Biblical Hebrew Forum

[George Athas <George.Athas AT moore.edu.au>]

James,

English is today's primary international language, proliferated through the 
use of modern mass media and the internet. English lingo has just about 
entered every language as a result. This modern phenomenon has absolutely no 
bearing on the question of Persian loanwords in Hebrew. The contexts are so 
vastly different that the comparison you are trying to draw is extremely far 
fetched.

But, let's work with your analogy anyway. Since when has English entered the 
lingo of Ukrainian and Italian? Was it there 300 years ago? 200 years? 100 
years? I think you could argue that the influence has largely come in the 
last generation or so. You can use historical detail to figure this out. Same 
with Persian loanwords in Hebrew. When are they likely to have entered? 
Before there were any substantial contacts between Hebrew-speakers and 
Persians, or after? It's not a question of 'conquest', but of 
contact/interaction.

So, yes, the presence of Persian loanwords in Hebrew is significant.


Regards,

GEORGE ATHAS
Moore Theological College (Sydney, Australia)
www.moore.edu.au