How many times is Anak mentioned in the Bible?
The word Anak appears 9 times in the King James Version, in 8 verses. Counting every form (Anak, Anakims), it appears 18 times in 16 verses across 4 of the 66 books. The World English Bible uses Anak 9 times (18 with every form).
The KJV calls Anak's descendants the Anakims; the World English Bible says Anakim. Both are counted with Anak.
Anak in the King James Version and the World English Bible
Each form of Anak counted in each translation.
| Form | KJV | WEB |
|---|---|---|
| Anak | 9 | 9 |
| Anakims | 9 | not counted |
| Anakim | not counted | 9 |
| Total | 18 | 18 |
What the name Anak means
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary glosses Anak as "a collar; ornament".
This is the 1869 traditional meaning; modern scholars often read names differently.
See every name and place with its meaning and count on Bible names and their meanings.
Source: Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary (1869), checked 2026-10-24.
Which books mention Anak most
Anak appears in 4 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Joshua has the most (8), then Deuteronomy (6) and Numbers (3).
First and last mention of Anak
And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)
And they gave Hebron unto Caleb, as Moses said: and he expelled thence the three sons of Anak.
The verse that uses it most is Deuteronomy 9:2, 2 times (tied with Joshua 15:14):
A people great and tall, the children of the Anakims, whom thou knowest, and of whom thou hast heard say, Who can stand before the children of Anak!
Common questions
How many times is Anak in the Old Testament and the New Testament?
In the King James Version, counting every form, 18 of the 18 uses are in the Old Testament and 0 in the New Testament. Anak appears in 4 books of the 66 in the King James Version. Joshua has the most (8), then Deuteronomy (6) and Numbers (3).
Where is Anak first mentioned in the Bible?
The first use in the King James Version is Numbers 13:22: "And they ascended by the south, and came unto Hebron; where Ahiman, Sheshai, and Talmai, the children of Anak, were. (Now Hebron was built seven years before Zoan in Egypt.)" The last is Judges 1:20.
What does the name Anak mean in the Bible?
Hitchcock's Bible Names Dictionary glosses Anak as "a collar; ornament".
More word counts: Asaph, year, Mephibosheth, Benaiah, Eliab, Ehud, gentleness, jealousy, or all 635 words.
Counted by Bible Says About from the full public-domain text of the King James Version (1769 edition) and the World English Bible. Verse text only: headings and psalm titles are left out. A word is a run of letters: a hyphenated name like Beer-sheba counts as two, and an apostrophe stays inside its word (LORD'S is one). Matching ignores capital letters. Data compiled 2026-10-24.