The meaning of Khiram's name
This is an idea I thought of some time last year, when I was doing some research into the Phoenician calendar. The Phoenician calendar - back when the Phoenicians were still known as Tzidonim, Tzori'im, Gevalim, etc (i.e., named after their land and/or city-states) - was a twelve-month calendar with each month having a name. To the best of my knowledge, a full list of names has not been found yet, but the list was restored by Prof. Robert Stieglitz in his essay "the Phoenician-Punic Calendar". Here's his list with my notes on the meaning of each name: זבח שמש - Zevach Shemesh - sacrifice to the sun מרפא - Merapeh - after Baal Merapeh, a Canaanite god חיר - Khir - per the name Khiram (Hiram), it may be deduced that Khir is the name of a god (as it seems the name means "Khir [is] great") בול - Bul - clump or rain פעלת - Po'elet or Pe'ulot - [fem.] acting or acts פגרם - Pegarim - probably referring to cultic stelae (and there might have also been a ...