From: "Arnaud Fournet" <fournet.arnaud AT wanadoo.fr>
To: <JimStinehart AT aol.com>, <George.Athas AT moore.edu.au>, <b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org>
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Eve and the Hivites
Date: Tue, 2 Nov 2010 15:25:29 +0100
----- Original Message -----
From: JimStinehart AT aol.com
To: fournet.arnaud AT wanadoo.fr ; George.Athas AT moore.edu.au ;
b-hebrew AT lists.ibiblio.org
Sent: Tuesday, November 02, 2010 2:38 PM
Subject: Re: [b-hebrew] Eve and the Hivites
Dr. Fournet:
The purpose of this thread on the b-hebrew list is to try to figure out the
meaning of the Biblical Hebrew word XWY at chapter 34 of Genesis. Although
your comments are interesting from a Hurrian language point of view, they
have almost nothing to do with the point of this thread.
***
And
May I ask to which extent yours do?
Arnaud Fournet
***
The question here is whether XWY in chapter 34 of Genesis does, or does not,
mean “the Heba people”. We know that historically, people who worshipped
the pagan goddess Heba are documented as being at Shechem in the Late Bronze
Age, and in my controversial view that is the historical time period of the
Patriarchal Age. With the historical facts of the mid-14th century BCE
being settled as to these particular issues, the remaining outstanding issue
is a b-hebrew list type of issue: the historical linguistic issue of the
etymology of the Hebrew word XWY. I have quoted three mainstream scholars
who tie the notorious pagan goddess Heba to the name “Eve”/XWH. Your post,
which said nothing explicitly whatsoever as to that particular issue, might
possibly be read, by its silence, as implying acceptance of that viewpoint.
If the Biblical Hebrew name XWH is tied to Heba, then why wouldn’t the
Biblical Hebrew name XWY as well be tied to Heba? That’s my contention on
this thread. We must keep the focus here on trying to interpret the
historical meaning of the Hebrew word XWY [since no one on the b-hebrew list
except you and I have any interest in exploring Hurrian language issues for
the sake of Hurrian language issues]. But the b-hebrew list is designed to,
among other things, explore the meaning of mysterious, controversial
Biblical Hebrew words like XWY.
***
To be frank,
I prefer answers to mysteries.
A.
***
I view the XWY at chapter 34 of Genesis as being “the Heba people”, that is,
people in mid-14th century BCE Shechem who historically worshipped the
notorious pagan goddess Heba. The narrow question being explored on this
thread is whether that historical linguistic assertion of mine is valid or
invalid. Have I or have I not succeeded in uncovering, for the first time
in over 2,000 years, the historical meaning of the heretofore mysterious
Biblical Hebrew word XWY at chapter 34 of Genesis? One of the main purposes
of the b-hebrew list is to explore the meaning of Biblical Hebrew words
[such as XWH and XWY], and I am trying very hard to keep this thread within
those parameters [or else this thread will be immediately closed by the
moderators,
***
yes
From my own experience I would agree that sometimes (or maybe rather often)
moderators are as much a problem as listees.
But this is not the purpose of this list to discuss that kind of issues.