Hebrew
Created | Updated Oct 20, 2010
A language that is terribly fun to read and even more fun to speak. Traditionally spoken by the Jewish people, Hebrew has remained largely the same for three thousand years and is closely related to the Aramaic and Yiddish languages. Almost all of the Christian Old Testament of the Bible (also sometimes referred to as the Hebrew Scriptures) was originally written in Hebrew.
A language that is terribly fun to read and even more fun to speak. Traditionally spoken by the Jewish people, Hebrew has remained largely the same for four thousand years and is closely related to the Aramaic and Yiddish languages. Almost all of the Christian Old Testament of the Bible (also sometimes referred to as the Hebrew Bible) was originally written in Hebrew.
While some languages are very grammatically precise, Hebrew (at least originally) was primarily an idea-based language. The idea behind the writing was more important that the writing itself. This means that, in many cases, two translations of the Old Testament can differ greatly in word choice, but the basic thought is the same.
While some languages are very grammatically precise, Hebrew (at least originally) was primarily an idea-based language. The idea behind the writing was more important that the writing itself. This means that, in many cases, two translations of the Old Testament can differ greatly in word choice, but the basic thought is the same.
The ancient Hebrew alphabet consists of twenty-two letters, all of which are consonants. Naturally, such a system posed a bit of a problem for many vowel-inclined Biblical scholars, so a group of Jewish scribes known as the Masoretes decided roughly a thousand years ago to add in various symbols above and below the consonants to fill in the vowels. While this did indeed make it easier to read Biblical Hebrew, it had the unfortunate effect of making it a whole lot less pleasant to look at.
The ancient Hebrew alphabet consists of twenty-two letters, all of which are consonants. Naturally, such a system posed a bit of a problem for many vowel-inclined Biblical scholars, so a group of Jewish scribes known as the Masoretes decided roughly a thousand years ago to add in various symbols above and below the consonants to fill in the vowels. While this did indeed make it easier to read Biblical Hebrew, it had the unfortunate effect of making it a whole lot less pleasant to look at.
Hebrew is a very guttural language, and many of its consonants differ only in the amounts of phlegm that are expelled in their respective pronunciations. To some degree, one can hack and cough one's way through a conversation in Hebrew without anyone noticing. It has been said that it isn't true Hebrew if it doesn't get all over the floor.
A language that is terribly fun to read and even more fun to speak. Traditionally spoken by the Jewish people, Hebrew has remained largely the same for four thousand years and is closely related to the Aramaic and Yiddish languages. Almost all of the Christian Old Testament of the Bible (also sometimes referred to as the Hebrew Bible) was originally written in Hebrew.
While some languages are very grammatically precise, Hebrew (at least originally) was primarily an idea-based language. The idea behind the writing was more important that the writing itself. This means that, in many cases, two translations of the Old Testament can differ greatly in word choice, but the basic thought is the same.
While some languages are very grammatically precise, Hebrew (at least originally) was primarily an idea-based language. The idea behind the writing was more important that the writing itself. This means that, in many cases, two translations of the Old Testament can differ greatly in word choice, but the basic thought is the same.
The ancient Hebrew alphabet consists of twenty-two letters, all of which are consonants. Naturally, such a system posed a bit of a problem for many vowel-inclined Biblical scholars, so a group of Jewish scribes known as the Masoretes decided roughly a thousand years ago to add in various symbols above and below the consonants to fill in the vowels. While this did indeed make it easier to read Biblical Hebrew, it had the unfortunate effect of making it a whole lot less pleasant to look at.
The ancient Hebrew alphabet consists of twenty-two letters, all of which are consonants. Naturally, such a system posed a bit of a problem for many vowel-inclined Biblical scholars, so a group of Jewish scribes known as the Masoretes decided roughly a thousand years ago to add in various symbols above and below the consonants to fill in the vowels. While this did indeed make it easier to read Biblical Hebrew, it had the unfortunate effect of making it a whole lot less pleasant to look at.
Hebrew is a very guttural language, and many of its consonants differ only in the amounts of phlegm that are expelled in their respective pronunciations. To some degree, one can hack and cough one's way through a conversation in Hebrew without anyone noticing. It has been said that it isn't true Hebrew if it doesn't get all over the floor.
