International Standard Bible Encyclopedia
POLLpol: The word (on the derivation of which see Skeat, Concise Etymological Dictionary of the English Language, 360) has been eliminated as a verb in the American Standard Revised Version. In the King James Version and English Revised Version it represents the Hebrew verbs kacam, literally "to shear" (Ezekiel 44:20), gazaz, literally, "to pull out," "to uproot," thence "to shear the sheep," figuratively, "to destroy an enemy" (Micah 1:16), galach, in Piel, literally, "to make bald or roundheaded" (2 Samuel 14:26) and qatsats, "to cut off" (Jeremiah 9:26; Jeremiah 25:23; Jeremiah 49:32). The Hebrew noun is gulgoleth. As will be seen from the above enumeration, the Hebrew verb differ considerably in etymology, while Revised Version has not tried to distinguish. In Micah 1:16 we have a reference to the oriental custom of cutting or tearing one's hair as a sign of mourning for one's relatives. "Make thee bald, and cut off thy hair (King James Version and English Revised Version "poll thee," Hebrew gazaz) for the children of thy delight: enlarge thy baldness as the eagle (margin "vulture"); for they are gone into captivity from thee." The priests, the sons of Zadok, are instructed to abstain from outward resemblance to heathen patterns of priesthood: "Neither shall they shave their heads, nor suffer their locks to grow long; they shall only cut off the hair (the King James Version and the English Revised Version, "poll," Hebrew kacam) of their heads" (Ezekiel 44:20). The Piel form of galach is employed in the description of the annual hair-cutting of Absalom (2 Samuel 14:26). Thrice we find the verb "to poll" as the translation of Hebrew qatsats, where the American Standard Revised Version materially improves the translation by adopting the marginal version of the King James Version (Jeremiah 9:26; Jeremiah 25:23; Jeremiah 49:32).
See HAIR.
The noun (gulgoleth, lit. "head") is translated "poll" in the phrase "by the poll," "by their polls" (Numbers 1:2, 18, 20, 22; Numbers 3:47 1 Chronicles 23:3, 14). The expression has its origin in the numbering of persons by their heads, in the same way in which we speak of head-tax, etc.
H. L. E. Luering
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary
1. (
n.) A parrot; -- familiarly so called.
2. (n.) One who does not try for honors, but is content to take a degree merely; a passman.
3. (n.) The head; the back part of the head.
4. (n.) A number or aggregate of heads; a list or register of heads or individuals.
5. (n.) Specifically, the register of the names of electors who may vote in an election.
6. (n.) The casting or recording of the votes of registered electors; as, the close of the poll.
7. (n.) The place where the votes are cast or recorded; as, to go to the polls.
8. (n.) The broad end of a hammer; the but of an ax.
9. (n.) The European chub. See Pollard, 3 (a).
10. (v. t.) To remove the poll or head of; hence, to remove the top or end of; to clip; to lop; to shear; as, to poll the head; to poll a tree.
11. (v. t.) To cut off; to remove by clipping, shearing, etc.; to mow or crop; -- sometimes with off; as, to poll the hair; to poll wool; to poll grass.
12. (v. t.) To extort from; to plunder; to strip.
13. (v. t.) To impose a tax upon.
14. (v. t.) To pay as one's personal tax.
15. (v. t.) To enter, as polls or persons, in a list or register; to enroll, esp. for purposes of taxation; to enumerate one by one.
16. (v. t.) To register or deposit, as a vote; to elicit or call forth, as votes or voters; as, he polled a hundred votes more than his opponent.
17. (v. t.) To cut or shave smooth or even; to cut in a straight line without indentation; as, a polled deed. See Dee/ poll.
18. (v. i.) To vote at an election.
Strong's Hebrew
1538. gulgoleth -- a skull, head, poll (of persons)... a skull, head,
poll (of persons). Transliteration: gulgoleth Phonetic Spelling:
(gul-go'-leth) Short Definition: head.
... head, every man,
poll, skull.
... /hebrew/1538.htm - 6k 1494. gazaz -- to shear
... shearing (2), sheepshearers (2), sheepshearers* (1). cut off, poll, shave, shearer.
A primitive root (akin to guwz); to cut off; specifically ...
/hebrew/1494.htm - 6k
1548. galach -- to be bald, shave, shave off
... poll, shave off. A primitive root; properly, to be bald, ie (causatively) to shave;
figuratively to lay waste -- poll, shave (off). << 1547, 1548. galach. 1549 ...
/hebrew/1548.htm - 6k
3697. kasam -- to shear, clip
... root Definition to shear, clip NASB Word Usage only trim (1). only, poll. A primitive
root; to shear -- X only, poll. Compare kircem. see HEBREW kircem. ...
/hebrew/3697.htm - 6k
