It is a view commonly alluded to by amateur linguists, among whom I count myself, that Modern Hebrew is a constructed language “invented” by Eliezer Ben-Yehuda. The official Tumblr of the Language Construction Society once alluded to this, sparking a discussion on the LCS list which introduced a number of equally ridiculous claims, such as … Read more
I’ve been Jewish my whole life, but I was a spiritual seeker in my 20s and explored all sorts of different religions, whether to learn more about them or see if they offered something better. I came to learn there was no such thing as better when it came to religions: that they all offered … Read more
Saadia Gaon’s Judeo-Arabic translation of the Tanach, the Tafsir Rasag, has been available at Sefaria for years now, and it’s fascinating in many ways. Today I want to talk about how the Gaon translates the word “Elohim” and the tetragrammaton. As would be expected by any unbiased person, the Hebrew word אלוהים (Elohim, God) is … Read more