Darda

Darda is a figure referenced in the biblical text of 1 Kings 4:31, where he is noted as one of the wise men, mentioned alongside others such as Ethan the Ezrahite. The verse names him, with Heman and Calcol, among "the sons of Mahol," and a closely similar group of names appears in 1 Chronicles 2:6 among the sons of Zerah, where the name is spelled Dara.

---

Historical Context

The name Darda appears within the context of the biblical narrative, specifically in the early chapters of the First Book of Kings. These chapters are set during the reign of King Solomon (970-931 BC), a period traditionally placed in the 10th century BC, known for its emphasis on wisdom and the expansion of the Israelite kingdom.

---

Darda among the Wise Men

1 Kings 4:30-31 measures Solomon's wisdom against the most renowned wisdom of his world: it "was greater than that of all the men of the East, greater than all the wisdom of Egypt," and he was "wiser than Ethan the Ezrahite, and wiser than Heman, Calcol, and Darda, the sons of Mahol." The reference to Darda in 1 Kings 4:31 thus places him in a list of wise men against whom Solomon's wisdom is measured, and the verse adds that Solomon's "fame spread throughout the surrounding nations." The one personal detail the verse gives about Darda is the group designation "the sons of Mahol." Mahol may be a proper name, though the word also means "dance" or "music."

---

Dara in 1 Chronicles 2:6

The genealogy of Judah in 1 Chronicles 2 lists "The sons of Zerah: Zimri, Ethan, Heman, Calcol, and Dara," Zerah being one of the sons Tamar bore to Judah (1 Chronicles 2:4). Ethan, Heman and Calcol match the names of 1 Kings 4:31, the names occur in the same order, and Dara differs from Darda by a single letter. Many manuscripts of Chronicles, together with the Arabic version and the Targum, read Darda at 1 Chronicles 2:6, and the Septuagint, in Brenton's translation, reads Darad.

Whether the two lists name the same men remains unsettled. Kings calls Heman, Calcol and Darda "the sons of Mahol," while Chronicles lists Ethan, Heman, Calcol and Dara among the sons of Zerah of the tribe of Judah. Commentators differ. Ellicott's Commentary, on 1 Chronicles 2:6, finds it "difficult to suppose that the persons intended are not the same," but on 1 Kings 4:31 it judges that the identification "can scarcely hold," because the passage implies that these rivals of Solomon were his contemporaries; it points instead to the Heman and Ethan whom David set over the service of song (1 Chronicles 6:33, 6:44). The Pulpit Commentary holds that it is impossible to say whether they are the men of 1 Chronicles 2:6 or the Ethan and Heman who were David's singers.