5. Rabbinic Entries in R. Judah Ibn-Tibbon’s Translation of Duties of the Hearts
© Barak Avirbach, CC BY 4.0 https://doi.org/10.11647/OBP.0164.05
1. Introduction
Rabbi Bahye Ibn-Paquda wrote his Al-Hidāya ilā Farāʾiḍ al-Qulūb (‘Guide to the Duties of the Heart’) in Judaeo-Arabic at the end of the eleventh century.2 For centuries, it was the most widely known work of Jewish ethics in the Jewish world.3 This was due mainly to the early Hebrew translation of the book only seventy years after it had been written.4 Originally, there were two separate translations of the book. One was Judah Ibn-Tibbon’s translation, under the title Sefer Ḥovot ha-Levavot, which was more widely known and consequently is available today in many manuscripts and printed editions. The other was by Joseph Qimḥi. His translation was not as popular as Ibn-Tibbon’s, and perhaps that is why we have only a small remnant of it today.5
Judah Ibn-Tibbon was born in Granada, probably in 1120.6 He was a physician, a translator, a merchant, and a book collector.7 Around 1150 he moved to southern France and became a prominent figure in the Jewish community of Lunel. Ibn-Tibbon was a fountain of knowledge; people consulted with him and he would lend books from his private library. Bahye Ibn-Paquda’s Ḥovot ha-Levavot was the first book Ibn-Tibbon translated. After that he translated Solomon Ibn-Gabirol’s Tikkun Middot ha-Nefesh (‘Improvement of Moral Qualities’) and Mivḥar Peninim (‘Choice of Pearls’), Yonah Ibn-Janaḥ’s Sefer ha-Shorashim (‘Book of Roots’) and Sefer ha-Riqmah (‘Book of the Multicoloured Flower Beds’), Judah Halevi’s Ha-Kuzari (‘The Kuzari’), and Saadia Gaon’s Sefer Emunot ve-Deot (‘Book of Beliefs and Opinions’).8
Like many medieval authors and translators,9 Ibn-Tibbon complained that Hebrew was inadequate in comparison with other languages (especially Arabic); some called this deficiency קוצר הלשון ‘language insufficiency’.10 It was clear to these authors and translators that the Hebrew of previous ages had been sufficient for all the needs of the people at the time. Since the ancient texts (the Bible, rabbinic literature, and early liturgy) dealt with limited subjects, the Hebrew reflected in them was limited as well. As they knew Hebrew mostly from these sources, it was insufficient for composing original works and for translating works from different languages that dealt with different and wider issues that did not appear in earlier Hebrew writings.
None of the previous periods of Hebrew was sufficient on its own to be used as a source for structures and lexicon to create a whole translation. Therefore, Ibn-Tibbon decided to combine Biblical Hebrew, Rabbinic Hebrew, liturgy, and previous medieval Hebrew works — both syntactically and lexically.11 On different occasions, he derived new lexemes from roots and other lexical stems taken from classical literature, and occasionally he shifted the meanings of biblical and rabbinic lexemes. In the prefaces to two of his translations, Ibn-Tibbon reveals to the reader the changes he had to make in the lexicon, and he is apologetic for these actions.
Considering the arguments and efforts of these authors and translators, one might expect that the lion’s share of the lexicon in their writings would consist of neologisms of different kinds (both morphological and semantic neologisms). The analysis of the nominal lexicon used by Ibn-Tibbon in his translation of Duties of the Hearts serves as a useful source of confirmation or refutation. I believe that the analysis presented below indeed refutes this assumption, or at least suggests a different perspective on this impression.
2. The nominal lexicon in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation of Duties of the Hearts
In Ibn-Tibbon’s translation of Duties of the Hearts, I have found 2,102 nominal entries (1,878 lexemes and 224 phrases).12 As is shown in Table 1, almost 50 percent of the entries are taken from the Bible, approximately 26 percent from rabbinic literature, a small portion from the liturgy, and around 8 percent from medieval writings composed prior to the era during which Ibn-Tibbon engaged in his translation work. Just under 15 percent are neologisms coined by Ibn-Tibbon.
