Biblical Hebrew Forum

["Penner" <pennerkm AT mcmaster.ca>]

Alexander Gendler wrote:
> It is surprising that Mr. Penner can bring himself to even 
> acknowledge the very existence of Hebrew as a language. Can 
> he imagine that it was Aramaic that imitated much more 
> ancient Hebrew script then the other way around.

I didn't know this issue was controversial. Mark MacLean's Anchor Bible
Dictionary article "Hebrew Scripts" says simply, "Jewish script refers
to the national script which developed from the Persian Aramaic script
employed for official use throughout the Persian empire." So what is
really at issue here, sarcasm aside? 
Do you disagree with F. M. Cross's classic 1961 article, "The
Development of the Jewish Scripts," in _The Bible and the Ancient Near
East_?

BTW, I'd look pretty silly writing my dissertation on changes in the
Hebrew tense system if I didn't acknowledge the existence of Hebrew as a
language, wouldn't I? <smile>

Ken Penner, McMaster/DSS
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/PennerThesis