Bible Dictionaries
Shibboleth

People's Dictionary of the Bible

Shibboleth (shĭb'bo-lĕth), stream. A word which the Gileadites required the fugitive Ephraimites to speak, in order to detect by their pronunciation whether or no they were really of that tribe. Judges 12:4-6. The variations of dialect in the spoken language of Palestine made it difficult for the Ephraimites to speak it.

Bibliography Information
Rice, Edwin Wilbur, DD. Entry for 'Shibboleth'. People's Dictionary of the Bible. https://www.studylight.org/​dictionaries/​eng/​rpd/​s/shibboleth.html. 1893.