further developed therein, as a distinct branch of the great Shemitish language, after the Hebrew and the other Canaanitish people had migrated thither from the mother country."

§ 31.

ITS RELATION TO THE OTHER SHEMITISH LANGUAGES.

The Hebrew stands in so close and obvious a relationship to the Aramaan and Arabic languages, in its pronunciation, its vocabulary, and the formation of its words,' that all the three have been considered as daughters of a common mother. The Hebrew is to be regarded as the oldest of these; at least, its development is earlier than the others.

They resemble each other in their gutturals, triliteral roots, suffix-pronouns, in their conjugations, declensions, the construct state, and other peculiarities, such as the numerals, words denoting the family relation, and the like.

These languages are all conveniently designated by the common term Shemitish.

"On the high notions of the antiquity of the Hebrew language, formerly held by the learned, see Steph. Morinus, Exercitatt. de Lingua primæva ; Ultraj. 1694, 4to. C. A. Bode, Diss. de primæva Linguæ Hebr. Antiquitate, præf. C. B. Michaelis, Halle, 1740. A. Pfeiffer, Opp. p. 689. Walton, Prolegg. iii. §3, sqq. Hezel, Geschichte der hebr. Sprache, p. 16, sqq. Anton, De Lingua primæva ejusque in Lingua Hebr. Reliquiis; Viteb. 1800, 4to. See a just examination of these opinions in Gesenius, 1. c. p. 14, sqq. [Appendix, D.] Hävernik, 1. c. vol. i. p. 148, returns to the old opinion. [See, also, who will, Horne, 1. c. pt. i. ch. i. sect. i.; also, Wahl, 1. c. p. 444-500, and Palfrey, 1. c. vol. i. lect. i. See, also, Appendix, E.]

See Jahn, 1. c. vol. i. p. 261, sqq. [Gesenius, Hebrew Grammar, § 1. Gesenius, Preface to his Handwörterbuch, translated by Prof. Robinson, in Biblical Repository, vol. iii. art. i.]

Eichhorn, Allgemeine Bibliothek der biblischen Litteratur, vol. vi. p. 772, sqq.; and, on the other side, Stange, Theolog. Symmicta, vol. i. p. 1. [The chief objection to this use of the term comes from the fact that some

§ 32.

THE ARAMÆAN LANGUAGE.

We have no monuments remaining of the language which was spoken, during the existence of the Hebrew as a living language, in the Aramaan countries, Syria and Mesopotamia. There are only some inscriptions in the language of Palmyra, from the three first centuries after Christ." From the language of the Aramæan countries, the Chaldee, as it is called, and the Syriac, are descended. On the supposition that Daniel wrote Chaldee in Babylon, and the Jews brought this language with them, on their return, these two languages have been separated geographically, as if the former had been the dialect of Babylon and Chaldea, and the latter that of Syria and North Mesopotamia. Therefore one has been called East Aramæan, the other West Aramæan.'

We only learn the Chaldee language from Jewish memorials. The points of difference between it and the Syriac are in part arbitrary, such as the pronunciation of the vowels, and in respect to this matter, there were two ways of pronouncing among the Hebrews themselves, and in part consist of obvious Hebraisms, and some of them may be, indeed, only dialectical dif

of the alleged descendants of Ham- the Canaanites, for example-spoke this language; but Eichhorn thinks they did not speak it originally. See Adelung, Mithridates, &c.; Berlin, 1806, 4 vols. 8vo. vol. i. p. 300, sq.]

• Wood's Ruins of Palmyra, otherwise Tadmor in the Desert; London, 1753, fol. See an explanation of these inscriptions by Barthelemy, Memoires des Inscrip. vol. xxvi. 577, sq., and Swinton, in Philosophical Transactions, xlviii. 2. 690, sqq. Kopp, Bilder und Schriften, vol. ii.

Michaelis, Abhandlung v. d. Syr. Sprache; Gött. 1768, p. 8. On the other side, Hupfeld, in Theol. Stud. und Krit.; 1830, p. 292.

ferences of the same language. Therefore it may be considered as a branch of the Aramæan or Syriac, which had become degenerated by mingling with the Hebrew.“ The purer style of Onkelos has been called the Babylonian dialect, to distinguish it from the less pure language of the later Targums, which has been called the Jerusalem or Palestine dialect. But both names rest on uncertain suppositions.

The Samaritan is a mixture of Hebrew and Aramaan. All the ecclesiastical matter in that tongue is found in the version of the Pentateuch and some poems, edited by Gesenius, from manuscripts in the British Museum.'

The language which we call the Syriac is a new Aramæan dialect, which was formed among the Christians of Edessa and Nisibis. It flourished and produced a pretty rich literature, particularly in theological and ecclesiastical departments, and is still the ecclesiastical language of the Syrian Christians.

If we follow the course of history, the Aramaan is related more closely to the Hebrew language than it is to the Arabic. However, in comparison with the latter, it is poorer, and more simple."

