A Social History of Hebrew: Its Origins Through the Rabbinic Period

278 Pages·2013·1.583 MB·English

by  William M. Schniedewind

A Social History of Hebrew
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as sociological and literary criticism.
John J. Collins
General Editor
william m. schniedewind
A Social History
of Hebrew
its origins through the
rabbinic period
the anchor yale bible reference library
New Haven &
London
“Anchor Yale Bible” and the Anchor Yale logo are registered trademarks of Yale
University.
Published with assistance from the foundation established in memory of Amasa
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Copyright © 2013 by Yale University.
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Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Schniedewind, William M.
A social history of Hebrew : its origins through the Rabbinic period /
William M. Schniedewind.
pages cm. — (The Anchor Yale Bible reference library)
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN 978-0-300-17668-1 (cloth : alk. paper) 1. Hebrew language—
History. 2. Hebrew language, Post-Biblical—History. I. Title.
PJ4545.S434 2013
492.4′09—dc23
2013011898
A catalogue record for this book is available from the British Library.
This paper meets the requirements of ANSI/NISO Z39.48-1992 (Permanence
of Paper).
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
To Norma Kershaw, for
her interest, enthusiasm, and
support in many ways
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Contents
Preface ix
List of Abbreviations xii
1 Language, Land, and People: Toward the History of
Classical Hebrew 1
2 The Origins of Hebrew: In Search of the Holy Tongue 27
3 Early Hebrew Writing 51
4 Linguistic Nationalism and the Emergence of Hebrew 73
5 The Democratization of Hebrew 99
6 Hebrew in Exile 126
7 Hebrew under Imperialism 139
8 Hebrew in the Hellenistic World 164
9 The End and the Beginning of Hebrew 191
10 Epilogue 204
Notes 209
Bibliography 231
Index 257
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Preface
This book has had a long journey to its destination. It has been assisted
along the way by many people, was sidetracked by detours, and met fellow
travelers. The journey is an important preamble for understanding its fi nal
destination.
I wish to begin by thanking my fi rst teachers in Hebrew and Semitic lan-
guages. The fact that the writer of this book began studying both modern
and ancient Hebrew at the same time in the land of Israel, in Jerusalem, and
on Mount Zion is a critical bit of background information about this book.
My fi rst biblical teachers were Jerome Lund, William Williams, and Weston
Fields at the American Institute of Holy Land Studies (now known as Jeru-
salem University College). I remember with especial fondness the courses
by Chaim Rabin, who taught me Comparative Semitics and served as an
advisor on my M.A. thesis. He is still the best language teacher that I ever
had and was far ahead of his time in the social approach to studying ancient
Hebrew. I am forever grateful for the rigor in Hebrew required for my doc-
toral studies at Brandeis University. I especially wish to thank Stephen Geller,
Avi Hurvitz, and Daniel Sivan, who taught me in various courses in Hebrew,
Aramaic, epigraphy, and Northwest Semitics. I also remember with fondness
the late Anson Rainey, who was fi rst my teacher and later my friend, and
who bore with me as I learned about the Hebrew verbal system and Amarna
Canaanite.