Constructing Syriac in Latin-Establishing the Identity of Syriac in the West over a Century an a Half (c. 1550-c. 1700). An account of Grammatical an Extra-Linguistic Determinants (original) (raw)
“The Classical Syriac Language,” in Daniel King (ed.), The Syriac World (New York: Routledge, 2019). 222-242. The Syriac language is a vital component of the broader Syriac cultural heritage. In this contribution, I locate Syriac within its broader Aramaic (and Semitic) setting as well as its various socio-historical contexts, with a focus on Late Antiquity and, to a lesser extent, the Medieval period. In addition, particular attention is paid to several topics that are of immense importance to our understanding of the Syriac language but are rarely discussed, including periodization, written versus spoken varieties, geographic variation and diachronic change, and standardization.
The New Syriac Primer: Introduction to Syriac
2013
A truly useful introduction to the Syriac language is a rare find. Honed by years of personal experience with the language, George Kiraz’s introduction to the ancient language of the Christian church speaks with clarity and authority. This fruitful integration of scholarly introduction and practical application provides a primer that is more than a simple grammar or syntactic introduction to the language. Written in a style designed for beginners, Kiraz avoids technical language and strives for a reader-friendly inductive approach. The letters are introduced a few at a time and are reviewed in a way that reinforces their identity. Students are next introduced to the concepts of gender, number, and tense as well as how they appear in Syriac. The often troubling prefixes and suffixes of the language are lucidly explained, and readings from actual Syriac texts allow the student to experience the language first hand. Various genres and literary forms are introduced in this section. Bonus words are added at each stage to build an effective vocabulary as the reader works through the lessons. Next the grammar proper is introduced with the phonology and parts of speech of the language. Both Estrangelo and the East Syriac scripts are presented in a separate chapter, in order to avoid confusion. Unlike most grammars, the primer includes a practical chapter on how to use Syriac dictionaries, read manuscripts, and type Syriac on the computer using Meltho. A section on reading Garshuni, Syriac written in Arabic script, rounds out the main text. Appendices of the verbal paradigms make this very practical introduction a must-have for any beginner in Syriac. Glossaries of grammatical terms and Syriac-English comparisons make this book ideal for a textbook in beginning Syriac. The book comes with downloadable material so that readers may listen to all reading sentences and text passages in the book.
Latin Words in Classical Syriac
This study analyzes the more than one hundred Latin words that are found in Syriac texts, not translated from Greek, written through the beginning of the eighth century. The study aims to provide an exhaustive collection of these words categorized by date in which they are first attested in Syriac. This diachronic approach makes it possible to observe changes over time in the contact between Syriac speakers and the Greco-Roman world. Attention is also paid to other languages of the Near East in which a Latin word is found, including various dialects of Aramaic as well as other languages, such as Mishnaic Hebrew, Armenian, and Coptic, in an effort to contextualize the presence of the Latin words in Syriac. Finally, the study hopes to make explicit that almost all of the Latin words in Syriac reached Syriac via Greek.
Merx, History of the Syriac Grammatical Tradition
This is a prepub version of the volume now published in the PLAL series There is a general introduction, summary of the book's chapters, and bibliography; then follows the whole of Merx's monograph translated from Latin to English. There are endnotes for each chapter which bring the reader somewhat up to date on research done since Merx's day. At the end Merx included critical editions of 4 key texts. These are nowhere else available. I have put them into a neat PDF format instead of having to read them in Merx's handwriting as in the original. I hope this makes them more user-friendly.