pertaining to the Hebrew language
2
votes
2answers
142 views
Why is “Merkos L'inyonei Chinuch” spelled that way?
In the title Merkos L'inyonei Chinuch, why is the word מרכז transliterated with an 's' in place of a 'ז' rather than a 'z'?
5
votes
3answers
433 views
Hebrew for ice - and other “new” words
After reading MB OC 301:17:65 (thanks, YDK!) I am baffled by a nagging question regarding Modern Hebrew and Biblical Hebrew. Eliezer Ben-Yehudah is known to have revitalized Hebrew, in part by taking ...
2
votes
1answer
121 views
Are “tzipor” and “tziporen” related?
Are the words ציפור (bird) and ציפורן (finger nail OR a spice [found in k'tores]) etymologically related? I heard that both were connected to the root צ.פ.ר (arise) or to anatomical protuberance but I ...
10
votes
3answers
154 views
In the Bible, why did robbers bother tunneling into houses to rob them?
Exodus 22:1 speaks about the robber who was found "tunnelling in" to someone's house (vis-a-vis self-defense). Is that just a figure of speech, or did they actually go to that much trouble? (What ...
8
votes
3answers
159 views
Why is there a ה in “מוהל”?
The Hebrew word for the act performed at a circumcision is "לימול". The root appears to be נ.מ.ל. Following the exceptional rules for roots whose first letter is נ, the causative participle and ...
2
votes
3answers
141 views
Meaning of the a word in an magen david
I have a magen david with שוי writen inside and I want to know the meaning
5
votes
1answer
203 views
Are the Aramaic root ק.ב.ל and the Hebrew root ק.ב.ל related?
When the word מקבילות comes up in parashas T'ruma, Rash"i defines it based on the Aramaic root ק.ב.ל, commonly found in the preposition לקבל (against or opposite) to mean physically across ...
10
votes
3answers
367 views
Disparity between male and female pronunciation of Cholam
In many Yeshivish communities in the US, the male segment of the population vocalizes the cholam as "oi," while their female counterparts vocalize it as a long "o". How did this come about? Does the ...
10
votes
2answers
1k views
B'siyata D'shmaya or Baruch Hashem
Often, at the top of written work, Jews write either ב"ה, which stands for Baruch Hashem =blessed is the Name i.e., God, or בס"ד, which stands for b'siyata d'shmaya =with Heavenly help.
What is the ...
5
votes
2answers
146 views
Formal Hebrew honorific for one's mother
Many men, when going up for an aliya, tell the gabbai their name as, e.g. "Reuven ben Rav Yaakov", even if "Yaakov," the father, isn't actually a Rabbi." I believe the reason for this practice is to ...
5
votes
2answers
222 views
7
votes
2answers
274 views
מרדכי = Mord'chi?
When learning with Jews of the Syrian community, I noticed that they pronounced מרדכי (the name of the halachic commentary on the g'mara) as "mord'chi", as if the final vowel were a chirik. Why is ...
3
votes
1answer
84 views
“Ramba”m“ or ”The Ramba“m”?
I often hear the Hebrew abbreviation for Maimonides appended to a definite article but don't quite understand why it should be there when the unabbreviated name would (I think) never warrant such an ...
2
votes
1answer
71 views
How do I write in Hebrew for a Ketbuah, “On the first day of the week, the thirtieth day of Adar I in the year fifty-seven seventy one”
Question was asked by Stephen Spiegel, I'm just posting it here as its own question instead of a comment.
1
vote
2answers
116 views
5
votes
3answers
223 views
The Absolute Unity of G-d
As we all who know Hebrew can assert, the sufix "im" in the words usually means plurality. How can HaShem be Elohim or Elokim if He is absolutely One and the Only Lord?
2
votes
2answers
109 views
Why does the book (Megillah) of Esther never use the Hebrew word “armon” for palace?
It talks about the capital and "the king's house", but never uses the Hebrew word for "palace", "armon", as appears in Psalms and elsewhere. (Or does it appear and I missed it?) Why not?
5
votes
1answer
121 views
6
votes
2answers
207 views
Why is Hebrew Called “Jewish” in the Bible?
We see that in most of the Bible, the Jews are called "בני ישראל/Israelites"; only in later books are they called "יהודים/Jews" (e.g. Esther 2:5, Zechariah 8:23), after the loss of the 10 tribes. ...
