Biblical Hebrew Forum

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

John,

What you are asking goes into the hart of the nature of the Hebrew  
language.
Every word in the Hebrew language issues, by the addition of personal  
pronouns, from a recognized root, which is of a concrete meaning. The  
Hebrew root is a describer of a fixed material state. The words  
generated from these roots are of an extended, borrowed, implied or  
metaphoric nature and therefore there need not be any "horizontal"  
relationship whatsoever between different words derived from one  
root. This is rule number one of Hebrew etymology. There need not be  
any relationship whatsoever, for example, between the Hebrew words  
(ALMAH 'young girl', and TA-(ALUMAH, 'mystery', derived both from the  
root (LM. Namely, an (ALMAH is not a mystery, TA-(ALUMAH, to the boys  
who are dying to reveal her hidden treasures.
There is surely no horizontal relationship whatsoever between KPAR,  
'village', and KPIR' 'lion; between GOZAL, 'chick', and GEZEL,  
'robery'; between DBA$, 'honey', and DABE$ET, 'hump'; between  
CALAXAT, 'dish', and HACLAXA, 'success'; between ARGAZ, 'box', and  
ROGEZ, 'anger'; between KESEP, 'silver', money', and KISUPIM,  
'longing'; between XACER, 'yard', and XACIR, 'hay'; between NAXAL,  
'brook', and NAXALAH, 'heritage'; between BEREK, 'knee', and 'BRAKAH,  
'blessing'; between XOM, 'heat' and XOMAH, 'wall'; between ZAKAR,  
'male', and ZIKARON, 'remembrence'.
The root NGD essentially means to be tall and massive. Indeed, the  
word   NAGID derived from it [see Jeremiah 20:1] means an important  
person of elevated status or degree, a Me-KUBAD or NI-KBAD. NAGID, in  
my opinion, is not, as claimed by Gesenius, someone who sits in front  
or before [NEGED] his subjects [German Vorsitzender].
From its basic meaning of 'be tall and massive' the root NGD came to  
mean 'grow over, loom over, hang over, lean over, push against, press  
against, set against, cling to, resist, oppose, confront', and then  
in NEGED, 'face at a distance'. The Similar Hebrew word MUL is  
essentially ML), 'full'.
The root NGD is immediately related to the root NG$, 'approach, come  
close, bump into, come into frontal contact'. Also the roots NGS,  
'opress', and NQ$, 'grasp'. Also to the roots GDD, GZZ, G$$.
THE word HIGID, 'said', is essentially HIGI$, HIQI$, 'gushed from the  
mouth and impinged upon the ear'. In Isaiah 41:22 we find this play  
of words, YAGI$U Ve-YAGIDU, 'let them bring forth and say'.
Some other Hebrew metaphors for the vocal act are:
1. )MR, 'cumulate, aggregate, gather'. Derived from it is the verb ) 
AMAR, 'said', )OMER and )IMRAH, 'statement, utterance'.   From the  
same root Hebrew derives the word )AMIR, 'tree top, assembly of  
branches', and the name )EMORIY = )EMOR-HI. Related to it is the the  
root (MR, 'to pile up' from which we have the word (AMIR, 'crop,  
harvest'. By degrees )MR and (MR are related to GMR, HMR, KMR, ZMR,  
YMR, SMR, $MR, CMR, TMR.
2. DBR 'cumulate, aggregate, gather'. It applies to a string of sound  
pulses or to an accumulation of corpses, as in Psalm 18:48. DIBRAH is  
an aggregation of words, but DOBRAH, 'raft', is an aggregation  
[namely a COBRAH] of tree trunks. The root DBR is closely related to  
the roots $BR, CBR, TBR.
3. $IR is 'song', while $AR$ERRET is 'chain'.
3. ZEMER is 'tune', while ZMIRAH is 'pruning, trimming'.
4. CARAX is 'scream', while CARIAX is 'turret'.
5. QARA) is a variant of QARA(, 'tear'.
6.$AVA( is a variant of $ABA(, which is a variant of $APA(, 'gush  
abundance'.
7, ZA(AQ is a variant of CA(AQ and $A)AG, related to the root SG,  
'high'.

Isaac Fried, Boston University

On Jul 25, 2007, at 12:56 AM, Brak wrote:

> I have a question.
>
> Sometimes NGD is translated as "against" or "opposite" or "in  
> front", to
> which I can see the relationship between.
> But other times it's translated as "tell" or "declare".
>
> I don't see the common link between the idea of "opposite" and  
> "telling".
> Can someone please help me understand the relationship between  
> these ideas.
>
>
> --
>
> B"H
> John Steven
>
> "If you don't behave as you believe, you will end by believing as you
> behave."
> -Archbishop Fulton J. Sheen.
> _______________________________________________
> b-hebrew mailing list
> b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
> http://lists.ibiblio.org/mailman/listinfo/b-hebrew