German form of Yah, shortened form of the Hebrew YHWH. According to Dan Brown, ‘‘YHWH—the sacred name of God—is in fact derived from Jehovah, an androgynous physical union between the masculine Jah and the pre-Hebraic name for Eve, Havah’’ (DVC, 309). YHWH, far from being a compound of Jah and Havah, is derived from the Hebrew hayah (‘‘to be’’), and it was a variation of this term—ehyeh (‘‘I Am’’)—by which God identified himself to Moses (Ex. 3:14). The Hebrews so revered God’s name that they did not even speak it; instead, they substituted the word Adonai (‘‘Lord’’) and used its vowels when they wrote YHWH. See also Adonai; Jehovah, Tetragrammaton; YHWH.