Period / Neological type |
Entries |
Percentage |
Bible |
1,035 |
49.23 percent |
Apocrypha |
7 |
0.33 percent |
Rabbinic literature |
558 |
26.57 percent |
Liturgy |
21 |
1.00 percent |
Medieval writings |
171 |
8.14 percent |
Semantic neologisms13 |
118 |
5.57 percent |
Morphologic neologisms14 |
79 |
3.76 percent |
New phrases15 |
113 |
5.38 percent |
Total |
2,102 |
100 percent |
Although not all entries were taken ‘as is’ from classical Hebrew writings, these findings shed a different light on the perception of medieval Hebrew as presented by authors and translators of that era. In other words, if Hebrew could not provide sufficient words and phrases to express deep ideas and nuances, neologisms should have constituted the main portion of the lexicon and classical Hebrew entries should have been in the minority. The fact that most of the vocabulary in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation was taken from classical Hebrew suggests that reservations and complaints regarding the state of Medieval Hebrew might be due less to the actual state of Hebrew and more to a perceived need to defend against claims of medieval authors and philosophers (e.g., Abraham Ibn-Ezra) critical of the way other authors tried to make changes in the Hebrew language.
The following is a description of representative entries used by Ibn-Tibbon to translate Duties of the Hearts.16 The aim of this description is to present and examine the nature of the Rabbinic Hebrew lexicon in the nominal lexicon of Ibn-Tibbon. It will hopefully shed light on the rich semantic and morphological variety of Medieval Hebrew, both from the perspective of Rabbinic Hebrew and from the perspective of Hebrew morphological and semantic mechanisms.
In each example the Hebrew entry, as it appears in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation, will be followed by the Arabic equivalents in Ibn-Paquda’s original. For each equivalent I will cite one example, which will include the Arabic original,17 the Hebrew translation of Ibn-Tibbon, and the English translation of Hyamson.18 In a footnote I will present the treatise and the chapter the example is cited from. Overall, Duties of the Hearts consists of an introduction and ten treatises: (a) The unity of God; (b) Examination of creation; (c) The service of God; (d) Trust in God; (e) Wholehearted devotion; (f) Humility; (g) Repentance; (h) Spiritual accounting; (i) Abstinence; (j) The love of God.
3. Rabbinic entries in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation of Duties of the Hearts
The rabbinic nominal entries can be divided into six categories:
- Biblical lexemes with rabbinic meanings
- Rabbinic lexemes with rabbinic meanings
- Rabbinic lexemes with both rabbinic and new meanings
- Rabbinic lexemes with new meanings
- Root and stem combination: rabbinic roots
- Linear word-formation: rabbinic stems
3.1 Biblical lexemes with rabbinic meanings
In total, 33 lexemes from this category were found in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation. Although not all the examples presented here reflect new or unknown meanings, they certainly comprise the largest part of Rabbinic Hebrew in Ibn-Tibbon’s nominal lexicon.
(1) |
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The biblical meaning of this lexeme is ‘pinion (i.e., wing)’, while its rabbinic meaning is ‘limb, organ’.19 These original and later meanings reflect a simple metonymy, in which the original meaning represents a specific example and the later meaning a more simplified and general meaning that is based on the biblical meaning. This lexeme is used by Ibn-Tibbon to translate four different Arabic equivalents: |
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(a) |
אלה (ألة): Ibn-Paquda: למן טלבהא באלאלאת אלתי בהא תדרך; Ibn-Tibbon: מפני שמבקשם בבלעדי האברים אשר בהם יושגו; Hyamson: ‘because he seeks them by means of organs other than those with which they can be apprehended’.20 |
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(b) |
ג̇ארחה (جارحة): Ibn-Paquda: קטע עצ̇ו מן אעצ̇איה ופקד ג̇ארחה מן ג̇וארחה; Ibn-Tibbon: לכרות נתח אחד מנתחיו ולפקוד אבר אחד מאבריו; Hyamson: ‘to the amputation of one of his limbs and to its loss’.21 |
