Take the 2-minute tour ×  The name Ephraim seems to commonly be
given two etymologies, one referring to an "ash heap" and the
other referring to "fruitfulness". Example I can understand the
fruitfulness etymology linking אֶפְרַיִם back to פָּרָה, but
where does the etymology of "ash heap" come from? Are these
competing etymological theories, or are they somehow compatible?
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christianity.stackexchange.com Nov 13 '12 at 15:36   I've added
the genesis tag since Joseph gave the name to his second son in
Genesis 41:52. The NET Bible explores the meaning of the name,
but doesn't mention the "ash heap" definition. +1 for an
interesting question. (I hope you'll activate your account here
soon and that we'll see you around.) –  Jon Ericson Nov 13 '12
at 18:37  4 Answers 4  up vote 6 down vote accepted  I'm not
sure this is a answer, certainly if it is, it is speculative.
However, it isn't clear why "ash heap" is an option here,
because the word clearly derives from the word f