Fassberg, The Hebrew of Qumran

Steven Fassberg has published a new grammar of Qumran Hebrew entitled The Hebrew of Qumran. This promises to be a very useful tool.

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Via Agade:

Ugarit-Verlag – Buch- und Medienhandel GmbH, Germany, has the pleasure to announce the publication of:

The Hebrew of Qumran

AOAT, 482

Steven E. Fassberg

Hardcover, 373 pp.

Price: 148,00 € / $ 172,00

ISBN: 978-3-86835-382-2

Steven E. Fassberg’s The Hebrew of Qumran provides a comprehensive yet concise account of the Hebrew language of the Dead Sea Scrolls. The study examines the linguistic features of the Qumran texts within the broader development of Hebrew during the Second Temple period, taking into account the diverse linguistic traditions and varieties attested in the manuscripts.

Following an introduction to the Qumran community, the archaeological site, the scrolls, and the history of linguistic research, Fassberg discusses orthography and phonology, morphology and morphosyntax, verbs, particles, and syntax. Particular attention is given to the relationship between Qumran Hebrew and Biblical Hebrew, Mishnaic Hebrew, and other ancient Hebrew traditions, as well as to possible Aramaic influence.

The grammar is complemented by comments on the lexicon, a chrestomathy of selected Qumran texts, a glossary, and extensive indices and bibliographical references. The volume thus provides an important reference work and practical research tool for the study of the language and texts of the Dead Sea Scrolls.

Steven E. Fassberg is the Caspar Levias Professor of Ancient Semitic Languages at The Hebrew University of Jerusalem

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Fassberg also provides an interesting personal note on the website:

This grammar owes its existence to Prof. Josef Tropper, at the time editor of the series Lehrbücher orientalischer Sprachen (LOS), who invited me to contribute a short grammar to the series on the Hebrew of Qumran. Because of previous commitments, many years passed before I was able to take up the task. The grammar turned out to be longer than originally intended and Prof. Thomas R. Kämmerer, the head of Ugarit-Verlag, suggested that Alter Orient und Altes Testament (AOAT) might be a more suitable series for the volume. I thank Prof. Kämmerer and the editors of AOAT, Prof. Régine Hunziker-Rodewald and Dr. Ulrike Steinert, for accepting the manuscript for publication.

This monograph does not replace the larger grammar of Elisha Qimron, A Grammar of the Hebrew of the Dead Sea Scrolls (Jerusalem, 2018). All students and scholars of the Dead Sea Scrolls are greatly indebted to Prof. Qimron for the massive amount of data he has amassed in his grammar as well as for his countless contributions to the language and the texts of the Scrolls over the past fifty years. It would be amiss not to mention also the pioneering Hebrew work of E. Y. Kutscher, Language and Linguistic Background of the Great Isaiah Scroll (Jerusalem, 1959; English translation Leiden, 1974), which still serves as a beacon to all in the field. The important contributions of many additional scholars are noted throughout the grammar.

Call for Help Digitizing HOTTP

Andrew Case is asking for volunteers to help digitize the Hebrew Old Testament Text Project volumes so that they can be easily distributed and translated. He has done initial AI-generated transcriptions and is asking for those with language/text-critical expertise to check and correct the transcriptions to ensure (and improve) accuracy using a user interface he has created for the purpose. If you have the relevant skills and would like to help make this resource more easily available, email him at andrewdcase [at] gmail [dot] com.

Torah.com on Textual Variation

TheTorah.com has put out a couple of new articles on the text of the Hebrew Bible that might be of interest:

One on Maimonides et al. on the strict standardization of legitimate Torah scrolls and the philosophy behind that.

Another by Juha Pakkala discusses possible theologically motivated editing in the transmission of the Hebrew Bible and the plausibility of omission as an editorial technique.

Psalms Monograph Submitted

At long last, after too many years' delay, I am happy to announce that I have finally sent in the final version of my monograph on the early history of the Hebrew Psalter. It will appear in the FAT I series with Mohr Siebeck. I still have to wait for and check proofs and produce the indices, but the content is finalized and with the publisher now. Thanks to all who helped throughout the process and for everyone else who has been patient throughout the process.

Dershowitz Kennicott Key

I just saw that Idan Dershowitz has made his Kennicott key available on his website. This is a great resource for looking up information and images of the manuscripts collated by Kennicott in the 18th century.

