Menu
Home
People
Places
Arts
History
Plants & Animals
Science
Life & Culture
Technology
Reference.org
Asenath
open-in-new
<h2 id="name">Name</h2> <p>Her name is believed to derive from the Ancient Egyptian <i>js.tj-(n)-n(j)t</i>, meaning "belonging/she belongs to <a href="/facts/Neith/tBlMpblC">Neith</a>". Neith was an Egyptian goddess.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:8" href="#fn:8"><sup>8</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:9" href="#fn:9"><sup>9</sup></a> </p><p>"Asenath" or "Osnat" is a commonly used female first name in present-day <a href="/facts/Israel/dEe3IcaY">Israel</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:10" href="#fn:10"><sup>10</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="portrayal">Portrayal</h2> <p>Asenath is mentioned in three verses of the Bible, all in the <a href="/facts/Book_of_Genesis/uFEgtYrb">Book of Genesis</a>. First appearing in Genesis 41:45, Asenath is said to have been given by the <a href="/facts/Pharaoh/y0WMWYHK">Pharaoh</a> to Joseph as a wife.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:11" href="#fn:11"><sup>11</sup></a> Here, she is referred to as the daughter of <a href="/facts/Potipherah/SKbwMaxo">Potipherah</a>, priest of On (Gk. <a href="/facts/Heliopolis_(ancient_Egypt)/akmPCds6">Heliopolis</a>).<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:12" href="#fn:12"><sup>12</sup></a> Genesis 41:50 says that before the years of famine, <a href="/facts/Joseph_(Genesis)/vmL6TTIg">Joseph</a> had two sons with Asenath. The firstborn was named <a href="/facts/Manasseh_(tribal_patriarch)/6deYxKG7">Manasseh</a> and the second <a href="/facts/Ephraim/lKseLw8V">Ephraim</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:13" href="#fn:13"><sup>13</sup></a> Later, in Genesis 46:20, <a href="/facts/Joseph_(Genesis)/vmL6TTIg">Joseph</a> and Asenath are mentioned in the family of <a href="/facts/Jacob/z6lKzP3W">Jacob</a>; the verse says that in Egypt, <a href="/facts/Joseph_(Genesis)/vmL6TTIg">Joseph</a> had two sons named <a href="/facts/Manasseh_(tribal_patriarch)/6deYxKG7">Manasseh</a> and <a href="/facts/Ephraim/lKseLw8V">Ephraim</a>, whom Asenath, daughter of <a href="/facts/Potipherah/SKbwMaxo">Potiphera</a>, the priest of <a href="/facts/On_(Ancient_Egypt)/akmPCds6">On</a>, bore to <a href="/facts/Joseph_(Genesis)/vmL6TTIg">Joseph</a>. </p><p>In the <a href="/facts/Book_of_Jubilees/MBbXLowz">Book of Jubilees</a>, generally considered to be <a href="/facts/Apocrypha/WLV1Ba9w">apocryphal</a>, Asenath is said to be given to Joseph to marry by the <a href="/facts/Pharaohs_in_the_Bible/a21BU5HB">Pharaoh</a>,<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:14" href="#fn:14"><sup>14</sup></a> a daughter of <a href="/facts/Potiphar/o5ThRIHK">Potiphar</a>, a high priest of Heliopolis, with no clarification as to whether or not this Potiphar is the same Potiphar whose wife falsely accused Joseph of attempting to rape her. While in the <a href="/facts/Midrash/I7xJG8jn">Midrash</a> and <a href="/facts/Targum_Pseudo-Jonathan/UX6CCH5B">Targum Pseudo-Jonathan</a>, she is said to be the daughter of Dinah, Joseph's sister, and Shechem, born of an illicit union, described as either premarital sex or rape, depending on the narrative.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:15" href="#fn:15"><sup>15</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:16" href="#fn:16"><sup>16</sup></a><a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:17" href="#fn:17"><sup>17</sup></a> A later-date <a href="/facts/Apocrypha/WLV1Ba9w">apocryphal</a> publication written in Greek, believed to be a Christian document, called <i><a href="/facts/Joseph_and_Aseneth/6B5Jpv5p">Joseph and Aseneth</a></i>, supposedly details their relationship and their 48-year long reign over Egypt; in it, Asenath weds Joseph, whose brothers <a href="/facts/Dan_(son_of_Jacob)/fU5J1UJp">Dan</a> and <a href="/facts/Gad_(son_of_Jacob)/FnMuJ8Fv">Gad</a> plot to kill him for the sake of Pharaoh's son, who wants Asenath to be his wife, only for their efforts to be thwarted by Joseph's younger brother <a href="/facts/Benjamin/q8XEf4nN">Benjamin</a>.