Q: Is the name YHWH really derived from Jehovah, revealing a male and female union? A: No. The name YHWH is the original, sacred name for God. The name Jehovah was used later and has nothing to do with a male and female union.
The Da Vinci Code falsely states that "the Jewish tetragrammaton YHWH - the sacred name of God - in fact derived from Jehova, an androgynous physical union between the masculine Jah and the pre-Hebraic name for Eve, Havah" (Brown, D., 2004, p. 318).
The reality is that the sacred name YHWH originated before the name Jehovah. The name YHWH reflects the Hebrew verb "to be" ( Hanegraaff, H. & Maier, P. L., 2004, p. 30) and depending on usage can mean "He is," "He will be," "I am," or "He who is self-existing" (JewishEncyclopedia.com, 2002).
"At an early period the correct pronunciation of the name was either lost or deliberately avoided out of a sense of religious awe. Jewish tradition came to vocalize and pronounce the name as 'Adonai,' that is, 'the/my Lord,' a usage that has remained in practice since late antiquity" (Fox, E., 1997, p. xxix).
In ancient Israelite culture, there was a genuine fear in breaking the third commandment (Exodus 20:7) by misusing the name of the LORD - sometimes you will even see God written as "G-d." The name Jehovah (contrary to the Da Vinci Code) was the result of a synthesis of the consonants of YHWH and the vowels of Adonai (a-o-a), forming the word Yahowah or Jehovah (Jesus & DaVinci, 2005). The name Jehovah has absolutely nothing at all to do with a male and female union (Hanegraaff, H. & Maier, P. L., 2004, p. 30).
References:
Brown, D. (2004). The Da Vinci Code, Special Illustrated Edition. (p. 167). New York, NY: Doubleday.
Fox, E. (1997). The Five Books of Moses. (p. xxix). New York, NY: Schocken Books.
Hanegraaff, H. & Maier, P. L. (2004). The Da Vinci Code: Fact or Fiction. (p. 30). Carol Stream, IL: Tyndale.
JewishEncyclopedia.com. (2002). YHWH. Retrieved May 17, 2006, from http://www.jewishencyclopedia.com/view.jsp?artid=52&letter=N&search=yhwh.
Jesus & DaVinci. (2005). Retrieved May 17, 2006, from
http://www.jesusanddavinci.com/theology/crashdavincicode.html