Shalem

Meaning: safe, peaceful

This name appears in the King James Bible and is a place (probably the village of Salim) some 2 miles east of Jacob's well.

There is an abundant supply of water, which may have been the reason for Jacob's settling at this place (Genesis 33:18-20 KJV).

About the name

In Hebrew, words are built on “roots,” generally of three consonants. When the root consonants appear with various vowels and additional letters, a variety of words, often with some relation in meaning, can be formed from a single root. Thus from the root SH-L-M come the words shalom (“peace, well-being”), hishtalem (“it was worth it”), shulam (“paid for”), meshulam (“paid in advance”), and shalem (“safe, peaceful”).
—Wikipedia

Shechem

More modern translations use the name “Shechem” instead of “Shalem.”

“Now Jacob came safely to the city of Shechem, which is in the land of Canaan, when he came from Paddan-aram, and camp before the city. He bought the piece of land where he had pitched his tent from the hand of the sons of Hamor, Shechem’s father, for one hundred pieces of money. Then he erected there an altar and called it El-Elohe-Israel.” —Genesis 33:18-20 NASB

Article Version: September 1, 2017