how to say “Biblical Hebrew” in Hebrew
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The Torah portion to be read this Shabbat by Jews around the world features the Biblical version of the origin of the many human languages. So I thought now would be a good time to feature an entry on Biblical Hebrew, right here on Ktzat Ivrit.
Though עִבְרִית תַּנָּכִית (eev-REET tah-nah-KHEET), the latter word deriving from the abbreviation, תנ”ך – תּוֹרָה, נְבִיאִים, כְּתוּבִים (tah-NAHKH – toh-RAH, neh-vee-EEM, keh-too-VEEM) also means Biblical Hebrew, the more proper term is עִבְרִית מִקְרָאִית.
מקראית comes from the root ק.ר.א (k.r.a), meaning reading or calling out. In Biblical times, these actions were often one and the same – at public religious gatherings, those who knew how to read would call out the text so that the masses could hear it without having to hold a rare, expensive scroll in their hands that they probably never learned to read anyway.
מִקְרָא (meek-RAH) means scripture, or that which is read or called out. In Biblical times, מקרא referred to the special times of year that were called out or announced as holy, but today the word is reserved for the holy scriptures of the Bible.
Thus מקראית and its masculine version, מִקְרָאִי (meek-rah-EE) mean scriptural… or Biblical. And עברית מקראית means Biblical Hebrew.
Make this dose of Hebrew yours by using it in a sentence. You can write your sentence on the wall of our Facebook page, and we’ll correct it for you if it’s got errors.Hebrew vocabulary with…
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