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Cainan

Biblical
Pronunciation

Understanding ARPABET Pronunciation

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The pronunciation guide uses the ARPABET phonetic system—the same system used in speech recognition and text-to-speech applications.

Vowel Examples:
AE1 = cat, bat
EH1 = bed, head
IY1 = see, me
OW1 = go, boat
UW1 = boot, do
Stress Numbers:
0 = no stress (unstressed)
1 = primary stress (loud)
2 = secondary stress (medium)
Example:
AH0 TH IY1 N AH0
= a-THEE-na (Athena)

The stressed syllable (marked with 1) is pronounced louder and clearer than others.

Quick Definition

Ancestor listed in Luke’s genealogy of Jesus, possibly a variant of Kenan

Detailed Definition
Cainan appears in Luke 3:36 between Arphaxad and Shelah, aligning with the Septuagint but not the Hebrew Masoretic Text. His inclusion emphasizes Jesus’ universal lineage. In poetry, Cainan reflects the fluidity of sacred history and the theological intent behind genealogies that connect Christ to all humanity.
Example
Example in poetry:
In John Milton’s "Paradise Lost," Cainan is part of the genealogical line from Adam to Noah (Luke 3:36); In George Herbert’s "The Temple," Cainan’s name evokes ancestral continuity; In Elizabeth Barrett Browning’s "The Virgin Mary to the Child Jesus," Cainan is part of the lineage of hope; In John Keble’s "The Christian Year," Cainan symbolizes the quiet faithfulness of obscure saints; In Christina Rossetti’s "Advent," Cainan’s place in the genealogy anticipates the Messiah; In T.S. Eliot’s "Four Quartets," ancestral names like Cainan illustrate the pattern of redemption.
Additional Notes
Cainan: Appears in Luke’s genealogy (Luke 3:36) but not in Hebrew OT; likely from Septuagint tradition. In poetry, Cainan exemplifies textual complexity in sacred history and the fluidity of lineage records. Useful in meditative verse on the transmission of tradition, the gaps in ancestry, or the humility of being a disputed link in a chain of faith.
Also Known As
Cainan son of Enosh Kenan
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