Epharta

The title of this post is not an error. That will become evident in the following discussion.

Ephratah (or Ephrath) is an ancient name for Bethlehem (בֵּית לֶחֶם Hebrew = house of bread), the prophesied birthplace of the Messiah (Micah 5:2), There were other places also known as Bethlehem so this town was called Bethlehem Ephrathah. This is the place where Jacob buried Rachel.

The Hebrew word אֶפְרָתָה (Ephrathah) comes from the root פרה (parah), meaning to be fruitful, or to increase. Strong’s 672. Genesis 35:16-19, 48:7; Micah 5:2

There are several communities named Ephratah: Efrah, Israel; Ephrata, Pennsylvania, Ephratah, New York; and Ephrata, Washington, with the town in Pennsylvania (USA), being in the national news in 2013.

Ephrata, Pennsylvania, which is of historical importance in its own right, became the focus of a national news story for what basically amounts to sloppiness and failure to attend to details. The problem was a highway sign reading 322 Epharta EXIT 2 Miles, which was noticed in 2013. Highway 322 is a United States Highway which is maintained by the Pennsylvania State Highway system.

Ephrata is pronounced as ef-rah-tah but the town name on the sign would be read as Ee-fart-uh. For readers unfamiliar with idiomatic English, a fart is the expulsion of bowel gas, usually very audibly evident. This sign clearly was a problem.

https://www.nbcphiladelphia.com/local/misspelled-road-sign-costs-penndot-12k/1962842/

https://lancasteronline.com/news/did-you-catch-that-embarrassing-typo-on-the-sign-along-route-222-near-ephrata/article_4d7d85e4-6694-5a90-841f-dedee1a3ac6a.html

The historical importance of this small Pennsylvania town (2024 population 13,719) comes from the fact that it is the site of the first communal religious society in the United States, the Mystic Order of the Solitary. The buildings are now a tourist and pilgrimage site.

            In 1732, Johann Conrad Beissel (1691-1768) founded the pietist, pacifist, celibate, and ascetic

 group which was known locally as the Ephrata Cloister. Their doctrines identified them as Seventh Day

 Dunkers. The modern survivors of the group are Seventh Day Baptists.