Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Stephen Goranson <goranson AT duke.edu>]

If I may say, because there is no consensus yet on the etymology of Essenes, 
it would be unreliable to claim that the source of the name does not appear 
in the Qumran texts, since we are not agreed on what would count as being 
present.

It may be worth noting that, before the scrolls were found, several scholars 
noted the possible etymology from the Hebrew root 'asah.

Here is some relevant bibliography:

1532 Ph. Melanchthon in J. Carion, Chronica. Wittenberg, 1532. folio68verso:
Essei / das ist / Operarii / vom wort Assa / das ist wircken.
1548 Paul Eber, Populi Iudaici Historia.
1550 The Thre Bokes of Cronicles... London. ...to declare the
straitnesse and severitie of lyfe with the dede, and would be called
Essey, that is workers or doers, for Assa, whence the name commeth,
sygnifieth to worke...
1557 David Chytraeus [Kochhafe], Onomasticon. Explained Essenes as "factores 
legis," doers of the Law.
1559 M. Flacius Illyricus et al. Ecclesiastica Hist., Magdeburg
Centuries. Basel.
1560 Cooper's Chronicle, London.
?1566 M. Victorinum ed, Jerome Opera. Rome, Ep. 22 note.
[1573-75 Azariah dei Rossi. Me'or Enayim. Mantua.]
1583 J. Scaliger, De Emendatione Temporum. on hallucination.
1605 Scaliger, Elenchus Trihaeresii. different view.
1619 Sixtinus Amama ed. De Sectis Iudaicis..., Arnheim.
1674 J. Lightfoot, Horae Hebraicae et Talmudicae, on Lk. xv, 7.
1680 Johann H. Willemer. Dissertatio...Essenis....
1699 J. Leusden. Philologus.
1703 J. Triglandius ed., Trium Scriptorum...Judaeorum Sectis...Delft.
107: factores legis.
1743-4 J.C. Happach. De Essaeorum Nomine. Coburg.
1745 J. U. Tresenreuter
1748 Joh. Carpzov.
1839 Isaak Jost, Die Essaer..., Israelitische Annalen 19, 145-7.
1858 S. Cohn; David Oppenheim, MGWJ 7, 270-1; 272-3.
1862 L. Landsberg, Allgemeine Zeitung des Judenthum 26/33, 459.
1864 C. D. Ginsburg, The Essenes [& Cyclopedia arts.].
1875 J. Lightfoot, Saint Paul's Epistles to the Colossians...appx.
1881 A. B. Gottlober, ...B$M KT H(SS(N(R )W (SS((R  HaBoker Or [Warsaw]
170-1.
1881 Rev. Et. J. 3, 295.
1894 Kruger, Theologische Quartalschrift 76 [&1887, 69]
1938 H.M.J. Loewe in Encyclopedia Britannica (14th) 718. (includes 'asah as a 
possible etymology, soon before the Qumran discoveries).


Stephen Goranson
www.duke.edu/~goranson

________________________________________
From: b-hebrew-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org [b-hebrew-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] 
on behalf of Yigal Levin [Yigal.Levin AT biu.ac.il]
Sent: Wednesday, August 15, 2012 4:50 AM
To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Essenes etymology,      was RE:   Etymology of 
Nazarene or Nazareth ?

Uri,

What is the evidence that the name Asa is derived from the same root as the
Aramaic ASA? (BTW, are you sure that in Aramaic the root is ASA and not
ASY?)

Why would it be? The root ASA "health" is not attested in Hebrew from any
period.

Yigal Levin

-----Original Message-----
From: b-hebrew-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org
[mailto:b-hebrew-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] On Behalf Of Stephen Goranson
Sent: Wednesday, August 15, 2012 11:38 AM
To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: [b-hebrew] Essenes etymology, was RE: Etymology of Nazarene or
Nazareth ?

The Book of Yosippon (mistakenly) replaced Josephus' Essenes with Hebrew
(not Aramaic) Hasidim. For the start of Aramaic guesses, see Azariah dei
Rossi, Me'or Enayin (Mantua, 1573-1575).

Stephen Goranson
www.duke.edu/~goranson
________________________________________
From: b-hebrew-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org
[b-hebrew-bounces AT lists.ibiblio.org] on behalf of Uri Hurwitz
[uhurwitz AT yahoo.com]
Sent: Tuesday, August 14, 2012 5:05 PM
To: b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
Subject: [b-hebrew]  Etymology of Nazarene or Nazareth ?

  Stephen, According to the latest edition of Even Shoshan Heb.-Heb.
dictionary, the first Hebrew occurrence is in the Book of Yosippon, a
chronicle of Jewish history to the time Titus. Written between eighth and
tenth centuries CE.

  In the HB the root may be recognized in the name  ASA ( Aleph Samekh
Aleph).

   Uri Hurwitz




Uri, Can you (or anyone) give one example where "their name appears" so
spelled earlier than modern times?

Stephen




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