The Tiberian Pronunciation Tradition of Biblical Hebrew, Volume 2

368 Pages·2020·6.092 MB·English

by  Geoffrey Khan

Cambridge Semitic Languages and Cultures
The Tiberian Pronunciation
K The Tiberian Pronunciation
Tradition of Biblical Hebrew (Vol. II)
h
a
n Tradition of Biblical Hebrew
Geoffrey Khan
The form of Biblical Hebrew that is presented in printed edi� ons, with vocaliza� on and
accent signs, has its origin in medieval manuscripts of the Bible. The vocaliza� on and Volume II
accent signs are nota� on systems that were created in Tiberias in the early Islamic period T
by scholars known as the Tiberian Masoretes, but the oral tradi� on they represent has r
a
roots in an� quity. The gramma� cal textbooks and reference grammars of Biblical Hebrew G K
d EOFFREY HAN
in use today are heirs to centuries of tradi� on of gramma� cal works on Biblical Hebrew in i T
t h
Europe. The paradox is that this European tradi� on of Biblical Hebrew grammar did not
io e
have direct access to the way the Tiberian Masoretes were pronouncing Biblical Hebrew.
n T
i
In the last few decades, research of manuscript sources from the medieval Middle East o b
has made it possible to reconstruct with considerable accuracy the pronuncia� on of the f e

B r
Tiberian Masoretes, which has come to be known as the ‘Tiberian pronuncia� on tradi� on’. i
i a
This book presents the current state of knowledge of the Tiberian pronuncia� on tradi� on b
n
of Biblical Hebrew and a full edi� on of one of the key medieval sources, Hidāyat al-Qāriʾ l
i
‘The Guide for the Reader’, by ʾAbū al-Faraj Hārūn. It is hoped that the book will help to c P
a r
break the mould of current gramma� cal descrip� ons of Biblical Hebrew and form a bridge l o

between modern tradi� ons of grammar and the school of the Masoretes of Tiberias. H n
u
e
Links and QR codes in the book allow readers to listen to an oral performance of samples b n
of the reconstructed Tiberian pronuncia� on by Alex Foreman. This is the fi rst � me Biblical r c
e i
Hebrew has been recited with the Tiberian pronuncia� on for a millennium. a
w
t
As with all Open Book publica� ons, this en� re book is available to read for free on the V io
n
publisher’s website. Printed and digital edi� ons, together with supplementary digital o
l
material, can also be found at www.openbookpublishers.com .

I
I
Cover image: Cambridge University Library T-S Ar. 31.61 (Hidāyat al-Qāriʾ). Courtesy of the Syndics of Cambridge
University Library. Cover design: Luca Baff a
e
1
book
ebook and OA edi� ons
also available
OPEN
ACCESS
OBP
THE TIBERIAN
PRONUNCIATION TRADITION
OF BIBLICAL HEBREW
VOLUME
II

The Tiberian Pronunciation
Tradition of Biblical Hebrew
Including a Critical Edition and English Translation of the Sections on
Consonants and Vowels in the Masoretic Treatise
Hidāyat al-Qāriʾ ‘Guide for the Reader’
Volume II
Geoffrey Khan
https://www.openbookpublishers.com
© 2020 Geoffrey Khan.
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Attribution should include the following information:
Geoffrey Khan, The Tiberian Pronunciation Tradition of Biblical Hebrew, Volume II.
Cambridge, UK: Open Book Publishers, 2020, https://doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0194
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Updated digital material and resources associated with this volume are available
at https://doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0194#resources
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error will be corrected if notification is made to the publisher.
Semitic Languages and Cultures 1, volume 2.
ISSN (print): 2632-6906
ISSN (digital): 2632-6914
ISBN Paperback: 978-1-78374-857-0
ISBN Hardback: 978-1-78374-858-7
ISBN Digital (PDF): 978-1-78374-859-4
DOI: 10.11647/OBP.0194
Cover image: Cambridge University Library T-S Ar. 31.61 (Hidāyat al-Qāri). Courtesy of
the Syndics of Cambridge University Library
ʾ
Cover design: Luca Baffa.
Volume II
Edition and English Translation of the
Sections on Consonants and Vowels in the
Masoretic Treatise
Hidāyat al-Qāriʾ ‘Guide for the Reader’

