“Abish”

Alan C. Miner

In Alma 19:16 we find the name "Abish." According to Hugh Nibley, that's a very interesting name because that's the name on a very famous Egyptian mural from a tomb in the Middle Kingdom. It shows a family coming from Palestine to Egypt. [Hugh W. Nibley, Teachings of the Book of Mormon, Semester 2, p. 387]

“One of the Lamanitish Women Abish”

If for no other reason, Abish, the Lamanitish woman, is distinguished because her actual name appears in the Book of Mormon (see Alma 19:16). She is one of only three women in the entire Nephite-Lamanite-Mulekite-Jaredite records to have her name in the Book of Mormon. The other two are (1) Sariah, the wife of Lehi (1 Nephi 2:5), and (2) Isabel, the harlot (Alma 39:3). [Daniel H. Ludlow, A Companion to Your Study of the Book of Mormon, p. 207]

“Name Was Abish”

Abish is the name of a woman mentioned in Alma 19:16. Richardson, Richardson and Bentley write that since ab is the Hebrew word for "father" and ish is Hebrew for "man" the name Abish would seem to carry the meaning of "father of man." Abigail (the name of two Israelite women in the Bible--1 Samuel 25:3; 2 Samuel 17:25; 1 Chronicles 2:16) means "father of joy," Abihail means "father of might," and Abital (King David's wife--2 Samuel 3:4) means "father of dew." (See James Strong, "A Concise Dictionary of the Hebrew Bible," in Exhaustive Concordance, (1973). [Allen H. Richardson, David E. Richardson and Anthony E. Bentley, 1000 Evidences for the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints: Part Two-A Voice from the Dust: 500 Evidences in Support of the Book of Mormon, p. 224]

Alma 19:16 One of the Lamanitish women, whose name was Abish, she having been converted unto the Lord for many years on account of a remarkable vision of her father ([Illustration]): Abish [Robert T. Barrett, Verse Markers, Book of Mormon, Vol. 1, p. 6]

Step by Step Through the Book of Mormon: A Cultural Commentary

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