Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Peter Kirk <peter AT qaya.org>]

On 05/01/2007 13:11, Yitzhak Sapir wrote:
> ...
> Perhaps more appropriate examples would be the roots dwh and the word
> davay (dwy) or the root lwh and the word levi (lwy) (perhaps).
>
>   
Perhaps, but aren't you doing what I did, making conjectural links 
between nouns and verbal roots? While the derivation of "Levi" from LWH 
"join" is given in Genesis 29:34, this may be a folk etymology and did 
not convince BDB. There is verb DWH, found only once in biblical Hebrew, 
may be derived from the noun.

But I agree that the simple (qatl or qutl) noun form from a verb root 
ending -WH would very likely end -WY if not -WH. But according to GKC 
section 84a.c there are nouns ending in vav from lamed-he verbs which 
were originally lamed-vav, such as $XW "swimming", and with conjectural 
links to verbal roots BHW "waste" and THW "emptiness". These vavs have 
become pronounced as vowels but according to GKC were originally 
consonantal. Thus if the verbal root CWH were originally CWW rather than 
CWH, one would expect a noun form CWW, and the doubled vav would by a 
general rule be simplified to a single one.

But you are of course right to point out that CWH is found only in the 
Piel, and so it is likely that any noun form would be derived from the 
Piel stem, see GKC 84b.b-i. The most likely form for a meaning like 
"commandment" would be that of a Piel infinitive of a lamed-he verb, 
which according to GKC would be CAWWEH or CAWWOH (absolute), CAWWOWT 
(construct). There is also a possibly model in $IQQUY "drink" from $QH, 
which might suggest a form CIWWUY.

So I continue to maintain that CAW is a likely noun form from the root 
CWH, although perhaps CAWWEH, CAWWOH or CIWWUY (consonantally, CWH, CWW 
or CWWY) would be more likely from the Piel.

--
Peter Kirk
E-mail:  peter AT qaya.org
Blog:    http://speakertruth.blogspot.com/
Website: http://www.qaya.org/