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  • From: Dave Washburn <dwashbur AT nyx.net>
  • To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Re: Lexicography - (was Gen. 1:26--Connotation of the beth pre...
  • Date: Sat, 17 Jan 2004 12:49:40 -0700

On Saturday 17 January 2004 12:20, Polycarp66 AT aol.com wrote:
> In a message dated 1/17/2004 2:04:00 PM Eastern Standard Time,
>
> dwashbur AT nyx.net writes:
> > >Biblical Hebrew, on the other hand, I can read without translating.
> > > Often, when thinking about concepts I read in Tanakh, the thoughts come
> > > to my mind in Hebrew, sometimes only a phrase, sometimes two or three
> > > sentences at a time. It is not carrying on a conversation, it is not
> > > even fluent, but it is thoughts coming to my mind in Hebrew without
> > > translating from another language. If that isn’t “thinking in Hebrew”
> > > what is it?
> >
> > Agreed. I do the same thing, both with biblical Hebrew and NT Greek. On
> > occasion I have caught myself thinking a Hebrew or Greek word or phrase
> > in the midst of a conversation. Once it even came out: I was talking
> > with a person in Spanish, and at a particular point my mind switched to
> > Greek and I
> >
> > finished a Spanish sentence with a Koine Greek (not modern, I don't know
> > modern Greek or Hebrew) word. The other fellow stared at me as if I had
> > two
> >
> > heads :-)
> >
> > The point is, it is in fact possible to think in biblical Hebrew, and
> > there are many of us who do just that.
>
> ______
>
> This isn't really quite what I understand when one says "Think in X." Yes,
> it's possible to read a passage in another language and not sit there
> almost (if not actually) writing down a translation. Also, there are
> things which come to mind from reading in a language which simply come out
> in that language. Why do we say "Cogito ergo sum" rather than "I think
> therefore I am"? Because we learned it that way. These are simply a
> library of phrases which we can call up on occassion. I don't consider
> this "thinking" in a language.

'Twould appear that what Karl and I are saying isn't registering, so never
mind.

--
Dave Washburn
http://www.nyx.net/~dwashbur
Insert clever quote here (or not)





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