2
votes
2answers
217 views
What are the Hebrew titles for synagogue functionaries in various communities?
In every Ashkenazic synagogue I've seen, the fellow calling up people to the Bima is called a "gabbai." (Which was originally a Hebrew word for "collector", as in Tzedaka collector; I can see how the ...
6
votes
1answer
294 views
מֶה, מָה, מַה - Meh, Mah, Ma - What's the difference?
What causes the difference in vowelization of the Hebrew word for "what"? In some contexts it is מֶה, in others - מָה, and in yet others - מַה. The hypothesis that an acquaintance and I converged on ...
1
vote
4answers
310 views
Tzanua…Not Tznius!
People often say tznius when they mean to say tzanua. Do you know of any other examples in Hebrew, Aramaic, or Yiddish in which people use the noun but they really mean to use the adjective?
3
votes
2answers
99 views
Learning Hebrew
If I have a decent Hebrew knowledge, but not great, what books (i.e. dictionaries, lexicons, etc.) should I have at hand when I'm learning a sefer, such as the Mishneh Torah?
3
votes
3answers
350 views
1
vote
2answers
89 views
What information do Hebrew pronouns carry/express?
(inspired by this question)
Does the nominal pronoun in a Hebrew sentence with a conjugated verb
i) add information or ii) deserve to be translated?
Conversely, exactly how muchi) information does ...
4
votes
1answer
232 views
Why are some Hebrew prepositions always conjugated in plural form?
(inspired by this question)
Certain Hebrew prepositions, such as אל, על, and לפני, are always conjugated in the plural form even with a singular object: thus אליו, עליך, etc.
Others don't: the ...
2
votes
2answers
59 views
Research Project on How the Revival of the Hebrew Language Led to Jewish Nationalism
Can someone help me with finding sources (ie, things to read) about my research topic of "How the Revival of the Hebrew Language Led to Jewish Nationalism"
2
votes
2answers
153 views
What is the Morph-Phonological Split in Hebrew that makes it so Unique?
Can some one explain this to me?
In a mixed language par excellence, large and monolithic blocks of material are
imported wholesale from each of the ancestral languages. Thus, while the verbal ...
5
votes
2answers
211 views
Definition of Leitzanus
I have often seen leitzanus, mockery, defined along the lines of making a joke out of serious matters. Intuitively this is a good definition, but does anyone have a source which spells it out?
5
votes
1answer
325 views
What's the difference in Biblical Hebrew between “zahav” and “paz”?
Artscroll calls one "gold", the other "fine gold." Any other distinctions?
7
votes
2answers
82 views
Why are several Biblical characters called “man of the Lord” (Ish HaElokim), but no one in the Bible is ever “man of God” (Ish Hashem)?
Ramban makes this observation (Deut. 33:1), and says "anyone with a good intellect" can figure out the reason. Okay I'm stumped ... help me out here please?
3
votes
1answer
96 views
How do you pronounce the הוי״ה in hataras nedarim (annulment of vows) before Rosh HaShanah?
In the siddurs I've seen, we ask for annulment for vows made "with the name הוי״ה ". That word is left unvowelized. How is it pronounced?
5
votes
4answers
149 views
Shalom Alaichem and vice versa
Why do people respond Alaichem shalom when someone tells them Shalom Alaichem? Doesn't it mean the same thing?
2
votes
1answer
111 views
Schwa+Heh Pronunciation
How should a heh with a schwa under it be pronounced in an intermediate position in a word? E.g. פדהאל, or נהדר
3
votes
1answer
298 views
Kel (Melech) Chanun V'Rachum — do you say Melech?
Some siddurs have the phrase "Ki Kel Melech Chanun V'Rachum Ata" at the conclusion of Ya'aleh v'Yavo. Some have Melech in parentheses; some don't have it at all. Can anyone tell me something about ...
2
votes
3answers
350 views
Where can I find Hebrew etymologies?
In what reliable source can I look up the etymology of English (or other) words stretching all the way back to Semitic languages, especially Hebrew?
I often have suspicions that certain words might ...
6
votes
1answer
474 views
Different traditions in Hebrew pronunciation
The theme of Hebrew pronunciation is one that facinates me and, as such, I want to get some feedback on some issues I've been thinking about for years. I have already discussed some of these issues ...
2
votes
1answer
56 views
Picking out the alephs
How can you quickly pick out all the alephs on a page of Hebrew printed text?
