the Week of Proper 28 / Ordinary 33
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Bible Dictionaries
Sycomore
Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament
or SYCOMORE.—The sycomore tree (συκομορέα, Luke 19:4 only), of which mention is made in the story of Zacchaeus, is the Ficus sycomorus. The Gr. name means literally a ‘fig-mulberry,’ and was bestowed upon it because it yielded a fruit akin to the fig, while its leaves, which are heart-shaped, bore some resemblance to those of the mulberry. In the OT it is called shikmîm (1 Kings 10:27 etc.), from which is probably derived the Gr. συκάμινος, though that denotes a quite different tree (see Sycamine). The sycomore, which must not be confounded with the British sycamore (A cer pseudo-Platanus), flourishes best in districts having a warm, equable climate. In Palestine it is found principally along the coast and in the low-lying plains around Jericho, and is often planted by the roadside. In the extreme north of Syria it is not met with, as it is not hardy enough to withstand the occasional frosts (Psalms 78:47). It attains a great size, and its principal branches being long and wide-spreading, and its foliage plentiful, it yields a most delightful shade. It is deciduous, but the old leaves do not fall off till the new ones come out. Its fruit resembles that of the common fig (Ficus carica), but is much smaller, and very much inferior in flavour. It is eaten only by the poorer classes of the population. The ‘figs,’ of which there are several crops each year, grow on short, leafless stems which spring from the trunk and from the larger branches. The process of ripening is hastened by cutting off the apex of the fruit or making an incision in it (cf. Amos 7:14 where the prophet describes himself as בּוֹלֵם שׁקִמִים a ‘nipper of sycomore-figs’). The tree is very easily climbed, and its lower branches are a favourite perch for children.
Hugh Duncan.
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Hastings, James. Entry for 'Sycomore'. Hastings' Dictionary of the New Testament. https://www.studylight.org/dictionaries/eng/hdn/s/sycomore.html. 1906-1918.
