While Hebrew ha-Satan is "the accuser" and Satan itself means "to overcome" — the one who challenged the religious faith of humans in the books of Job and Zechariah — Abrahamic religious belief systems other than Judaism relate this term to a demon, a rebellious fallen angel, devil, minor god and idol, or as an allegory for knowledge or the enlightenment of mankind.

Etymology

The word 'Satan', and the Arabic شيطان "shaitan", may derive from a Northwest Semitic root , meaning "to be hostile", "to accuse." An alternative explanation is provided by the Hebrew in . When God asks him whence he has come, Satan answers: "From wandering () the earth and walking on it" (מִשּׁוּט בָּאָרֶץ, וּמֵהִתְהַלֵּךְ בָּה). The root signifies wandering on foot or sailing. 'Satan' would thus be "the Wanderer".

In Persia, satan was the word for a spy used by the Emperor Cyrus.Fact: date=October 2008 They would be found in public places, speaking unfavorably of the emperor. They would turn in and disappear anyone who agreed with them in those conversations.

'Satan' is Satan in Standard Hebrew, in Tiberian Hebrew, in Aramaic, Σατανάς Satanás in Koine Greek, in Persian, in Arabic, in Ge'ez, in Turkish, and in Urdu.

In the Hebrew Apocrypha

The Apocrypha are religious writings which are not generally accepted as scripture by Judaism and many modern-day Protestant sects of Christianity. These works usually bore the names of ancient Hebrew worthies in order to establish their validity among the true writers' contemporaries. To reconcile the late appearance of the texts with their claims to primitive antiquity, alleged authors are represented as "shutting up and sealing" (Dan. XII. 4:9) the works until the time of their fulfillment had arrived; as the texts were not meant for their own generations but for far-distant ages (also cited in Assumption of Moses I. 16:17).

In the Book of Wisdom, the devil is represented as the being who brought death into the world.

The 2nd Book of Enoch, also called the Slavonic Book of Enoch, contains references to a Watcher Grigori called Satanael. It is a pseudepigraphic text of an uncertain date and unknown authorship. The text describes Satanael as being the prince of the Grigori who was cast out of heaven and an evil spirit who knew the difference between what was "righteous" and "sinful". A similar story is found in the book of 1 Enoch; however, in that book, the leader of the Grigori is called Semjâzâ.

In the apocryphal literature, Satan rules over a host of angels. Mastema, who induced God to test Abraham through the sacrifice of Isaac, is identical with Satan in both name and nature.