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Samaritan Hebrew language

The Samaritan Hebrew language is a descendant of Biblical Hebrew as pronounced and written by the Samaritan sect.

Writing

It is written in the Samaritan alphabet, a direct descendant of the Paleo-Hebrew alphabet (itself a variation on the Phoenician alphabet), whereas all other varieties of Hebrew are written in the later Hebrew alphabet, a variation on the Aramaic alphabet.

Pronunciation

The Samaritan pronunciation of Hebrew differs in several respects from most others. The laryngeals aleph, ayin, he, and heth have all disappeared. Beth and Waw can each be pronounced as either b or w (in fact, the letters' names are pronounced Bît and Ba.) Sin is pronounced Shin. Consonants with dagesh are pronounced geminate. Stress is commonly penultimate rather than ultimate.

Grammar

Pronouns

Personal

I	anáki
you (male)	átta
you (female)	átti (note the final yod)
he	û
she	î
we	anánu
you (male, plural)	attímma
you (female, plural)	éttên
they (male)	ímma
they (female)	ínna

Demonstrative

This: masc. ze, fem. zéot, pl. ílla.

That: alaz (written with a he at the beginning).

Relative

Who, which: é?ar.

Interrogative

Who? = mi. What? = ma.

Noun

When suffixes are added, ê and ô in the last syllable may become î and û: bôr "pit" > búrôt "pits". Note also af "anger" > éppa "her anger".

definite article is a- or e-, and causes gemination of the following consonant, unless it is a guttural; it is written with a he, but as usual, the h is silent. Thus, for example: énnar / ánnar = "the youth"; ellêm = "the meat"; a'émur = "the donkey".

Number

Regular plural suffixes are -êm masc., -ôt fem: eyyamêm "the days", elamôt "dreams"

Dual is sometimes -ayem (?enatayem "two years"), usually -êm like the plural (yédêm "hands".)

Verbs

Suffixes are:

	perfect	imperfect
I	-ti	e-
you (male)	-ta	ti-
you (female)	-ti	?
he	-	yi-
she	-a	ti-
we	?	ne-
you (plural)	-tímma	te- -un
you (female, plural)	-tên	?
they (male)	-u	yi- -u
they (female)	?	ti- -inna

Particles

Prepositions

"in, using", pronounced:

• b- before a vowel (or, therefore, a former guttural): b-érbi = "with a sword"; b-í?tu "with his wife".
• ba- before a bilabial consonant: bá-bêt "in a house", ba-mádbar "in a wilderness"
• ev- before other consonant: ev-lila "in a night", ev-dévar "with the thing".
• ba-/be- before the definite article ("the"): barrá?et "in the beginning"; béyyôm "in the day".

"as, like", pronounced:

• ka without the article: ka-demútu "in his likeness"
• ke with the article: ké-yyôm "like the day".

"to" pronounced:

• l- before a vowel: l-ávi "to my father", l-évad "to the slave"
• el-, al- before a consonant: al-béni "to the children (of)"
• le- before l: le-léket "to go"
• l- before the article: lammúad "at the appointed time"; la-şé'on "to the flock"

"and" pronounced:

• w- before consonants: wal-?árra "and to Sarah"
• u- before vowels: u-ye??eg "and he caught up".

Other prepositions:

• al: towards
• elfáni: before
• bêd-u: for him
• elqérôt: against
• balêd-i: except me

Conjunctions

• u: or
• em: if, when
• avel: but

Adverbs

• la: not
• kâ: also
• afu: also
• ín-ak: you are not
• ífa (ípa): where?
• méti: when
• fâ: here
• ?émma: there
• mittét: under

Sample

Exodus XX.1-6:

1. Umellel Elâ'e yet kel milleyya aalen elmimar.
2. Ana ?ema Eluek deppiqtek men ara Mişrem mibbet awadem.
3. La ya'i lak ela'en uranem al eppi.
4. La tewed lak efsel ukel demu deb?umeyya millel wedbaraa millera wedbameyya millera laraa.
5. La tisgad lon ula te?ememminon ala anaki ?ema elaak el qana fuqed ob awaan al banem wel telitaem wel rewi'a'em elsenai.
6. Wabed esed lalafem elra'emi welnateri fiqqudi.

Source

• J. Rosenberg, Lehrbuch der samaritanischen Sprache und Literatur, A. Hartleben's Verlag: Wien, Pest, Leipzig.