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:18" href="#fn:18"><sup>18</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="depictions">Depictions</h2> <h2 id="veneration">Veneration</h2> <p>Asenath is venerated in Catholic Church as a saint. Her feast day is 13 December.<a class="footnote-ref" id="fnref:19" href="#fn:19"><sup>19</sup></a> </p> <h2 id="external-links">External links</h2> <p> Media related to Asenath at Wikimedia Commons </p> <ul><li><a href="http://www.piney.com/DocEgJosAsen.html">Text of Joseph and Asenath</a> <a href="https://web.archive.org/web/20190202173950/http://www.piney.com/DocEgJosAsen.html">Archived</a> 2019-02-02 at the <a href="/facts/Wayback_Machine/nmQ3a6JC">Wayback Machine</a></li></ul> <h2 id="references">References</h2> <ol> <li id="fn:1"><p>Khan, Geoffrey (2020). The Tiberian Pronunciation Tradition of Biblical Hebrew, Volume 1. Open Book Publishers. ISBN 978-1783746767. <a href="978-1783746767" target="_blank">978-1783746767</a> <a href="#fnref:1" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:2"><p>"The Egyptian woman Asenath in the Bible". Archived from the original on 2016-08-31. Retrieved 18 November 2020. <a href="https://www.womeninthebible.net/women-bible-old-new-testaments/asenath/" target="_blank">https://www.womeninthebible.net/women-bible-old-new-testaments/asenath/</a> <a href="#fnref:2" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:3"><p>One or more of the preceding sentences incorporates text from a publication now in the public domain: Singer, Isidore; et al., eds. (1901–1906). "1905-asenath". The Jewish Encyclopedia. New York: Funk & Wagnalls. <a href="/wiki/Public_domain" target="_blank">/wiki/Public_domain</a> <a href="#fnref:3" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:4"><p>"Genesis 34:26". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved July 15, 2024. <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.34.26?lang=bi&aliyot=0&p2=Radak_on_Genesis.34.26.1&lang2=bi&p3=Bereshit_Rabbah.80.11&lang3=en&w3=all&lang4=en" target="_blank">https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.34.26?lang=bi&aliyot=0&p2=Radak_on_Genesis.34.26.1&lang2=bi&p3=Bereshit_Rabbah.80.11&lang3=en&w3=all&lang4=en</a> <a href="#fnref:4" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:5"><p>"Genesis 34:26". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved July 15, 2024. <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.34.26?lang=bi&with=Commentary&lang2=en&p3=Bereshit_Rabbah.80.11&lang3=en&w3=all&lang4=en" target="_blank">https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.34.26?lang=bi&with=Commentary&lang2=en&p3=Bereshit_Rabbah.80.11&lang3=en&w3=all&lang4=en</a> <a href="#fnref:5" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:6"><p>"Genesis 34:26". www.sefaria.org. Retrieved July 15, 2024. <a href="https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.34.26?lang=bi&aliyot=0&p2=Radak_on_Genesis.34.26.1&lang2=bi&w2=all&lang3=en" target="_blank">https://www.sefaria.org/Genesis.34.26?lang=bi&aliyot=0&p2=Radak_on_Genesis.34.26.1&lang2=bi&w2=all&lang3=en</a> <a href="#fnref:6" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:7"><p>"The Egyptian woman Asenath in the Bible". Archived from the original on 2016-08-31. Retrieved 18 November 2020. <a href="https://www.womeninthebible.net/women-bible-old-new-testaments/asenath/" target="_blank">https://www.womeninthebible.net/women-bible-old-new-testaments/asenath/</a> <a href="#fnref:7" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:8"><p>"Asenath: Bible | Jewish Women's Archive". jwa.org. Retrieved 2019-09-05. <a href="https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/asenath-bible" target="_blank">https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/asenath-bible</a> <a