Why is King David's name usually spelled in Hebrew 'dalet vav dalet' but in Chronicles it is spelled 'dalet vav yud dalet' What does the additional yud signify?
General answer: In the Hebrew Alephbet (alphabet) the letter dalet corresponds to the English letter 'D'. The vav is a letter 'V.' The extra yud is a vowel adding the long 'e' sound in 'David,' pronounced 'dah-veed'. The dalet, vav, yud, dalet is the correct spelling for the name David.Jewish answer:The entire purpose of the Book of Chronicles is to concentrate on King David (Rashi commentary, ibid) and his dynasty. The extra letter is a way of honoring him, by grammatically "filling out" his name. This spelling is used nowhere except in Chronicles, neither in the Hebrew Bible nor the Rabbinic writings. It constitutes a unique honorific-version, and is no more "correct" than the usual spelling.