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  • From: jimstinehart AT aol.com
  • To: Yigal.Levin AT biu.ac.il, b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Appositional Phrase vs. Adjectival Phrase
  • Date: Tue, 21 Jun 2011 07:52:15 -0400



Prof. Yigal Levin:
I agree that at Genesis 38: 2, the meanings “her Canaanite father” and “her
father, the Canaanite” would be essentially the same. But note that you have
supplied the English word “the” in the second phrase, whereas there is no
definite article, he/H, at Genesis 38: 2. Does that lack of the definite
article preclude this from being an appositional phrase here, as it may
arguably preclude KN(NY from being a noun?
Or to phrase the question slightly differently, does H-KN(NY with the
definite article strongly imply a noun with plural meaning, “the Canaanites”,
whereas by sharp contrast, KN(NY without the definite article [such as at
Genesis 38: 2] implies a singular adjective, “Canaanite” or “Canaanitish” [
n-o-t “the Canaanite” or “a Canaanite”]? Or, on the contrary, for both
H-KN(NY and KN(NY, does everything depend on the context, both as to whether
it’s an adjective or a noun, and whether it’s plural or singular? In the
latter case, then arguably the phrase at Genesis 38: 2 could be viewed as
being either an appositional phrase or as an adjectival phrase.
I had initially thought that Genesis 38: 2 shows that either H-KN(NY or KN(NY
could be singular in meaning, but that argument would be quite weak if it is
clear that the phrase at Genesis 38: 2 is adjectival, because KN(NY as an
adjective would say little about H-KN(NY as a noun.
Jim Stinehart
Evanston, Illinois







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