href="#fnref:8" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:9"><p>Theis, Christoffer (July 2020). "Asenat". Das wissenschaftliche Bibellexikon im Internet (WiBiLex) (in German). Stuttgart: Deutsche Bibelgesellschaft. <a href="https://bibelwissenschaft.de/stichwort/14069/" target="_blank">https://bibelwissenschaft.de/stichwort/14069/</a> <a href="#fnref:9" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:10"><p>"Popular Jewish (Hebrew) Girl Names - Chabad.org". Retrieved July 15, 2024. <a href="https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/3847875/jewish/Popular-Jewish-Hebrew-Girl-Names.htm" target="_blank">https://www.chabad.org/library/article_cdo/aid/3847875/jewish/Popular-Jewish-Hebrew-Girl-Names.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:10" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:11"><p>Aptowitzer, V. (1924). "Asenath, the Wife of Joseph: A Haggadic Literary-Historical Study" (PDF). Hebrew Union College Annual. 1: 239–306. JSTOR 43301987. <a href="https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/43301987.pdf" target="_blank">https://www.jstor.org/stable/pdf/43301987.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:11" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:12"><p>Brooks, Ernest Walter (1918). "Joseph and Asenath - Translations of Early Documents". <a href="https://books.google.com/books?id=VYDYAAAAMAAJ&dq=asenath+potipherah&pg=PR6" target="_blank">https://books.google.com/books?id=VYDYAAAAMAAJ&dq=asenath+potipherah&pg=PR6</a> <a href="#fnref:12" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:13"><p>"FAMILY BENEDICTION: THE ROLE OF ASENATH IN REMBRANDT"S JACOB BLESSING" (PDF). <a href="https://repository.library.fresnostate.edu/bitstream/handle/10211.3/191670/FamilyBenediction.pdf?sequence=1" target="_blank">https://repository.library.fresnostate.edu/bitstream/handle/10211.3/191670/FamilyBenediction.pdf?sequence=1</a> <a href="#fnref:13" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:14"><p>"Encyclopedia of the Bible and Its Reception vol. 17 (pages 991 to 994)" (PDF). Retrieved July 15, 2024. <a href="https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/3092832/1/EBR%20online_%20Marriage%2C%20Ancient%20Egypt.pdf" target="_blank">https://livrepository.liverpool.ac.uk/3092832/1/EBR%20online_%20Marriage%2C%20Ancient%20Egypt.pdf</a> <a href="#fnref:14" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:15"><p>"Asenath: Midrash and Aggadah | Jewish Women's Archive". jwa.org. <a href="https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/asenath-midrash-and-aggadah" target="_blank">https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/asenath-midrash-and-aggadah</a> <a href="#fnref:15" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:16"><p>"Jubilees 40". www.pseudepigrapha.com. Retrieved 2019-09-05. <a href="http://www.pseudepigrapha.com/jubilees/40.htm" target="_blank">http://www.pseudepigrapha.com/jubilees/40.htm</a> <a href="#fnref:16" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:17"><p>Pirke De-Rabbi Eliezer, chapter 38. <a href="/wiki/Pirke_De-Rabbi_Eliezer" target="_blank">/wiki/Pirke_De-Rabbi_Eliezer</a> <a href="#fnref:17" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:18"><p>Ahearne-Kroll, Patricia (Summer 2022). "Biblical Profile: Aseneth of Egypt". Biblical Archaeology Review. 48 (2): 27. <a href="https://library.biblicalarchaeology.org/department/biblical-profile-aseneth-of-egypt/" target="_blank">https://library.biblicalarchaeology.org/department/biblical-profile-aseneth-of-egypt/</a> <a href="#fnref:18" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> <li id="fn:19"><p>"Asenet (Asenat)". DEON.pl (in Polish). Retrieved 2021-12-12. <a href="https://deon.pl/imiona-swietych/asenet-asenat,854" target="_blank">https://deon.pl/imiona-swietych/asenet-asenat,854</a> <a href="#fnref:19" class="footnote-back-ref">↩</a></p></li> </ol>