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In the Hebrew Bible, Gebirah (/ɡəˈbɪərə/ gə-BEER-ə; Hebrew: גְּבִירָה, romanized: gəḇīrā, lit. 'lady') is a title ascribed to queen mothers of Israel and Judah.
Literally translated, the title means '[Great] Lady', with the word being the feminine counterpart to gəḇīr (גְּבִיר), 'lord'. However, given that this title is most often attributed to a queen mother, the two have become synonymous, and therefore gəḇīrā is most often translated as 'Queen Mother'. When romanised, "gebirah" can be used as both a common noun ("a gebirah", "the gebirah") or a proper noun ("the Gebirah"), as with most royal titles. Although not present in the Masoretic Texts, the plural form gəḇīrōṯ (גְּבִירוֹת) is commonly used by academics to avoid the intra-word switching of "gebirahs".
The gebirah is believed by some scholars to have held great power as counsel of the king. In 1 Kings 2:20, Solomon said to his Mother Bathsheba, seated on a throne at his right, "Make your request, Mother, for I will not refuse you". The position of the queen mother was a privilege of the highest honour, and was the highest authority for a woman in Israel or Judah. In fact, the only time a woman held higher office was in the case of Athaliah, who usurped the throne of Judah.
To further complicate matters, the word gəḇereṯ (גְּבֶרֶת; also גְּבִרְת gəḇīrət and גְבָרֶת gəḇāreṯ, meaning 'lady', 'mistress', or 'queen') occurs 9 times in the Masoretic Text. In comparison, gəḇīrā occurs only 6 times. Scholars generally take one of two stances with gəḇereṯ: either classing it as an acceptable variation of the word gəḇīrā within the ketiv (featuring a common qere), or opting for a distinct separation of the two words, despite their converged meanings.
William G. Most, a Catholic author, sees in the gebirah a type of Mary.[1]