Hupfeld, 1. c. Michaelis, L. c. p. 36. See what may be said on the other side, in Winer, Gramm. d. bibl. und targum. Chald. p. 5. Real-Hand Worterbuch, i. 147. Havernik, p. 103, sq.

с

Lips. 1824, et seq. 4to.

Hoffmann's Brief History of the Syriac Literature, in Bertholdt's Theologische Journal, vol. xiv. p. 225, sqq. Hävernik, l. c. p. 112, sqq. The language of the Zabians, or disciples of John, is a new Aramæan dialect, and a good deal corrupted. See Lorsbach, in Stäudlins Beiträge zur Philosophie und Gesch. der Religion, vol. v. p. 1, sqq., and in the Museum für biblische und orientalische Litteratur von Arnoldi, Lorsbach, und Hartmann, vol. i. pt. i. See, also, Codex Nasaræus, Liber Adami appellatus, Syriace transcriptus Latineque redditus a Matth. Norberg; Lond., Goth., 1815, 1816, 3 vols. 4to. Lexidion Cod. Nas. ed. M. Norberg; 1816. Onomasticon Cod. Nas.; 1817, 4to. Compare Allg. Lit. Zeit. for 1817, No. 48-57.

See a judicious comparison of the two in Gesenius, Gesch. der Heb. Sprache, p. 56. Michaelis, 1. c. p. 21, sqq.

§ 33.

THE ARABIC LANGUAGE.

The Arabic language has a more modern literature, but one incomparably more rich and tasteful." It is still the language of a large part of Asia and Africa. On account of the richness of its literature, its long continuance, and its importance in respect to literature and religion, it is incontestably the most interesting of all the Shemitish languages, except the Hebrew.

There are several dialects which are not important to this subject. There are, however, two main dialects which are ancient. One of these, the Himjaritic, which was formerly spoken in Yemen, is now extinct; the other, the Coreitic, is spoken in the north-west of Arabia, and especially at Mecca. It has long been cultivated; it was a written language before the time of Mahomet, and still more since that time. Since the fourteenth and fifteenth centuries, it has become the prevailing popular language. The old written language differs from this in its forms, which are more various and richer in vowels. It has, besides, a greater copiousness. In comparison with the Hebrew, the Arabic has the advantage of greater affluence in respect to its orthography, grammar, and vocabulary."

The Ethiopic is the language of an Arabian colony in Ethiopia, and is cognate with the Himjaritic dialect."

Eichhorn, Gesch. der Lit. vol. v. p. 603, sqq. Schnurrer, Bib. Arab.; Halle, 1811. Gesenius, article Arab. Spr. Schrift, und Lit. in Ersch and Gruber's Encyclop. vol. v. Hävernik, 1. c. p. 119, sqq.

See Eichhorn's account of these dialects, in the preface to his translation of Richardson's Treatise on the Arabic Language, &c. p. 6. [Adelung's Mithridates, vol. i. p. 391.]

Gesenius, 1.

c. p. 56, [in Appendix, D.]

¿ Ludolf, Com. ad Historiam Æthiop. p. 57, sqq., and his diss. de Origine

There is a translation of the Bible in the written dialect of Geez. The Amharic dialect is the present language of the country."

§ 34.

FORMATION AND EXTINCTION OF THE HEBREW LANGUAGE.

The Hebrew language makes its first appearance, in the light of history, in its complete form. The oldest writers, the authors of the Pentateuch, of the first historical books, and the authors of the earlier Psalms and Proverbs, the earlier Prophets, write in the purest and most beautiful language. Towards the end of the Jewish state, during the exile and after it, the influence of the Aramæan language becomes visible, as well as other peculiarities in the usages of the Hebrew language itself, and in connection with a perverted taste. This shows itself in the later Prophets, in some of the Psalms, Ecclesiastes, Esther, Chronicles, Daniel, Jonah, and elsewhere. And yet the writers of this period labored to acquire the old classic style, as it appears from the works of the Pseudo-Isaiah."

Besides these main differences of style, the poetic may be distinguished from the prosaic. We can dis

nat. et Usu Linguæ Æth., prefixed to his Æthiopian Grammar; Frankfort, 1702, fol. Eichhorn, De Cushæis verosimilia; Arnst. 1774. Gesenius in Encyclop. vol. ii. p. 110.

a

Gesenius, article Amharische Sprache, in Allg. Encycl. Th. iii. On other Ethiopian dialects, see Bruce's Travels to discover the Source of the Nile, vol. i. [See a few words on the Amharic language, &c., in Athenæum (London) for Jan. 16, 1841, p. 54.]

[It will be shown in its place, that a large part of the book of Isaiah could not have come from the hand of that prophet. The author of the spurious passages is here referred to as the Pseudo-Isaiah.]

See Gesenius, Heb. Sprache, p. 22, sq. [in Appendix, D.] See, also, his Lehrgebäude. Vogel, De Dialectico poetica V. T.; Helmst. 1784, 4to. [Stuart's Hebrew Grammar, p. i. § 3.]