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b-hebrew - Re: [b-hebrew] Micrayim vs Misr

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  • From: John Leake <jesleake AT yahoo.co.uk>
  • To: Uri Hurwitz <uhurwitz AT yahoo.com>
  • Cc: "b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org" <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Micrayim vs Misr
  • Date: Tue, 30 Apr 2013 18:11:41 +0100

I've always assumed it was a calque on Egyptian t3wy, 'the Two Lands' as a name for Egypt. It's the dual of t3, 'land'. But that's just an assumption.

Huehnergard has mSrm in Ugaritic as /miSrāmi/, a dual like the Hebrew, but I don't know why he's sure it's not the plural /miSrūmi/. He may derive that from Hebrew, so that's not a secure comparative.

It's meSrēn in Syriac and mSryn in the Elephantine papyri - but is does Reichsaramäisch still have a dual? Jewish Palestinian Aramaic uses /miSrayim/, but that's going to be tied to the Hebrew, isn't it?

MuSru (mSr in the old Aramaic Sfire inscriptions) is supposed to be another country, isn't it?

John Leake

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ان صاحب حياة هانئة لا يدونها انما يحياها
He who has a comfortable life doesn't write about it - he lives it
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