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(c) |
עצ̇ו (عضو): Ibn-Paquda: ותמאם צורתה ונועייתה ואשכאל אעצ̇איה; Ibn-Tibbon: והשלמת צורתו ומינותו ותבנית אבריו; Hyamson: ‘in the perfection of its form and its specific (human) kind, in the shaping of his limbs’.22 |
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(d) |
צאחב (صاحب): Ibn-Paquda: פאד̇א כ̇לא באצחאבה קאל האתוא אלנור אלבאטן; Ibn-Tibbon: וכשהיה מתיחד עם אבריו היה אומר הבו האור הצפון; Hyamson: ‘but when he was alone, he would ejaculate: O for inward light’.23 |
As is clearly evident in these citations, equivalents (a) to (c) correspond to the rabbinic meanings. Apparently, equivalent (d) is the result of a mistake in the translation, probably made by Ibn-Tibbon himself, who mistakenly translated with this lexeme the word אצחאב which in Hebrew means חֲבֵרִים ‘friends’.24
(2) |
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While the biblical meaning of this entry is ‘profaneness, pollution’, the rabbinic meaning is ‘fawning and praising in order to please someone’.25 As in the previous example, the rabbinic meaning, which is employed in the Mekhilta de-Rabbi Ishmael, reflects a metonymy in comparison with the original biblical meaning: the rabbinic meaning represents the method of realising the concept that appears in the biblical meaning. In Ibn-Tibbon’s translation, there is one equivalent for this Hebrew entry: |
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ריא (رياء): Ibn-Paquda: וקד ימכן אן יכון קצדה פיהא אלריא ות̇נא אלנאס עליה וכראמתהם לה מן אג̇לה; Ibn-Tibbon: ואפשר שתהיה כונתו לחנופה ולשבח בני אדם וכבודם בעבורה; Hyamson: ‘it may, however, be hypocritical; the aim may be to obtain praise for it and honour among one’s fellow-men’.26 |
(3) |
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The biblical meaning of this word is ‘bag, purse’,27 and its rabbinic meaning is ‘skin pocket in which glands are placed’.28 This entry has two Arabic equivalents in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation: |
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(a) |
כיס (كيس): Ibn-Paquda: פמא כאן מן ג̇נס אלמרה אלצפרה ג̇רי אלי כיס אלמרארה; Ibn-Tibbon: מה שהוא מן המרה האדומה הולך אל כיס המרה; Hyamson: ‘what belongs to the green gall goes to the gall-bladder’.29 |
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(b) |
ועא (وعاء): Ibn-Paquda: ואלכבד לתכ̇ליץ אלגד̇א ואלמנאפד̇ לאבראז אלפצ̇ול ואלאועיה למחלהא; Ibn-Tibbon: והכבד לזקק המזון והסימפונות להוציא המותרות והכיסים לסובלם; Hyamson: ‘the liver for purifying the food; the tubes for removing superfluities; the bowels for retention’.30 |
The semantic shift from the original biblical meaning to the rabbinic meaning is expressed by a metaphor based on the resemblance of shape and designation between the two.
(4) |
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Biblical meaning: ‘returning, coming back’; rabbinic meaning: ‘penitent’.31 Mishnaic Hebrew reflects a meaning that is more metaphorical in comparison with the biblical meaning. This metaphorical shift represents the movement of meaning from the physical field to the spiritual-cognitive field. In Ibn-Tibbon’s translation, this entry has one Arabic equivalent: |
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תאיב (تائب): Ibn-Paquda: לאן כל תאיב קד כאן צאלחא קבל אן יד̇נב וליס כל צאלח תאיבא; Ibn-Tibbon: מפני שכל שב כבר היה צדיק קודם שיחטא ואין כל צדיק שב; Hyamson: ‘the reason being that every penitent, previously to sinning, has been righteous, while every righteous man has not necessarily been a penitent’.32 |
3.2 Rabbinic lexemes with rabbinic meanings
In total, there are approximately 450 entries in this category. I will present here two examples, each of which comprises two lexemes, and both of which reflect characteristic phenomena of Rabbinic Hebrew. The first example represents the double form of the verbal noun pattern of the Hifil stem:33
(5) |
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This form of the verbal noun has three equivalents in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation: |
