Aramaic-Like Features In The Pentateuch
The term "Aramaic-like features" is to be distinguished from the term "Aramaisms." The former refers to linguistic traits found in pre-exilic texts, whose presence can be explained by one of two reasons: either the texts are northern in origin, or the settings of the texts have a...
| Main Author: | |
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
The National Association of Professors of Hebrew
2006
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| In: |
Hebrew studies
Year: 2006, Volume: 47, Issue: 1, Pages: 163-176 |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (JSTOR) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) Volltext (lizenzpflichtig) |
| Summary: | The term "Aramaic-like features" is to be distinguished from the term "Aramaisms." The former refers to linguistic traits found in pre-exilic texts, whose presence can be explained by one of two reasons: either the texts are northern in origin, or the settings of the texts have an Aramean flavor. The latter refers to those features, found primarily in the post-exilic corpus, which reflect clear Aramaic influence over Hebrew. Aramaic-like features occur with a significant concentration in five sections of the Torah: Genesis 24, Genesis 30-31, Numbers 22-24, Genesis 49, and Deuteronomy 33. Style-switching explains the first three texts, since the first two are narratives geographically set in Aram, while the third portrays a prophet from Aram in the plains of Moab. Regional dialectology explains the remaining two sections: the sayings about the individual tribes must originate in those specific locations, which is why one finds words like גֶּרֶם דָּרו֗ם, and so forth, in the blessings to Issachar, Naphtali, Joseph, and Gad. If the Pentateuch were the product of Persianperiod Jewish scribes, as claimed by some scholars during the last several decades, one would expect Aramaisms or Aramaic-like features to appear throughout its 187 chapters in significant concentrations, and not, as per the main conclusion of this essay, in select chapters for specific purposes. |
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| ISSN: | 2158-1681 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: Hebrew studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1353/hbr.2006.0032 |