Harvard Semitic Studies - HSS

Part 1 of this study is a glossary with comparative analysis of non-normative Akkadian forms, Hittite and Hurrian words, West Semitic lexemes, and words of uncertain origin, with special attention given to the West Semitic forms. Part 2 consists of grammatical observations pertaining to the West Semitic forms, under the headings orthography, phonology, and morphology.

The first full-length treatment of the biblical "primal human" traditions in their ancient Israelite setting, this book provides historical-critical analyses of the relevant biblical traditions, sensitive both to the present literary context of the traditions and to their roots in the ancient Near East. The study focuses on Genesis 1-3, Ezekiel 28:1-10 and 11-19, Job 15:7-16, and Proverbs 8:22-31, to reveal the ways various tradents used these intermediary divine-human figures and to examine the underlying social significance shared by such traditions in the cultural milieu of ancient Israel.

Akkadian Loanwords in Biblical Hebrew is an in-depth examination of Hebrew words that are of Akkadian origin or transmitted via Akkadian into the Hebrew lexicon. The first book-length treatment of the subject to appear in 90 years, this study provides a detailed treatment in dictionary form of the most plausible borrowings, including so-called semantic loans or loan-adaptations. A comprehensive analysis of Hebrew phonetic imitation of Akkadian words, with special attention to the influence of the Assyrian and Babylonian dialects, yields some new information on the phonology of the donor language during the loan period. This book will be of interest to Hebraists, Assyriologists, lexicographers, and students of Semitic philology.

In this volume, Beatrice Gruendler addresses a perplexing problem -- the development of Arabic script from its ancestor alphabet, Nabatean. Her work sorts through texts, inscriptions, and papyri to piece together the evolutionary trail of the Arabic alphabet. Profusely illustrated with line drawings and charts, this study will remain a sourcebook for researching the history of Arabic.

In 1986, Elisha Qimron published the first comprehensive study of the Hebrew language of the scrolls from Qumran, examining the orthography, phonology, morphology, syntax, and vocabulary of the language. The study also includes a subject and word index. Even now, over twenty years later, his work remains the standard reference on the subject. Recognizing the need to keep it available, this paperback reprint has now been issued by the Harvard Semitic Museum/Eisenbrauns.