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(a) |
מנהי (منهي): Ibn-Paquda: אמא פראיץ̇ אלקלוב אלמנהי ענהא מת̇ל אלשרך באללה סרא; Ibn-Tibbon: והאזהרה שבחובות הלבבות כשתוף עם הבורא בסתר; Hyamson: ‘prohibitions in the category of duties of the heart are, for example, associating in the worship of God any other being with Him … secretly’.34 |
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(b) |
נאהיה (ناهية): Ibn-Paquda: מנהא שס״ה מצות לא תעשה והי אלנואהי; Ibn-Tibbon: מהם שס״ה מצות לא תעשה והם האזהרות; Hyamson: ‘of these, 365 are prohibitions’.35 |
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(c) |
נהי (نهي): Ibn-Paquda: וכד̇לך יכון לאמרה ונהיה בחסב ד̇לך קדרא פי נפסך; Ibn-Tibbon: וכן תהיה למצותיו ואזהרותיו מעלה בלבך; Hyamson: ‘the more will you respect his commandments and prohibitions’.36 |
(6) |
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As opposed to אַזְהָרָה, this form of verbal noun has only two Arabic equivalents in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation, only one of which is shared with the previous verbal noun: |
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(a) |
חת̇ (حث): Ibn-Paquda: ופי כתאבנא מן אלחת̇ עלי קלה̈ אלכלאם מא לא יכ̇פי לכת̇רתה ושהרתה פיה; Ibn-Tibbon: ובספרינו מן ההזהרה על המעטת הדברים מה שאיננו נעלם מרובו ופרסומו; Hyamson: ‘in the Scriptures, exhortations to limit speech occur so frequently and are so familiar that they are not unknown to anyone’.37 |
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(b) |
נהי (نهي): Ibn-Paquda: פאד̇א כ̇לות בנפסך סקט ענך פרץ̇ אלאמר באלמערוף ואלנהי ען אלמנכר לא מחאלה; Ibn-Tibbon: וכאשר תתבודד בטלה מעליך חובת הצווי בטוב וההזהרה מן הרע בלי ספק; Hyamson: ‘but if you are living in solitude, you are undoubtedly exonerated from the duty of exhorting them to do good and warning them to abstain from evil’.38 |
In the dictionaries of Even-Shoshan and Ben-Yehuda the lexeme הַזְהָרָה is claimed to be a neologism of Medieval Hebrew. As revealed by the Historical Dictionary Project of the Academy of the Hebrew Language, it is found already in the Babylonian Talmud, Shebuoth 47b (MS Vatican 140). This lexeme also appears in the liturgy of Yannai and Ha-Kalir, in different manuscripts and in Genizah segments.39 However, it is doubtful whether Ibn-Tibbon was familiar with these specific writings and witnesses, and it is possible, even probable, that he created this neologism on his own.
The following examples (7 and 8) reflect another phenomenon that is characteristic of Rabbinic Hebrew; the assimilation of III-alef roots to III-yod roots. In Ibn-Tibbon’s translation of Duties of the Hearts, both forms are found:
(7) |
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(a) |
כ̇ליקה (خليقة): Ibn-Paquda: ואלמתוכל עלי אללה אד̇א שהר תוכלה ג̇ל פי אעין אלכ̇לאיק ואחתרמוה אלנאס; Ibn-Tibbon: והבוטח בה׳ כאשר יודע בטחונו יגדל בעיני הבריות ויכבדוהו בני אדם; Hyamson: ‘but he who trusts in the Lord will gain the esteem of his fellow-men, when his trust will become generally known’.40 |
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(b) |
מכ̇לוק (مخلوق): Ibn-Paquda: וחסן תדביר אללה תעאלי וסיאסתה ונאפד̇ קדרתה פי מכ̇לוקאתה; Ibn-Tibbon: ומחשבת האלהים הטובה והנהגתו וקיום גזרתו בבריותיו; Hyamson: ‘of God’s good plan, of His government and the fulfilment of His decrees for His creatures’.41 |
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Equivalent (c) has a plural meaning, and is translated only by the Hebrew plural form בְּרִיּוֹת: |
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(c) |
כ̇לק (خلق): Ibn-Paquda: אן אללה אראד ארשאד כ̇לקה אלי מא תנתט̇ם בה אחואלהם פי אלדניא; Ibn-Tibbon: שהאלהים רצה להורות את בריותיו דרך שיתקן בו ענינם בעולם הזה; Hyamson: ‘that God only wished to point out to His creatures a way by which they would improve their condition in this world’.42 |
(8) |
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(a) |
כ̇לקה (خلقة): Ibn-Paquda: והי זיאדה עלי מא פטרוא עליה פי אצל אלכ̇לקה ואלג̇בלה מן אלתנביה אלעקלי; Ibn-Tibbon: וזאת תוספת על מה שהוטבעו אליו בשרש הבריאה והיצירה מן ההערה השכלית; Hyamson: ‘the demonstration through the senses was an addition to the intellectual stimulus which human beings naturally possess’.43 |
