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  • From: HarryJ_Harm AT kastanet.org
  • To: b-hebrew AT franklin.oit.unc.edu
  • Subject: Re[2]: ayin, how to
  • Date: Fri, 01 Jan 1999 19:46 -0500 (EST)



Jack Kilmon wrote:

<SNIP>
The Galilee was very Hellenistic, hence how much
influence did Greek have on the vocalization of
Galilean Aramaic by the Semitic populace? Did the
Semitic speaking Galileans adopt the gentler and
easier vocal gymnastics of Greek? Does this explain
the softer beyts and dropped pharyngeals?

It seems logical to me that a native language with
more complex gymnastics would "degrade" under a
heavy influence from a non-native language
introduced into the region. A more drastic
example might be Egyptian to Coptic...but is this
pattern considered when attempting to phoneticize
Galilean Aramaic?

=========================================================================

Dear B-Hebrew Listers,

Greetings from Mississippi.

I can't speak for Galilean Aramaic but I can for Choctaw, a Native
American language spoken in the US in Oklahoma and Mississippi. The
Oklahoma Choctaw speakers have dropped the lateral fricative which
English doesn't have and replaced it with the English 'th" sound. I
have also seen the same process happening with the grammar here in
Mississippi. Choctaw speakers are losing the aspects of their language
which English doesn't have, e.g., distant past tense, dual forms and
switch reference system. What is interesting is they are not adding
English constructions which they don't have, e.g., a broad pronoun
system which marks gender.

I wonder if something similar was happening in Galilean Aramaic. I
would expect similar changes if Greek were the majority language and
Aramaic the minority.

Sincerely,

Harry J. Harm :{)



  • Re[2]: ayin, how to, HarryJ_Harm, 01/01/1999

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