Epher

Epher is a name borne by several distinct figures in the Old Testament. The most prominent was the second son of Midian, who was the son of Abraham by his concubine Keturah; through this genealogical placement, Epher became an ancestor of a Midianite tribal clan. His name, meaning a calf or young deer, follows a pattern of zoological names common in ancient Semitic genealogies.

A second Epher was a son of Ezra, listed in the genealogies of Judah in 1 Chronicles 4. A third was a chief man among the half-tribe of Manasseh east of Jordan in 1 Chronicles 5, one of those who were carried into exile by the Assyrian king Tiglath-pileser. The name's repetition across different tribal genealogies suggests it was a common Israelite personal name rather than a marker of any particular religious or historical significance. Each Epher appears only in genealogical lists without further narrative development.