COMSt 12/1

The COMSt 12/1 (2026) special issue on variants is now out, with discussions relevant here. See especially the article by Shlomi Efrati on variants in the medieval Targum Onkelos tradition

From the website:

Table of Contents

• pp. 1-6: Front matter 
  DOI: 10.25592/uhhfdm.19338

Criticism of the Variant: Philological Discussions in Traditional Commentary Cultures

eds Alessandro Bausi, Christian Brockmann, and Eva Wilden

• pp. 7-16: Introduction (Eva Wilden)
  DOI: 10.25592/uhhfdm.19344

1 Scribes and Scholars

• pp. 17-42: Glosses, Variants and Corrections in the Margin of Gregory the Theologian’s Manuscripts: The Case of Vaticanus graecus 462 (Caroline Macé)
  DOI:  10.25592/uhhfdm.19346
• pp. 43-58: Copyists Coping with their Models – A Case Study from Mt Athos (Jost Gippert)
  DOI:  10.25592/uhhfdm.19352
• pp. 59-77: Rectifying an Obvious Error – Hints of Text-critical Sensitivity in Late Medieval Targum Manuscripts (Shlomi Efrati)
  DOI: 10.25592/uhhfdm.19356

2 Commentators

• pp. 81-102: Restoring the Text, Conveying the Truth: Criticism of the Variants in Latin Texts during the Middle Ages (Riccardo Macchioro)
  DOI: 10.25592/uhhfdm.19358
• pp. 103-121: ‘There is Also the Reading x’ – the Discussion of Variants in Tamil Commentaries (Eva Wilden)
  DOI: 10.25592/uhhfdm.19360
• pp. 123-144: The Variant is Salient: a Case in the ʾAndǝmtā Commentary Tradition (Mersha Alehegne Mengistie)
  DOI: 10.25592/uhhfdm.19366

3 Variant Versions

• pp. 147-162: Variance in Arabic Poetry, Prophetic Tradition and the Qur’an (Tilman Seidensticker)
  DOI: 10.25592/uhhfdm.19380
• pp. 163-185: Variants, Recension, and Transmission of Khlong Lokkanit (the Thai Version of Lokanīti, the Poem on Worldly Conduct) (Peera Panarut)
  DOI: 10.25592/uhhfdm.19382
• pp. 187-215: Primary Textual Variance of Neidhart’s Songs (1220–1240 ce): The Contribution of Textual Criticism to Cultural History (Anna Kathrin Bleuler)
  DOI: 10.25592/uhhfdm.19384

A Handbook of Neo-Aramaic

I just learned of a new Brill book on the fascinating topic of modern Aramaic dialects that will be of interest to those working with Aramaic or Semitics more generally. From the web page:

A Handbook of Neo-Aramaic

Brill's Handbooks in Linguistics, 6

Simon Hopkins and Steven E. Fassberg (eds)

Hardback

ISBN: 978-90-04-72511-9

EUR  €269.00

The Handbook of Neo-Aramaic aims to provide an introduction to, and details of the complex world of Neo-Aramaic. This large family of endangered Neo-Semitic languages is (or until recently was spoken by Jewish, Christian and Mandaean minorities in parts of the Middle East. Most members of these communities now live in various diasporas.

Following a series of general chapters dealing with historical background, classification, salient linguistic features, Neo-Semitic context, contact languages (Kurdish, etc.), manuscripts and printed texts, Neo-Aramaic in the media etc., the book presents grammatical sketches of 15 different Neo-Aramaic dialects (some never described before), followed by a series of maps, illustrations, and a bibliography.

The book hopes to provide material of interest both to the beginner and the more advanced specialist. Contributors are: Werner Arnold, Roberta Borghero, Michael L. Chyet, Eleanor Coghill, Alinda Damsma, Steven E. Fassberg, Samuel Ethan Fox, Charles G. Häberl, Simon Hopkins, Otto Jastrow, Olga Kapeliuk, Geoffrey Khan, Nineb Lamassu, Alexey Lyavdansky, Alessandro Mengozzi, Matthew Morgenstern, Hezy Mutzafi, Yona Sabar, Shabo Talay, Aziz Tezel, and Michael Waltisberg. 

HT Agade