Biblical Hebrew Forum

[Isaac Fried <if AT math.bu.edu>]

1. I think that the Hebrew root (or verb) represents a fixed, rather than an ongoing, 

state ––– the Hebrew root is a picture, not a movie. So, SALSAL (as well as TALTAL, 

ZALZAL, CALCAL, $AL$AL) is 'to be mound-like', not 'to lift upward'. Nothing is 

drawn upward, it just factually protrudes. A סלע SELA, 'rock', like צלע CELA, 'rib', is not drawn upward, 

but merely sticks up.

2. It is possible that SULM is plural for SAL, 'basket', and that SULAM is kind of a 

basket elevator. Today we call SULAM a ladder. 

3. I don't think that צלם CELEM, 'image', has anything to do with צל CEL, 'shadow'. 

Such "horizontal" relationships between words are, in my opinion' nonexistent in Hebrew.

4. There is no such thing as a "suspension of hostilities", but there is slumping, 

lounging or lolling, instead of madly hopping around with sword in hand.

5. As far as I can recall several  interpreters of the Hebrew bible think that 

the תלם TELEM  is indeed the mound, the תל TEL, of earth piled up along 

the חריץ XARIYC or חריש XARIY$, 'the groove', made by the מחרשה MA-XRE$AH, the plow.

 Isaac Fried, Boston University

On Nov 27, 2012, at 1:51 AM, David Kolinsky wrote:

With the greatest respect to Isaac, I disagree:

סולם is probably a pual form that means "the thing that is drawn upward" like a rope ladder would/could be
Like the many words below it is probably derived from:
סלה to draw up and away
 
סלא (drawn upward) ? hold up for comparison >>>>>> סלע (drawn upward) cliff
סלל (draw upward) to make a heap, a highway; to extol
סלסל lift upward, hold in high esteem
סלח  (draw upward and away, remove) to absolve
סלף  (piel)  (to draw off >) to throw off (track)
סלד  (to be drawn upward emotionally) to thrive on,  to revel


סלה ((to draw up and away)) is derived from
שלה (to hang suspended) to be relaxed (Jr12:1)  lazy, to be negligent (CrII29:11)
from שלה we also get תלה to hang; 
from סלה we also get צלה (to suspend from) to roast (SmI2:15) (Is44:16,19)

as with the other words derived from  סלה; there are words derived from those above by doubling the two letter root or by adding letters to the end of the two letter root. (the final ה is most often just a place marker and most often not a third letter in the root.)

צלם means "image" and it is derived from צל meaning "shadow" which "hangs off the side of the form."
שלום means "at peace" because the stative literally means  "suspended, interrupted" hence "finished, complete;" a suspension of hostilities is "at peace"
תלם means "ridge, farrow" because a "ridge" is drawn upward, in the same way that a תל is not just a hill but one drawn upward because there is something beneath it.

Thanks for the time taken to read this,
David Kolinsky
Monterey CA

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