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Summary
- No one named Lily appears in the Bible; the name comes from the flower, Latin lilium, and is sometimes a short form of Elizabeth.
- The Hebrew for lily is shoshan or shoshannah, the source of the name Susanna, so Susanna is the Bible name that means “lily” (Luke 8:3).
- Lilies appear in the Song of Songs, in Hosea 14:5, in the lily-work of Solomon’s temple (1 Kings 7:19–26), in four psalm headings, and in Jesus’ saying about “the lilies of the field” (Matthew 6:28–30).
- Which flower the Bible means is uncertain; the Hebrew word may come from an Egyptian word for the lotus, and the anemone is a common guess for the lilies of the field.
- In Christian art the white lily stands for chastity and is given to Mary, Joseph and Anthony of Padua; the Easter lily is a symbol of the resurrection.
- Nominis, the Catholic Church in France’s names directory, treats Lily as a form of Elisabeth, with feasts on 4 July and 17 November.
Bibliography (Click to show)
- Behind the Name, “Lily,” “Lilian” and “Susanna,” with United States popularity figures from Social Security Administration data. https://www.behindthename.com/name/lily
- “Lily (name),” Wikipedia. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lily_(name)
- “Lily,” in Easton’s Bible Dictionary (1897), Smith’s Bible Dictionary and The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia (1915), Bible Study Tools. https://www.biblestudytools.com/dictionary/lily/
- “Lilium candidum,” Wikipedia, on the Madonna lily in Christian art. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lilium_candidum
- “Lilium longiflorum,” Wikipedia, on the Easter lily. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Lilium_longiflorum
- Nominis, Église catholique en France, “Lily.” https://nominis.cef.fr/contenus/prenom/4446/Lily.html
- Afanasy Gumerov, answer of 24 February 2004 on the name Liliya, Pravoslavie.ru. https://pravoslavie.ru/6290.html
- Scripture quotations: Song of Songs 2:1, 16; 5:13; Hosea 14:5; Matthew 6:28–29, English Standard Version. Psalm headings 45, 60, 69 and 80, New International Version. Sirach 39:13–14, New Revised Standard Version, Catholic Edition. References: 1 Kings 7:19–26; Luke 8:3; 12:27; Daniel 13 (Catholic Bibles).
