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One of the most striking things to me about Jewish practice is the reverence shown for the Tetragrammaton and, I suppose by extension, all other ways of referring to the Creator. It occurred to me recently (following the death of Leonard Cohen), that the Name is incorporated into various other words, as in “Hallelujah”. (That transliterated word is what appears in the NJPS translation of Psalm 150.) Then of course there are biblical names that incorporate the Tetragrammaton either in part or in whole (Elijah, Isaiah, Jehoshaphat, etc.).

The question is, do these Tetragrammaton-incorporating names receive any special treatment in Jewish tradition? Has there been any reflection on the significance of the Tetragrammaton appearing in these names?

(“Has there been any reflection?”—from previous experience in this site, I know that this must all have been worked out thousands of years ago; I just don't know where to look for the answer.)

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  • Note that Hallelujah incorporates the name "jah"; not the tetragrammaton itself. Same for Elijah, and Isaiah.
    – mevaqesh
    Commented Nov 14, 2016 at 3:30
  • Also note that in many texts halleluyah is written as two words: hallelu yah.
    – Double AA ♦
    Commented Nov 14, 2016 at 3:48
  • Have you ever heard someone say "Yisrakel" or "Shmukel?"
    – ezra
    Commented Nov 14, 2016 at 4:08
  • @ezra there were those, that when writing those names put a dash between the א and the ל
    – mroll
    Commented Nov 14, 2016 at 5:26
  • @mroll - It is true that I have seen that but the names are still pronounced the same.
    – ezra
    Commented Nov 14, 2016 at 5:38

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I have found an article on the following website that may answer your question. It is too extensive to quote here so I have simply included a link the webpage.

https://thinkingyid.com/2016/10/07/the-tetragrammaton/

Note: The author of the article has stated that the words formatted in Hebrew are not displaying properly on the site but there is a PDF version (with the correct Hebrew lettering) linked at the bottom of the article page.

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  • Are you the author of that site?
    – Double AA ♦
    Commented Nov 16, 2016 at 22:16
  • I help manage the site's technical side. The site has been created by a small group of people wishing to create a medium through which members of our community can express their thoughts and ideas without fear of criticism or ostracization. It is different than other sites because one does not have to be a professional writer or scholar to contribute. It is open to all who wish to contribute.
    – The Thinking Yid
    Commented Nov 16, 2016 at 22:19
  • I'm down-voting because I don't see anything in that link relevant to my question (aside from veneration of the Tetragrammaton).
    – adam.baker
    Commented Nov 17, 2016 at 4:10
  • You asked if there was any special treatment given. The article clearly states ways in which it is used by certain members of Judaism and that is is considered "significant". I am unsure why you think there is no relevance to your question...
    – The Thinking Yid
    Commented Nov 18, 2016 at 3:08
  • Okay, maybe very very indirectly, if what I asked about is assumed to be an instance of what is discussed on that page. But there's no mention of the Tetragrammaton being incorporated into other words.
    – adam.baker
    Commented Nov 19, 2016 at 8:43

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