Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Yitzhak Sapir <yitzhaksapir AT gmail.com>]

On Mon, Mar 30, 2009 at 12:21 AM, David Hamuel wrote:

>> Yeivin calls this "phonetic ga(ya" suggesting it has no musical
>> purpose.  But I'm not sure this is correct.
>
> How come this isn't correct?

I didn't say this is not correct.  I said I'm not sure it is correct.

A phonetic ga(ya in Yeivin's terms is one that is "not affected by
the syllabic structure of the word or by its accent."  He notes that
"it is not always clear what particular fault in pronunciation the
phonetic ga(ya was intended to remedy.  However, the effect ...
is the same as that of a musical ga(ya - the slowing down of the
reading."

I think Yeivin is going around in circles here.  Some of his
examples do lend themselves to an interpretation of secondary
stress even though he calls them "phonetic" ga(ya.

Yitzhak Sapir