pertaining to the Hebrew language
2
votes
0answers
93 views
Two-letter shorashim and phonetic shorashim?
I have heard many times in the name of Rabbi Shimshon Rafael Hirsch that every Hebrew shoresh (usually defined with three letters) has a more basic root of two letters. I also heard in his name that ...
2
votes
0answers
90 views
Intonation of questions in ancient Hebrew [closed]
That is, when someone asks a question in English, their pitch goes up at the end. When someone makes a statement in English, their pitch goes down. This is not universal: In German, only some ...
2
votes
0answers
104 views
Are there any good podcasts in Hebrew? [closed]
One of the things I'm missing in the US is lack of easy access to spoken modern Hebrew. Can anyone recommend a good podcast featuring news (as well as possibly other subjects) in Hebrew for offline ...
2
votes
0answers
130 views
Hebrew Grammar: How did Nif'al end up as the passive/reflexive of pa'al? [closed]
I have been trying to figure this out by comparing Hebrew binyanim to Arabic and Akkadian conjuations. But I cannot figure it out.
Is Nif'al a natural part of the G-stem (like pa'al) or has it ...
1
vote
4answers
319 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?
1
vote
2answers
115 views
Why is it called Ayin Hara?
Why is it called Ayin Hara (singular) shouldn't it be Anayim Raos (Plural)?
1
vote
2answers
116 views
What does adukin (אדוקין) mean?
Rashi, in Mesechta Gitin on דף טז עמוד א says שנים אדוקין. What does adukin (אדוקין) mean?
1
vote
2answers
118 views
1
vote
3answers
197 views
What does R' Feinstein say about eating kosher food in a non-kosher restaurant?
The last paragraph of Igros Moshe O.C. 2:40 discusses when you may order kosher food [such as a banana] in a non-kosher restaurant.
R' Moshe Feinstein begins:
ובדבר אם מותר לאכול ברעסטאראנט ...
1
vote
2answers
136 views
Can the word “eitz” mean “a thought” in the Torah?
Is there support in the Talmud or later rabbinical literature to interpreting the Torah term "eitz," commonly translated as "tree," to also mean "thought". This of course, is a common usage in ...
1
vote
2answers
91 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 ...
1
vote
1answer
107 views
Do we read it as directing or breaking the ear?
Rashi to Shemos 31:17 states:
וינפש: כתרגומו ונח, וכל לשון נופש והוא לשון נפש, שמשיב נפשו ונשימתו בהרגיעו מטורח מהמלאכה. ומי שכתוב בו (ישעיה מ כח) לא ייעף ולא יגע, וכל פעלו במאמר, הכתיב מנוחה ...
1
vote
2answers
277 views
What's wrong with 'Hip Hip Hooray'?
When cutting the cake at a Jewish birthday party, or other celebrations when a cheer is called for, 'Hip Hip, Hooray!' is never used but rather the Hebrew 'Heyach!' 'Heydad!'.
It seems to be a great ...
1
vote
1answer
271 views
What coin is this?
It is a little over an inch diameter, thicker and heavier than any coin would be. The lettering almost seems random....or maybe the middle word is a name?
Can someone help me identify this coin?
...
1
vote
1answer
32 views
Why is birkas kohanim in the masculine singular?
If the kohanim are blessing the entire people, one would think that it should be worded, "יברככם...וישמרכם" Why is it in the singular form?
On a related note, if a father places this blessing on his ...
1
vote
1answer
67 views
Why “מִי וָמִי” instead of “מִי וּמִי”?
I have always thought that as a general rule, the vav conjunctive prefix is usually a "וְ". But, when the word being "prefixed" either starts with a shva or starts with a "lip-letter" (בומ"פ), the vav ...
1
vote
1answer
93 views
Aramaic sections of davening in Hebrew
From the answers I received to this question, the reason we still say some sections of davening (prayer) in Aramaic seems to be that it is historically a Jewish language, and using it unifies all ...
1
vote
2answers
110 views
Midrash/Medrash
Can anyone explain to me the difference between Midrash and Medrash? Is one of them known to be more correct (i.e. most likely older)?
1
vote
1answer
97 views
Comparison of Lexica: BDB and Strong's Hebrew
Which has more entries, BDB or Strong's Hebrew?
Is there any known mapping between the two?
1
vote
0answers
28 views
Regional Ashkenazi Pronunciation
I don't know if this is the right forum to ask this, but I would like to find audio tracks of Jews from different Ashkenazi communities speaking Hebrew (be they leyning, davening, discoursing or ...
1
vote
0answers
54 views
Words in Sefarim in Modern Hebrew [closed]
Sometimes in the more modern seforim, I see an alternate spelling of סוגיה instead of סוגיא, with a Hei (ה) replacing the Aleph (א). Why is this? Also, is this done with similar words? For example, ...
1
vote
0answers
204 views
Grammatical quirk in Yoda-esque sentences
Usually when the word אתה appears in Tanach and tfilah, we pronounce it מלרע (a-TAH or a-TOH. whichever you like, that's not really my point. The emphasis is on the end of the word).
Why in ...
0
votes
2answers
496 views
What does Psalm 82 mean?
6 I -- I have said, 'Gods ye are, And sons of the Most High -- all of you,
http://yltbible.com/psalms/82.htm
So how many gods are there? Who are "you" here? Are we all gods?
