Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Isaac Fried <if AT math.bu.edu>]

Peter,

I wish you would explain to us (if explainable!) what this  
"abstraction" is, and what this "limited extent"  is.

Isaac Fried, Boston University

On Mar 31, 2007, at 8:36 PM, Peter Kirk wrote:

> On 31/03/2007 23:57, davidfentonism AT aim.com wrote:
> >  I think this depends on how you construct "fexibility". As you  
> > know well, Hebrew letters and roots have embedded meaning which  
> > inform the words they form and that those embedded meanings in the  
> > letters and roots are 'uncancellable'. However, those very same  
> > 'uncancellable' letters and roots are dynamic, having a range of  
> > meaning. It is in this way that I perceive Bill's proposition.  
> > Thanks, Peter.
> No, David, I do not know this well. Meanings are not uncancellably
> embedded in letters and roots, they are temporarily and fuzzily
> associated with words and word groups. Roots are an abstraction  
> which is
> helpful to some limited extent. But there is no mysticism here and
> nothing uncancellable.
>
> --
> Peter Kirk
> E-mail:  peter AT qaya.org
> Blog:    http://www.qaya.org/blog/
> Website: http://www.qaya.org/
>
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