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a son of Jacob and Zilpah. Gen. 30:12–13.
one of the 12 tribes of Israel traditionally descended from him.
a male given name.
Contemporary Examples

Her co-workers included a former Israeli soldier named Asher Karni.
‘Nuke Mom’ Marisa Sketo Kirsh on Her Vindication Michael Daly December 4, 2013

Barbara Guggenheim is a partner in the art consulting firm Guggenheim, Asher Associates.
10 Tips to Start the Fall Off Right Barbara Guggenheim, Nadine Schiff September 4, 2010

“You have to draw the line—nobody else will,” says hip-hop sensation Asher Roth.
The Odd World of Digital Groupies Doree Shafrir January 22, 2010

Asher King Abramson, UCLA Quidditch president and beater, agreed.
From J.K. Rowling’s Harry Potter Novels to Real Life: The Sport of Quidditch Takes Flight Jace Lacob March 13, 2012

More often, Asher sees the phenomenon at work in questions on social policy, like the Common Core educational standards.
The Polls Are In: ISIS Is Outside Your Window Jack Holmes October 5, 2014

Historical Examples

The ancient Hebraic tribe under which he would be classed was that of Asher, and the ruling angel of the sign is Asmodel.
The Scrap Book, Volume 1, No. 3 Various

Without ceremony or farewell, Asher crawled inside his tube.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, June, 1930 Various

Asher sprang toward Shirley, who was sitting upright, staring wildly at the two.
Winning the Wilderness Margaret Hill McCarter

Not the small gun, such as Asher had concealed in his pocket.
Astounding Stories of Super-Science, June, 1930 Various

Asher Lmmlein gained a troop of adherents, who spread his prophecies.
History of the Jews, Vol. IV (of VI) Heinrich Graetz

noun
the son of Jacob and ancestor of one of the 12 tribes of Israel

masc. proper name, biblical son of Jacob (also the name of a tribe descended from him), from Hebrew, literally “happy.”

happy, Jacob’s eigth son; his mother was Zilpah, Leah’s handmaid (Gen. 30:13). Of the tribe founded by him nothing is recorded beyond its holding a place in the list of the tribes (35:26; 46:17; Ex. 1:4, etc.) It increased in numbers twenty-nine percent, during the thirty-eight years’ wanderings. The place of this tribe during the march through the desert was between Dan and Naphtali (Num. 2:27). The boundaries of the inheritance given to it, which contained some of the richest soil in Palestine, and the names of its towns, are recorded in Josh. 19:24-31; Judg. 1:31, 32. Asher and Simeon were the only tribes west of the Jordan which furnished no hero or judge for the nation. Anna the prophetess was of this tribe (Luke 2:36).