Ark of the Covenant - Bible History Online
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Naves Topical Bible Dictionary

lapwing Summary and Overview

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lapwing in Easton's Bible Dictionary

the name of an unclean bird, mentioned only in Lev. 11:19 and Deut. 14:18. The Hebrew name of this bird, "dukiphath", has been generally regarded as denoting the hoope (Upupa epops), an onomatopoetic word derived from the cry of the bird, which resembles the word "hoop;" a bird not uncommon in Israel. Others identify it with the English peewit.

lapwing in Smith's Bible Dictionary

(Heb. duciphath) occurs only in #Le 11:19| and in the parallel passage of #De 14:18| amongst the list of those birds which were forbidden by the law of Moses to be eaten by the Israelites. Commentators generally agree that the hoopoe is the bird intended. The hoopoe is an occasional visitor to England, arriving for the most part in the autumn. Its crest is very elegant; each of the long feathers forming it is tipped with black.

lapwing in Schaff's Bible Dictionary

LAP'WING , doubtless the hoopoe, a bird so named from its call-note, of about the size of the thrush, and of singular appearance and ways. Lev 11:19. Lapwing or Hoopoe. It is abundant in Palestine and the warmer parts of the Old World, and is sometimes seen in England.

lapwing in Fausset's Bible Dictionary

dukiphath, related to the Coptic kukusha. Rather the hoopoe (Leviticus 11:19; Deuteronomy 14:18). Its cry or whoop gives its name. The Arabs superstitiously reverence it, and call it "the doctor" as if possessing therapeutic qualities. Its head is used in magical spells. The Bedouins believe it to be inhabited by departed spirits. The Hebrew perhaps means double-crested; the hoopoe has two parallel rows of elevated feathers arranged laterally. Its imposing crest and beak, and its curious way of bending until the beak touches the ground, while it raises and depresses the crest, led to the Arab supposition of its power to point out hidden wells beneath; from whence arose its Greek name epops), "the inspector." Its unclean habits, searching for worms and insects in dunghills, and the superstition with which the pagan regarded it, led to the Mosaic ranking of it among unclean birds.