Bible Dictionaries
Duke

Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible

DUKE . The title of ‘duke’ in the AV [Note: Authorized Version.] has a very general meaning. It is an inheritance from the Eng. of earlier versions, in which (after Vulg. [Note: Vulgate.] dux ) ‘duke’ meant any leader or chief. Latimer calls Gideon a duke, and Wyclif uses this title of Christ, as in his Works (iii. 137), ‘Jesus Christ, duke of oure batel.’ The title of ‘duke’ is confined in AV [Note: Authorized Version.] to the chiefs of Edom, with the exception of Joshua 13:21 ‘dukes of Sihon,’ and 1Ma 10:65 (applied to Jonathan Maccabæus).

Bibliography Information
Hastings, James. Entry for 'Duke'. Hastings' Dictionary of the Bible. https://www.studylight.org/​dictionaries/​eng/​hdb/​d/duke.html. 1909.