Hebrew language

Hebrew is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. It was once spoken by the ancient Israelites and used in important Jewish religious texts like the Hebrew Bible. Though it stopped being a everyday spoken language around 200 CE, Hebrew was brought back to life in the 19th century through a process called linguistic revival, making it the only language to achieve such a revival on a large scale.

Today, Hebrew is the official language of the State of Israel and is spoken by millions of people around the world. It is unique because it is the only Canaanite language still in use today. Many people study Hebrew to understand its rich history and its role in Jewish culture and religion.

The language has a long and fascinating past, with its earliest writings dating back to the 10th century BCE. Even after it was no longer spoken regularly, Hebrew continued to be used in Jewish worship and scholarly work. With the rise of Zionism, efforts to revive Hebrew led to its use as a everyday language once again, a revival led by people like Eliezer Ben-Yehuda.

Now, Hebrew is not only the language of Israel but is also studied by many around the world, from students and archaeologists to linguists interested in the Middle East and its history.

Etymology

See also: Hebrews § Etymology

The word "Hebrew" comes from many old languages. It started in Old French and moved through Latin and Ancient Greek. It finally comes from Biblical Hebrew, where it was called Ivri. This name relates to Abraham’s ancestor Eber. The word means something like "from the other side," maybe talking about people living across a river or desert.

One of the oldest uses of the name Ivrit for the language appears in a very old book called the Book of Sirach. The Hebrew Bible calls the language Yehudit, meaning "Judahite."

History

Hebrew belongs to the Canaanite languages, a branch of the Northwest Semitic family.

Hebrew was the spoken language in the Iron Age kingdoms of Israel and Judah during the period from about 1200 to 586 BCE. Epigraphic evidence from this period confirms the widely accepted view that the earlier layers of biblical literature reflect the language used in these kingdoms. Furthermore, the content of Hebrew inscriptions suggests that the written texts closely mirror the spoken language of that time.

Scholars debate the degree to which Hebrew was a spoken vernacular in ancient times following the Babylonian exile when the predominant international language in the region was Old Aramaic.

Hebrew was extinct as a colloquial language by late antiquity, but it continued to be used as a literary language, especially in Spain, as the language of commerce between Jews of different native languages, and as the liturgical language of Judaism, evolving various dialects of literary Medieval Hebrew, until its revival as a spoken language in the late 19th century.

Current status

Modern Hebrew is the main official language of the State of Israel. Today, about 9 million people around the world speak Hebrew, with 7 million speaking it fluently. In Israel, 90% of Jewish people know Hebrew well, and about 70% know it very well. Many Israeli Arabs also speak Hebrew.

Efforts are made to keep Hebrew strong and avoid using too many English words. The Academy of the Hebrew Language creates new Hebrew words each year to replace English ones. Some cities, like Haifa, try to stop businesses from using only English signs. There have also been ideas in the Knesset, Israel's parliament, to make sure Hebrew stays important in everyday life.

Phonology

Further information: Biblical Hebrew § Phonology, and Modern Hebrew phonology

Biblical Hebrew had a typical set of sounds, including special throat consonants and emphatic sounds. Over time, these sounds changed. By the time of the Dead Sea Scrolls, some sounds had shifted in different traditions.

Modern Hebrew pronunciation comes from a mix of these traditions, simplifying many sounds. Today, Israeli Hebrew has added new sounds from loanwords and has a specific way of pronouncing the "r" sound.

Writing system

Main articles: Hebrew alphabet and Hebrew braille

People who speak modern Hebrew write from right to left using the Hebrew alphabet. This alphabet has 22 letters and mainly shows consonants, with special marks added to show vowels when needed. The shape of the letters changes when people write by hand, becoming more rounded and flowing. These special marks also help show different sounds for the same letter.

Liturgical use in Judaism

Hebrew has been used for prayers and studying for a very long time. There are different ways of saying the words based on where Jewish people lived. For example, Ashkenazi Hebrew Ashkenazi Hebrew comes from Central and Eastern Europe and is used in many religious services today, especially in communities that follow strict traditions.

Another way is Sephardi Hebrew Sephardi Hebrew, which comes from Spanish and Portuguese Jewish communities and was used in places that were once part of the Ottoman Empire. This style of speaking Hebrew is what most people in Israel use today. There are also other styles, like Mizrahi (Oriental) Hebrew Mizrahi (Oriental) Hebrew, used by Jewish communities in Arab and Islamic countries, which has influences from Arabic. These different styles are still used in synagogues and religious studies around the world.