What Was Lot’s Wife Name in the Bible? Why Genesis Never Names Her

If you’re asking what Lot’s wife name in the Bible was, the answer is surprisingly simple: the Bible never gives her a personal name in the Genesis narrative. She’s referred to only as “Lot’s wife,” yet her story is so memorable—especially the moment she looks back and becomes a pillar of salt—that many people assume a name must exist somewhere. It doesn’t, at least not in the biblical text itself.

Does the Bible actually name Lot’s wife?

No. In Genesis, Lot’s wife is never identified by a personal name. She appears in one of the most dramatic scenes in the Old Testament, but the text consistently refers to her by role and relationship rather than by identity—simply “Lot’s wife.”

This is one of those moments where the Bible’s storytelling style can feel unfamiliar to modern readers. Today, we expect a named character if their actions shape a famous lesson. Ancient narrative, however, often focuses less on the individual’s biography and more on the meaning of the event.

Where her story appears in Scripture

Lot’s wife is part of the account of Sodom and Gomorrah, primarily in Genesis 19. The story describes angels warning Lot and his household to escape the city because judgment is coming. They are told to flee quickly and not to look back.

As the family runs, the narrative says Lot’s wife looks back, and she becomes a pillar of salt. It’s one of the most visually striking images in the Bible: sudden, permanent, and loaded with meaning.

Her story is also echoed later in the New Testament. In Luke 17:32, Jesus gives a brief warning: “Remember Lot’s wife.” That single line shows how enduring her story became—so well known that it could be referenced without explanation.

Why is she unnamed in Genesis?

There isn’t a single official “Bible footnote” that explains why she is unnamed, but the pattern itself is common in ancient texts. In many Old Testament passages, women (and even some men) are sometimes identified by family connection rather than by a personal name. That doesn’t automatically mean they were unimportant in real life; it means the text is shaping the story for a particular purpose.

In Lot’s wife’s case, being unnamed also makes her role more universal. She becomes a representative figure rather than a biography: not “this one named woman with a complicated backstory,” but a symbol of a very human impulse—hesitation, attachment, and looking back when the moment demands forward movement.

That’s part of why the story still lands. You don’t have to know her name to recognize the feeling the story describes.

What does “looking back” mean in the story?

Many readers interpret her glance backward as more than a casual turn of the head. In the way the story is usually preached and understood, it represents longing for what was left behind, attachment to the old life, or resistance to the urgent command to leave.

That’s why the “pillar of salt” moment hits like a warning. It’s not presented as a minor mistake; it’s presented as a decisive failure to obey in a moment when delay and doubt had consequences.

Even if you read Genesis as a historical account, the storytelling still functions like a parable: when it’s time to go, don’t cling to what is being destroyed. When you’re being rescued, don’t romanticize the place you’re escaping.

So why do some sources claim her name was “Edith”?

You may have heard that Lot’s wife was named Edith. That name shows up in some later traditions and retellings, but it is not in the Bible. It’s the kind of detail that grows over time as people retell a famous story and feel the natural urge to “complete” it with a name.

That doesn’t mean the tradition is malicious—it’s just not biblical. If you’re writing or teaching and you want to be text-faithful, the right thing to say is: Genesis does not name her.