Zakef katan


The Zakef katan, often referred to simply as "Katan," is a cantillation mark commonly found in the Torah, Haftarah, and other books of the Hebrew Bible. The note is the anchor and final one of the Katon group, which also can include the Mapach, Pashta, Munach, or Yetiv. It is one of the most common cantillation marks. There is no limit to the number of times the Katan group can appear in a verse, and often, multiple Katan groups appear in succession. The most times in succession the group occurs is four.
The symbol for the Zakef katan is a colon. It is placed on the syllable of the word that is accented.
Zakef katan occurs in the Torah 6992 times.
The Zakef katan is one of two versions of the Zakef trope, the other being Zakef gadol.
The Hebrew word זָקֵף translates into English as upright. קָטָ֔ן translates as small.

The Katan group

In the Katan group, the trope can appear in the following patterns:

Melody