Biblical Hebrew Forum

[GuerrillaVille <guerrillaville AT gmail.com>]

The Israeli government has posted an article on their web site stating 
that Welsh is in fact influenced by Hebrew.
http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/Israel%20beyond%20the%20conflict/Bringing%20a%20Language%20Back%20from%20the%20Dead

"Welsh is the language most influenced by the Hebrew experience," 
explains Amnon Schapiro, a researcher at the Academy of the Hebrew 
Language. "In the 1960s a national network of Welsh language classes was 
set up based on the Hebrew model." In fact, the Welsh even refer to a 
Welsh class as an ulpan, taken from the Hebrew, meaning classes which 
are especially designed for new immigrants to learn the language. "The 
Welsh are confronted by a different problem than Israel," explains 
Schapiro. "The number of native Welsh speakers was eroded by the 
influence of English. With the help of ulpanim the trend has been reversed."

Beyond the links below are article excerpts showing that Welsh *idiom* 
is often identical to Hebrew, let alone the words. The coincidences run 
into the thousands. History shows that idiom does not cross the language 
barrier, so if two languages pretty much have absolutely interchangeable 
idioms then they must have the same source not too far removed. The 
common Welsh people certainly did not have Hebrew OT manuscripts and 
Hebrew schools, so where did the overarching influence of Hebrew in 
their language come from?

Equally mysterious is the relationship between paleo-Hebrew and ancient 
Runic, both apparently from Phoenician. The alphabets DO NOT share a 
common source unless that common source is each other or the Phoenician.

source and related articles
http://www.britam.org/language.html 

EXCERPTS:

In 1675 Charles Edwards ("Hanes y Fydd") published A number of Welsh 
Cambro-Brittanic Hebraisms in which he shows that whole phrases in Welsh 
can be closely paralleled by whole phrases in Hebrew.

From the list of Charles Edwards, L.G.A. Roberts (1919) made a 
selection and we have selected examples from Roberts after slightly 
modernising the Hebrew transliterations : It should be noted that when 
account is taken for likely and known dialectical changes of 
pronounciation the examples given in effect show identical Welsh 
parallel phrases for the Hebrew original.

In Welsh: Gael hedd (Gen.31;47) meaning Geledd i.e. heap of testimony= 
in Hebrew : Galaed.

In Welsh: Bagad meaning "A troop cometh ?" (Gen.30;11) = in Hebrew

In Welsh : Anudon meaning "Without God" = in Hebrew: Aen Adon.

In Welsh : Yni all sy dda meaning "I am the Almighty God" (Gen. 17;1) = 
in Hebrew: Ani El Saddai.

In Welsh : Llai iachu yngwyddd achau ni meaning "Let him not live before 
our brethren" (Gen. 31;32) = in Hebrew Loa yichei neged acheinu 
(Gen.31;32).

In Welsh Ochoren ballodddi hoc-dena meaning "After I am waxed old shall 
I have pleasure?" = in Hebrew : Acharei belothi hedenah (Gen.18;12).

In Welsh Bebroch fra am beneu ach ef, dyfet Deborah mam ianceth Ribecah 
meaning "When he fled from the face of his brother . But Deborah 
Rebecca's nurse died" (Gen. 35;7-8) = in Hebrew :  Beborcho mpnei achiv 
vetamath Deborah mayneceth Ribecah.

In Welsh: Yngan Job yscoli yscoli cynghaws i (Job 6;1,2) meaning "Job 
answered, O that my grief were thoroughly weighed" = in Hebrew:  
Veya(g)n Eyub ....shocol yishocal ca(g)si

In Welsh: Amelhau bytheu chwi a bythau holl ufyddau chwi meaning "And 
they shall fill your house and the houses of all your servants" (Gen. 
10;6) = in Hebrew: Umalu bathechoh and bathei col avedochoh.

In Welsh Iachadd ni meaning "Thou hast healed me" = in Hebrew: hechiyatni.

In Welsh Nesa awyr peneu chwi meaning "Lif thou up the light of thy 
countenance" = in Hebrew: nasa aor panechoh.(Psalms 4;6.).

In Welsh An annos meaning "None did compel" = in Hebrew: ain ones. 
(Esther 1;8).

In Welsh As chwimwth meaning "an angry man" = in Hebrew: ish chamas 
(Psalms 140;12 Proverbs 16;29 meaning a wickedly-violent man).

In Welsh Be heulo, luerferfo (Job 6;4) meaning "When his candle shined 
..... and by his light.." = in Hebrew: behilo, leoroe.

In Welsh Bwgythieu in gwarchaeni (Job 6;4) meaning "The terrors of God 
set themselves in array against me = in Hebrew: Biu(g)thi elohai 
ya-a(g)rchuni.

In Welsh I far meaning "Shall be cursed" = Hebrew : Yu-ar, yuv-ar. 
(Numbers 22;6).

In Welsh Am geryddo fo meaning "At his reproof" = in Hebrew :im ge-arato.

Godfrey Hughes "The Celtic Druids" (1829) quotes from a certain Welsh 
Translation of the Bible in which similar examples as the above are 
apparent:

In Welsh By-lllwng Adon-ydb holl neuodh Jago meaning "The Lord has 
swallowed up all the tabernacles of Jacob" (Lamentations 2;2) = Hebrew : 
Balla(ng) Adoni eth col neoth Yacob.

In Welsh Dyrac buth-hi ai-i-sengyd meaning "The avenue of her dwelling 
he would go to tread" (Proverbs 7;8) = Hebrew : Derech baithah yitsa(ng)d.

In Welsh Py yw-o sy maeloc y-cavad I-a-ywoo savwyod yw-o maeloc y-cavad, 
Selah meaning "Who is the king of glory [attainment]? The LORD of hosts 
, he is the king of glory. Selah" (Psalms 24;10) = Hebrew: Mi hu zeh 
melec hacavod Y....Tsavaoth hu melec hacavod selah.

The affinity between Hebrew and Welsh was mentioned by a certain Dr. 
Davies (amongst others) and in the preface to his Welsh Grammar there was
a poem to the effect that:

He gladly deigns his countrymen to teach,
By well-weigh?d rules, the rudiments of speech;
That when the roots first of our own we gain,
The Hebrew tongue we thence may soon attain .

The Rev. Eliezer Williams (b.1754) wrote several works on the Celts and 
made several remarks (quoted by Roberts p.23):

"In the Hebrew...which the ancient British language greatly resembles... 
"The roots of most of the ancient British, or real Welsh, words may be 
regularly traced in the Hebrew.. "Scarcely a Hebrew root can be 
discovered that has not its corresponding derivative in the ancient 
British language...But not only..the words...their variations and 
inflections afford a much stronger proof of affinity...The plural number 
of nouns likewise is often formed in a similar manner in the Celtic by 
adding in (a contraction of ??: i.e.-IM which is the suffix used in 
Hebrew to form the masculine plural)...in the formation of sentences, 
and in the government of words...the same syntax might serve for both.....

source and related articles
http://www.britam.org/language.html
http://www.british-israel.us/19.html

-- Berkano
http://www.BrainWashingTon.US