CONTENTS
II. INTRODUCTION .................................................................. 1
II.Int.0.1. Preliminary Remarks ............................................ 1
II.Int.0.2. The Long Version ................................................. 2
II.Int.0.3. The Short Version ................................................ 5
II.Int.0.4. The Manuscript Corpus ........................................ 8
II.Int.0.5. The Edition and Translation of the Texts............ 11
II.Int.0.6. Terminology ....................................................... 16
II.Int.0.6.1. Arabic Terms .............................................. 16
II.Int.0.6.2. Hebrew and Aramaic Terms ....................... 19
- ................................... 24
HIDĀYAT AL QĀRIʾ (LONG VERSION)
II.L.0.0. INTRODUCTION ................................................... 24
II.L.1.0. THE FIRST DISCOURSE: ON THE LETTERS .......... 40
II.L.1.1. Preliminary Discussion concerning the Nature of
Letters ......................................................... 40
II.L.1.2. Section concerning the Inventory of Letters ..... 48
II.L.1.3. Chapter concerning the Place of Articulation of
the Letters ................................................... 48
II.L.1.4. Section concerning some General Issues relating
to Letters ..................................................... 58
II.L.1.5. Chapter on the Interchange of Letters .............. 66
II.L.1.6. Chapter concerning the Influence of the Four Let-
ters alef, vav, yod and he on the Six Letters
ʾ
ת̇̇פ̇כ̇ד̇ג̇ב̇ ......................................................... 76
II.L.1.7. Section on Deviations from the General Rule ... 76
viii The Tiberian Pronunciation Tradition
II.L.1.8. Section on Further General Issues Relating
to ה̇̇י̇ו̇א̇ .......................................................... 90
II.L.1.9. Chapter concerning Letters that Occur in Three
Grades ......................................................... 94
II.L.1.10. Conjugations ................................................... 98
II.L.1.11. Chapter concerning the Occurrence of Letters for
the Sake of Enhancement ........................... 100
II.L.1.12. Section (more on Enhancement) ................... 106
II.L.1.13. Chapter on Contraction ................................. 110
II.L.2.0. THE SECOND DISCOURSE .................................. 116
II.L.2.1. Preliminary Remarks on Vowels ..................... 116
II.L.2.2. Chapter concerning the Number of the Vowels
and those of them that are ‘High’, those of
and those of them that
them that are ‘Level’
... 118
are ‘Low’, and what is Connected to this
II.L.2.3. Section concerning what Corresponds to (Arabic)
Inflectional Vowels .................................... 122
II.L.2.4. Section on the Correspondence (of Hebrew Vow-
els) to Arabic Inflectional Vowels .............. 124
II.L.2.5. Section on ................................................ 126
Rafʿ
II.L.2.6. Section on the Second ............................. 128
Rafʿ
II.L.2.7. Section on Na b .............................................. 128
ṣ
II.L.2.8. Section on Khaf ............................................. 130
ḍ
II.L.2.9. Section (Preliminary Remarks on the Shewa) .. 132
II.L.2.10. Section concerning the Shewa ....................... 132
II.L.2.11. Section on the Nature of Mobile Shewa ......... 136
II.L.2.12. Chapter concerning the Mobile Shewa and what
is Related to this ........................................ 138
Contents ix
II.L.2.12.1. The First Subsection ............................. 138
II.L.2.12.2. The Second Subsection ......................... 144
II.L.2.12.3. The Third Subsection ............................ 146
II.L.2.12.4. The Fourth Subsection .......................... 150
II.L.2.12.5. The Fifth Subsection ............................. 154
II.L.2.12.6. The Sixth Subsection ............................ 154
II.L.2.12.7. The Seventh Subsection ........................ 156
II.L.2.12.8. The Eighth Subsection .......................... 160
II.L.2.12.9. The Ninth Subsection ........................... 162
II.L.2.12.10. The Tenth Subsection ......................... 164
II.L.2.12.11. The Eleventh Subsection ..................... 164
II.L.2.12.12. The Twelfth Subsection ...................... 164
II.L.2.12.13. The Thirteenth Subsection .................. 166
II.L.2.12.14. The Fourteenth Subsection ................. 168
II.L.2.13. Section concerning Uncertainty regarding the
Reading of the Shewa ................................ 168
II.L.2.14. Section on the Names of the Vowels ............ 172
II.L.2.15. Section on their Place of Articulation ........... 172
II.L.2.16. Section concerning Combinations of them (i.e.
the Vowels) to Form Basic Nouns and Combi-
nations of them to Form Abstractions ....... 174
II.L.2.17. Chapter concerning the Descending of the Vow-
els from One to the Other according to the
Order of their Places of Articulation ......... 176
II.L.2.18. On the Origin of the Vowels ......................... 178
II.L.3.0. THE THIRD DISCOURSE: ON THE ACCENTS
(SELECTED PASSAGES) ..................................... 182
II.L.3.1. On the .................................................. 182
Gaʿya