Pronunciation of Aleph
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93,
I am not clear on what the rules are for pronunciation of Aleph.
When is AChD Achad, when Eched? Are there rules, or is open to interpretation?
I am instinctively drawn to pronounce Aleph as [Ah] in many Hebrew words (TiphAhreth, Ahlohim,... ). maybe its just my European upbringing where the Greek Alpha and Hebrew Aleph were always pronounced [AH] rather than the [AE] / [E] found in the English pronunciation (TiphEreth, Elohim,...)thnx in advance for your input!
93 93/93 -A.S.
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What you often don't find in written Hebrew are the vowels, which are characters generally laid beneath the letters; sometimes above certain letters. Achad is Achad when the Aleph has an AH vowel underneath it. It's Echad when it has an EH vowel beneath it. Aleph-Vav-Resh is Oar, because the Vav is tipped with an OH vowel. Etc. If there's a rule, then, it's to find out what the vowels are.
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Aleph itself is a consonant pronounced as an unvoiced exhalation. To this are added specifical vowels, as Zeph said. It may, for example, have an A, E, long E, I, O (though usually only in compound) or other sound.
The rules aren't really open to interpretation, though there are occasional dialectical minutia.
In Tiphereth it is an E sound. Same in Elohiym. Part of the problem is in transliterating it as an A to begin. Try transliterating it as an opening apostrophe ` and then add the correct vowel after it.
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@Jim Eshelman said
"Try transliterating it as an opening apostrophe ` and then add the correct vowel after it."
thnx this clears up a lot!! makes sense now.
so what is a good source material/reference/authority on what the written vowels actualy are for a given word?
777 obviously doesnt have any of those vowel-dots... -
@Herr Sorath said
"so what is a good source material/reference/authority on what the written vowels actualy are for a given word?"
A Hebrew dictionary, of course. But probably one specifically for Biblical Hebrew, rather than modern.
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@Herr Sorath said
"so what is a good source material/reference/authority on what the written vowels actualy are for a given word?
777 obviously doesnt have any of those vowel-dots..."Go to standard Hebrew lexicons and grammars.
Temple of Thelema has a Fourth Degree paper going into great detail - I hope that something Anna-Kria and I are working on will be out (for general public) by the end of the summer and, as presently planned, will have an appendix on pronouncing pointed Hebrew.
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@sasha said
"A Hebrew dictionary, of course. But probably one specifically for Biblical Hebrew, rather than modern."
yeah thnx
i was actually hoping for a specific suggestion? is there a dictionary of choice for "our purposes" anybody can recommend ? -
have yo ever read the Chicken qabala,it dont matter how you pronounce
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...but that's according to "Rabbi Lamed Ben Clifford". If you were to study with another teacher, they might disagree.
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You are correct,but if i was as serious as most thelemites i,d think i kill myself.Lon Milo has a wonderful sense of humor,which i feal is vitally important.we all need to learn from each other without being worried if this one knows more than that one. I don,t care who knows more than i.i want to learn from Brethren and sistren lol. I can,t do that if i,m gonna be an uptight Magician/ Thelemite.I need my Brothers and Sisters to learn after 20 + years there is still so much i don,t know. 93/Frater N