Biblical Hebrew Forum

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

1. It is but a mere guess that Biblical Hebrew was ever spoken. Also, as is common in poetry to interrogate  contemporary speakers could be well nigh useless, it is the author that needs to be interrogated. 

2. For "cognate" languages the level of cognition matters. Aramaic, is not Arabic, and certainly not "Akkadian". In fact, one may claim what one wants on Akkadian, there is no one to verify it or dispute it.

3. "Comparative Philology", is possibly an exercise in futility. I have not seen yet not one one example as to its usefulness. 

4. One needs to clearly explain what one means by Hebrew "etymology".

Isaac Fried, Boston University

On Apr 28, 2013, at 11:20 AM, John Leake wrote:

we can't interrogate Biblical Hebrew speakers