Rūta

This name derives from the Hebrew “re’ ûth > rûth,” meaning “friendship, female companion, mate, neighbor woman.” Ruth was the daughter-in-law of Naomi, wife of Boaz, and grandmother of David. The Book of Ruth “the Scroll of Ruth,” is a book of the Hebrew Bible / Old Testament. In the Jewish canon, it is included in the third division, or the Writings (Ketuvim); in the Christian canon, it is treated as a history book and placed between Judges and 1 Samuel. It is named after its central figure, “Ruth the Moabitess,” the great-grandmother of David, and, according to the Gospel of Matthew, an ancestress of Jesus. Ruth is honored as a matriarch in the Calendar of Saints of the Lutheran Church.