Lexical Definition

‎מָן‎ mân (mawn) manna ^H:N-M
from ‎מָה‎

manna.

• literally a whatness (so to speak), i.e. manna (so called from the question about it)

1) manna
1a) the bread from Heaven that fed the Israelites for 40 years of wilderness wanderings
1b) means 'What is it?'

See Greek: μάννα · ποῖος · σκεῦος

Brown-Driver-Briggs

I. ‎מָן‎ noun masculine^{Num 11:9} manna (= Arabic , known to Bedouin in Sinai Peninsula; a juice exuding in heavy drops from twigs (some say also the leaves) of ˆarfa (ˆªrfa) tree (tamarix gallica mannifera) in West Sinai Peninsula, end of May and in June, sweet, sticky, honey-like; compare Di^{Exod 16:36} Rob^{BRi. 75, 115, 590} Eb^{GS 233 ff., 574 ff.} Soc^{ZMG xxxiv. 1881, 254}); — ‎׳‎‎מ‎ absolute Exod 16:15 + 12 t., suffix ‎מַנֵךָ‎ Neh 9:20: — manna: ‎וַיּאֹמְרוּ מָן הוּא כִּי לֹא יָָֽדְעוּ מַההֿוּא‎ Exod 16:15 vExod 16:31 vExod 16:33 vExod 16:35 vExod 16:35; Num 11:6; Num 11:7; Num 11:9 (described Exod 16:14; Exod 16:31; Num 11:7 accompare dew Exod 16:14; Num 11:9); ceased after Israel reached Canaan Josh 5:12 (twice in verse); as 2nd accusative‎הֶאֱכִילְךָ אֶתהַֿמָּן‎ Deut 8:3, compare vDeut 8:16 ‎מָן לֶאֱכֹל וַיַּמְטֵר עֲלֵיהֶם‎ Ps 78:24 ‎וּמַנְךָ לֹאמָֿנַעְתָּ מִפִּיהֶם‎ Neh 9:20.

II. ‎מָן‎ in Exod 16:15 (with reference to the manna) ‎מַההֿוּא וַיּאֹמְרוּ אִישׁ אֶלאָֿחִיו מָן הוּא כִּי לֹא יָָֽדְעוּ‎, most probably 'What is it?' the question being intended as a popular etymology of ‎מָן‎ 'manna,' based upon the late Aramaic What ? (man is 'Who?' in Arabic, Aramaic ‎מַן‎ ), Mandaean (‎מאן‎), Ethiopic (manu), 'What?' in these dialects being ‎מָה‎ ‎מָא‎ (Ethiopic ment); ‎מָן‎ in the sense of 'What?' must correspond to the later Syriac contracted from ᵑ7 ‎מָדֵין‎ Nö^{§ 68} W^{SG 125}).

Brown-Driver-Briggs References