This is a very old (and largely forgotten) word (pronounced buh-HEE-moth) that turned up in the headlines recently.
The news stories said that after a fierce bidding war and a months-long legal battle, Paramount acquired Warner Bros studios, and the Discovery network, creating a massive new entertainment company.
The media ‘behemoth’, now called Skydance, combines major film studios, streaming services, and franchises from both companies, making it one of the largest entertainment conglomerates in the world.
But why is it called a ‘behemoth’?
Not a word that turns up on casual conversation these days!
The word means ‘one of the largest and strongest animals’ (and you can see how that might fit figuratively as a descriptor for this new media giant).
The word came into English from the Bible, specifically from the Old Testament book of Job, chapter 40 verse 15, which says: ‘Look at Behemoth, which I made along with you and which feeds on grass like an ox.’
Now, the book of Job is very old (written perhaps two-and-a-half to three thousand years ago).
These days the most common suggestion is that ‘behemoth’ is a reference to the hippopotamus—a large brute of a land animal, and (reputedly) the most ill-tempered animal in Africa.
The word itself is said to be the plural of bĕhēmāh ‘beast,’ and might be interpreted ‘great or monstrous beast.’
Some scholars take it as coming from an Egyptian source word meaning ‘water-ox’ assimilated into a Hebrew form (which seems to fit in with the hippopotamus idea).
And this new entertainment company is certainly a ‘mighty beast’ and so deserves the metaphoric title of ‘behemoth.’
For Perth readers -- today I will talk words and language with Tod Johnston on 'The Long Lunch' on 6PR (at around 12:20pm).
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BY THE WAY...
If you'd like to see my A-Z list of Aussie slang, you'll find it here in the Australian Geographic website -- A-Z list of Aussie slang. Here’s the link: The A-Z of Aussie slang - Australian Geographic
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