants of David can occur together in the same text. For instance, 
> while the books of Kings uses DVD, there is an exception in 1 Kings 
> 3:14 where DVYD is used. Is this a late development or was it simply 
> the case that this name could be spelled both ways. Many thanks.

HH: I could be wrong, but it looks like a case of a spelling change 
due to the introduction of matres lectionis. Further, my experience, 
though hazy, suggests that the use of matres lectionis is not 
uniform. That is, there may not have been a systematic effort to 
eliminate every vestige of the older pattern without the matres. So 
spelling of DVD versus DVYD may reflect the two stages of spelling 
for the same sound and meaning.

                                Yours,
                                Harold Holmyard