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(b) |
כ̇ליקה (خليقة): Ibn-Paquda: פי אפעאלה וצנוף אלכ̇לאיק אלתי כ̇לקהא למצלחתהם; Ibn-Tibbon: במעשהו ובמיני הבריאות אשר בראם לתקנתם; Hyamson: ‘concerning God’s work and its various products which He created for their improvement’.44 |
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(c) |
מכ̇לוק (مخلوق): Ibn-Paquda: ואלת̇אני אלאעתבאר באלדהר במא ישאהד מן עג̇איב אללה פי מכ̇לוקאתה; Ibn-Tibbon: והשנית הבחינה בעולם במה שהוא רואה מפלאי הבורא ית׳ בבריאותיו; Hyamson: ‘the second is observation of the world wherein one sees some of the wonders of God exhibited in His creatures’.45 |
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As in example (7), equivalent (d) has a plural meaning, and is translated only by the Hebrew plural form בְּרִיאוֹת: |
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(d) |
כ̇לק (خلق): Ibn-Paquda: אלאעתבאר בכל מא פי אלעאלם מן דקיק אלכ̇לק וג̇לילה; Ibn-Tibbon: הבחינה בכל מה שיש בעולם מקטני הבריאות וגדוליהם; Hyamson: ‘[a person should] investigate everything in the universe from the smallest creatures to the largest’.46 |
Regarding the Arabic equivalents of these two lexemes, it is interesting to note that as opposed to the case in Rabbinic Hebrew, in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation they do not function as free variants.
3.3 Rabbinic lexemes with both rabbinic and new meanings
All the entries presented in my glossary are marked etymologically according to the earliest relevant meaning used by Ibn-Tibbon in his translation, and not necessarily according to the first time the lexeme (or phrase) is documented in Hebrew literature. Therefore, I focus here only on the rabbinic entries whose usage and meaning Ibn-Tibbon widened.
(9) |
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(a) |
בדן (بدن): Ibn-Paquda: ואעצ̇א בדן אלאנסאן וסאיר אלמולפאת בעצ̇הא אלי בעץ̇ פי קואמהא ותמאמהא; Ibn-Tibbon: ואברי גוף האדם ושאר המחוברים קצתם אל קצתם בתקונם והשלמתם; Hyamson: ‘the limbs of the human body, or the parts of other things that are put together … for their efficiency and completeness’.47 |
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(b) |
ג̇סד (جسد): Ibn-Paquda: קד מזג̇ת וכ̇לטת וצאר בעצ̇הא ממסכא לבעצ̇הא כאלנפס ואלג̇סד פי אלחיואן; Ibn-Tibbon: נמזגו ונתערבו עד ששב קצתם מעמיד את קצתם כנפש וכגוף בחיים; Hyamson: ‘so intimately mixed and fused, that each of them sustains the other, like body and soul in living creatures’.48 |
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(c) |
ג̇סם (جسم): Ibn-Paquda: פלמא קיידהא אלכ̇אלק תעאלי בהד̇א אלג̇סם אלכת̇יף <אלכת̇יר אלט̇למה> לאכ̇תבארהא; Ibn-Tibbon: וכאשר קשרה הבורא יתברך בגוף הזה העב אשר חשקו רב לנסותה בו; Hyamson: ‘As the Creator, blessed be He, bound the soul to this gross, physical body, through which he was pleased to test it’.49 |
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(d) |
ג̇סמאני (جسماني): Ibn-Paquda: בעד אמאתה̈ אלשהואת אלג̇סמאניה וגלבה̈ אלעקל; Ibn-Tibbon: לאחר המית תאות הגופות והגברת השכל; Hyamson: ‘after physical lust has been overcome and the intellect has obtained the victory over it’.50 |
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(e) |
ג̇והר (جوهر): Ibn-Paquda: ואלנג̇ום מנט̇מה כאלמצאביח ואלג̇ואהר מכנוזה כאלד̇כ̇איר; Ibn-Tibbon: והכוכבים מסודרים כנרות וכל הגופות צבורות בו כמכמנים; Hyamson: ‘the stars in their array like lamps, all objects accumulated in it like treasures’.51 |
Equivalents (a) to (c) reflect the rabbinic meanings of the lexeme גּוּף. It appears that equivalent (d) was formed only due to a contextual translation (translation of an Arabic noun and an Arabic adjective into a Hebrew construct). Nevertheless, the general rabbinic meaning is appropriate here, too. Equivalent (e), which is a semantic neologism of Ibn-Tibbon’s, was created by using a metaphor that is based on the resemblance to the original meaning of the lexeme. It is interesting to see in this quotation the attraction of the Hebrew feminine suffix of the adjective צְבוּרוֹת in comparison with the form of the Hebrew lexeme גּוּפוֹת.
