Haman, Son of Hammedatha (הָמָן, haman). A Persian official who plotted to destroy the Jews throughout the Persian Empire. His plan was foiled by Esther (Esth 3:1–15; 4:7; 5:1–9:19, 24).

Haman was a Persian official under Ahasuerus. The Jewish Mordecai did not bow down before Haman as Persian custom demanded. Haman, angry at Mordecai’s refusal, decided to destroy him and the whole Jewish people. Haman deceived the king into believing that the Jews were rebellious and that they deserved to be destroyed. After the king gave him the necessary power, Haman sent out a decree ordering the massacre of the Jews. He also built a gallows to execute Mordecai.

When Mordecai learned of the decree, he informed his cousin Esther, who was the queen. She turned the king against Haman, and ironically he was hanged on the gallows he had built for Mordecai.

Haman is described as an “Agagite” (Esth 3:1), a designation not used elsewhere in the Bible. In spite of later Jewish tradition (Josephus, Antiquities 11.6.5), it is unlikely that Haman was literally related to Agag, the king of Amalek during Saul’s time (1 Sam 15:33). In the Greek additions to Esther, for example, Haman is described as a Macedonian (Esth 12:6; 16:10). The name Haman is also probably of Elamite origin, making any direct connection to Agag less likely. Rather, it is more likely that “Agagite” is meant to rhetorically align Haman with an ancient enemy of Israel.

The victory over Haman is the origin of the Jewish festival of Purim.

For more on Haman’s role in the book of Esther, see this article: Esther, Book of.