A History of the Hebrew Language

by Angel Sáenz-Badillos (Author), John Elwolde (Translator), Shelomo Morag (Foreword)

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ISBN-13: 978-0521556347

ISBN-10: 0521556341

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A History of the Hebrew Language is a comprehensive description of Hebrew from its Semitic origins and the earliest settlement of the Israelite tribes in Canaan to the present day. Professor Sáenz-Badillos sets Hebrew in the context of the Northwest Semitic languages and examines the origins of Hebrew and its earliest manifestations in ancient Biblical poetry, inscriptions, and prose written before the Babylonian exile. He looks at the different medieval traditions of pointing classical Biblical Hebrew texts and the characteristic features of the post-exilic language, including the Hebrew of the Dead Sea Scrolls. He gives particular attention to Rabbinic and medieval Hebrew, especially as evidenced in writings from Spain. His survey concludes with the revival of the language in this century in the form of Israeli Hebrew.

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Editorial Reviews

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"This book is without any doubt the most comprehensive and up-to-date history of the Hebrew language ever written....setting the linguistic developments against the corresponding developments in the historical experience of the Jewish people." Nicholas de Lange, Cambridge University

"...a bona fide reference work with a good index, a most extensive bibliography, and an overview of the central issues and debates in the field--past as well as ongoing, with opposing points of view faithfully and fairly represented....The writing is attractively styled, flowing smoothly and flawlessly; the translation is good enough to cause one to forget that the monograph was originally written in Spanish." Modern Language Journal

"The title of this volume does not prepare one for that breadth and depth of information to be found on ever page. Sáenz-Badillos has produced a scholarlytour de force that is as much a history of the study of the Hebrew language as it is a history of the language itself." Shofar

"...the most comprehensive history of Hebrew to date....a must for every Hebraist's bookshelf..." Hebrew Studies

"For students of Hebrew, this is an invaluable book, at once providing a large historical conspectus and a detailed analysis of the evolution of the language." London Review of Books

"...the starting point for serious students in the future....a sober and straightforward description of the data and the scholarship....an unpretentious and valuable contribution: a basic history that provides us with a firm footing." Language

"It is with great pleasure that scholars and students of Hebrew should welcome the appearance of Angel Sáenz-Badillos'A History of the Henbrew Language." Domes

Book Description

This book is a comprehensive description of Hebrew from its Semitic origins and the earliest settlement of the Israelite tribes in Canaan to the present day.

Publisher ‏ : ‎ Cambridge University Press (January 26, 1996)
Language ‏ : ‎ English
Paperback ‏ : ‎ 384 pages
ISBN-10 ‏ : ‎ 0521556341
ISBN-13 ‏ : ‎ 978-0521556347
Item Weight ‏ : ‎ 1.19 pounds
Dimensions ‏ : ‎ 6.14 x 0.87 x 9.21 inches

Best Sellers Rank: #1,029,073 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)
- #943 in Linguistics (Books)
- #1,921 in Reference (Books)
- #2,450 in Linguistics Reference

Customer Reviews:
26 ratings

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Angel Sáenz-Badillos

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Customer reviews

5 star		76%
4 star		16%
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Top reviews from the United States

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D. Rachlin

Not for the casual reader

Reviewed in the United States on October 22, 2019

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Don't grab a bagel and cream cheese and a cup of tea to help enjoy this book. The amount of information is jaw-dropping, and, frankly, not all that exciting if you simply want a good read about the history of Hebrew. This is an outstanding book of painstaking research. Every bit of the book was fascinating. Perhaps a bit too much early on regarding phonological changes, but my interest is mostly morphology. At any rate, this is not a book for the casual reader who wants to know the basics about the Hebrew language. It is a full-blown linguistic text for those who want such an in-depth look at this incredible language.

4 people found this helpful

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Ben Wiley

COMPREHENSIVE

Reviewed in the United States on November 19, 2017

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Provides phonological information that is interesting amd hints at ways of finding the etymology of words that many have a hard time figuring out. Ugaritic is mentioned, for instance. As to be expected, citations are there for further inquiry. Just a truly nice book. I ordered the Kindle first (do NOT get the Kindle, it's just a off basically with poor font quality and none of the navigational tools of typical Kindle books is present), ans liked the information so much that I returned the Kindle edition and just bought the paperback. Not disappointed and it was well worth the money.

2 people found this helpful

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KEW001

Good overview

Reviewed in the United States on August 11, 2020

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My son used this book for his college class and said that it was comprehensive, yet easy to read and understand.

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J. Mintz

Superior!

Reviewed in the United States on October 30, 2021

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The definitive work on the history and etymology of the Hebrew language. Its a rich, rewarding read.

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Larry Farmer

hebrew

Reviewed in the United States on August 12, 2019

computer learning

Reviewed in the United States on March 20, 2015

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For the student of Hebrew, this books is invaluable. While dense in content, it is nonetheless a smooth and interesting read. It provides an overview of the Hebrew language all the way from the earliest inscriptions through to modern Hebrew while simultaneously comparing it to other semitic languages.

2 people found this helpful

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Angela

Five Stars

Reviewed in the United States on May 24, 2015

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Beautiful book. Thank you.

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Eric Maroney

Needs an Update

Reviewed in the United States on December 20, 2013

Over twenty years since its publication, Angel Sanez-Badillos’ A History of the Hebrew Language is still the go to book for laymen and specialists alike.

And the book is comprehensive. The authors explores the roots of the Hebrew language as a Northwest Semitic language, to the Biblical period and its various stages, to Rabbinical, Medieval, and Modern Hebrew. It contains technical language, so the material in this book is for the more devoted and informed lover of Hebrew, and not for those just starting out.

Despite its comprehensiveness, after twenty years this book is showing its age. For one, when you look at Sanez-Badillos’ sources, most are from the 50s, 60s and 70s, and rarely from the 80s and 90s. Thirty years of research has been ongoing, and it is not reflected in this work.

Also he also spends a great deal of time on Medieval Hebrew, and important bridge between Biblical and Rabbinical Hebrew to spoken, Israeli Hebrew. But he only devotes a few pages to the living, modern language, making this a far less comprehensive volume.

Despite its evident strengths, a scholar of Hebrew needs to update or create a new work that accomplishes what this book does, but with updated data and research. Thirty years may not seem like a long time for a three thousand year old language tradition, but for living, breathing Israeli Hebrew, that has been several lifetimes.

10 people found this helpful

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Top reviews from other countries

Great Book

Reviewed in the United Kingdom on February 5, 2020

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Really interesting book about the amazing complex history of Hebrew. Really detailed despite being so short. Addressed all the main issues for the various stages of Hebrew. Even though I bought this book for uni, I really enjoyed reading it in my free time too.

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A History of the Hebrew Language

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