Here is the context. ...
0
votes
4answers
718 views
Most original form of the Hebrew Bible/Tenach
Not sure if they are the same thing (the Hebrew Bible and the Tenach). I read in this link that "there are many different Jewish translations of the Hebrew Bible". This kind of confuses me because I ...
0
votes
3answers
316 views
Good Jewish Blogs about the Modern Hebrew language? [closed]
Are there any good Jewish Blogs about the Modern Hebrew language?
0
votes
2answers
174 views
Pronunciation for אלוהים הוא אלוהים שלי
I got this from translating 'G-d is my G-d' on Google Translate. However I don't know how to pronounce the Hebrew. Can somebody give me the pronunciation on this and is there a Hebrew name that means ...
0
votes
2answers
145 views
Ve-dibarta BAM? or bam?
Would saying "ve-dibarta BAM!!!" (with the letter A pronounced like Apple) help me to discharge my obligation when reciting kriat shema, or would it be better that I say "bam" instead? (the letter A ...
0
votes
1answer
70 views
Extra yud in Yerushalaim
Why and by whom was there a yud added to make "ירושלים" instead of the original "ירושלם"?
0
votes
1answer
48 views
hebrew grammar query, Bamidbar 31:17
I seek to understand Bamidbar sedra mattos Chapter 31 verse 17. Specifically, the word הֲרֹגוּ is stumping me. It is not the kal impererative masculine plural. The word Hirgoo, הִרְגוּ, appears as the ...
0
votes
1answer
105 views
Hebrew text for Rambam's letter to Ovadia the Ger online and good Hebrew shiur on it
Does anyone know where I can find the Hebrew text for the Rambam's letter to Ovadia the Ger online, and a good Hebrew language shiur on it?
0
votes
0answers
41 views
Shem Ha'Poel for 4-letter-root verbs [closed]
For normal verbs with 3-letter roots, each root is addressed by Peh, Ayin, and Lamed (respectively). In the rare verbs with 4 roots, how are each of the root letters indexed?
Hope the question is ...
0
votes
0answers
64 views
Formatting Benching / Davening in a design program [closed]
Where can I get the text of the siddur/prayer book and benching/grace in a free computer friendly format? I'd like to be able to make materials that include commonly needed teffilos(prayers) (e.g. a ...
0
votes
0answers
102 views
Why is Hebrew's word for “widget” so different than most other languages'? [closed]
I've been studying Hebrew for about a whole month now. I've discovered that the word "widget" in English, while translating to "widget" in most other languages, translates to "יישומון" in Hebrew. I ...
-1
votes
3answers
1k views
How do you write Isaiah in Hebrew? [closed]
How do you write Isaiah in Hebrew and does it matter if the writing is in a vertical direction. (This is for a tattoo for a childs name on a parent)
-1
votes
1answer
107 views
What's the Hebrew idiom for “what's his name” or “What's his face”
I vaguely remember some phrase used in Torah discussions such as "moni palomy" or "moni plamoni" that means "John Doe" or "What's his name" or "John Q Public". Seems like it was used in Ester, but I ...
-1
votes
4answers
132 views
Return *his* dress?
After the command to return a lost ox, we find: "You should do likewise for his dress (לשמלתו)."
However, two pesukim later, we see וְלֹא-יִלְבַּשׁ גֶּבֶר שִׂמְלַת אִשָּׁה (and a man shouldn't wear ...
-1
votes
3answers
121 views
How can I understand the torah text? [closed]
Please tell me how can I read the Torah. I want to learn Hebrew so that I can read Torah perfectly. Please help me out.
-1
votes
2answers
337 views
How to write “Isaiah 41,10” in Hebrew? [closed]
I've already seen that someone wanted to know how to write Isaiah in Hebrew, but my question is mainly about the numbers, because I found just a few numbers, which can be written in Hebrew. I've ...
-1
votes
1answer
110 views
-1
votes
1answer
119 views
The vowel making the “i” sound and the vowel making the “ee” sound [closed]
While I have no unicode to show my predicament, I'd like to describe it. I know the vowel for i, such as in the English word "bit", is represented by a dot under the consonant. I know the vowel for ...
-2
votes
1answer
100 views
Why is there a Vuv with a Patach in וַיִּקְרָא?
What is the reason for the patach under the vuv in וַיִּקְרָא, the first word of the third book of the Pentateuch?
I would expect a schva, which, at least in modern Hebrew, is what sits under a vuv ...
-2
votes
1answer
47 views
Hebrew alphabet spelling for phrase in psalm 23, and the phrase “God is my refuge”?
I find the Hebrew alphabet to be very beautiful but as of right now I only know the meaning of a couple of symbols. I would love to have the correct original spelling for the beginning of psalm 23, ...
-3
votes
2answers
211 views
Can the root ש ל ם be used to mean “Submission”?
In Arabic, the root S-L-M (س ل م) has a general meaning of "Peace", but can also be used for "Submission" (such as in the words Islam/Muslim). Given the close relation between Hebrew and Arabic, I'm ...
-4
votes
1answer
148 views
Permissibility of speaking foreign languages?
(Inspired by this comment).
Does halacha permit Jews to speak languages other than Hebrew? Bedieved? Lechatchilah?