(10) |
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(a) |
אסתעמאל (إستعمال): Ibn-Paquda: פי מא אבאח לה מן תצריף ג̇וארחה ואטלק לה מן אסתעמאל אפכארה פי בואטנה; Ibn-Tibbon: במה שהתיר לו מהשתמש באבריו והרשהו מהעברת מחשבותיו ביצריו; Hyamson: ‘wherein he is given freedom to use his limbs and accorded liberty to direct his thoughts to good or evil inclinations’.52 |
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(b) |
מג̇אז (مجاز): Ibn-Paquda: פכל ואחד ממא ד̇כרנא יסמי ואחדא עלי טריק אלמג̇אז; Ibn-Tibbon: וכל אחד ממה שהזכרנו נקרא אחד על דרך העברה; Hyamson: ‘every one of the things that we have just mentioned is called One conventionally.53 |
In the Talmud (i.e., in Rabbinic Hebrew), the lexeme הַעֲבָרָה has two meanings:54 (1) moving, transferring someone or something to another place, and (2) removal, distancing. Metaphorically, in equivalent (b), Ibn-Tibbon is using this lexeme with the meaning of ‘metaphor’ or a shift — namely, a semantic change from one semantic field to another.
(11) |
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In Biblical Hebrew, the lexeme תּוֹלָדָה occurs only in the plural, both in the construct state or with a possessive pronoun. In the absolute state, this lexeme occurs only in the Babylonian Talmud. Ibn-Tibbon used this word frequently, with its rabbinic meanings: see equivalents (a), (b), (d), (e), and (f), and with two new meanings, as in equivalents (c) ‘nature’ and (g) ‘result’: |
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(a) |
תנאסל (تناسل): Ibn-Paquda: ת̇ם יסתעמל אלג̇ז אלת̇אלת̇ והו עלם אלתואריך̇ ומערפה̈ טבקאת אלנאס ותנאסלהם; Ibn-Tibbon: ואחרי כן ישמש בחלק השלישי בעניני דברי הימים לדעת בני אדם ותולדותם; Hyamson: ‘then he will make use of the third part — the historical portions of the Scriptures, in order that he may know the various types of men and their histories’.55 |
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(b) |
טבעה (طبعة): Ibn-Paquda: אחדהמא מרכוז פי אלעקל מגרוס פי תמייז אלאנסאן מפטור עליה פי אצל כ̇לקתה וטבעתה; Ibn-Tibbon: אחד מהם תקוע בשכל נטוע בהכרת האדם נוצר עליו בשרש בריאתו ותולדתו; Hyamson: ‘one of them is inherent in the mind, implanted in the human faculty of cognition, innate from the beginning of his existence’.56 |
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(c) |
טביעה (طبيعة): Ibn-Paquda: ואמא תאליף אלטביעה להא פמחכם ות̇אבת אלי מדה מחדודה; Ibn-Tibbon: אך החבור שחברה אותו התולדה הוא חבור מתוקן וקיים עד עת קץ; Hyamson: ‘the synthesis, however, wrought by Nature, is complete and endures for an indefinite period’.57 |
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(d) |
גריזה (غريزة): Ibn-Paquda: אלעלם מרכוז <ומכנון> פי גריזה̈ כל אנסאן פי קוה̈ תמייזה כאלמא אלמכ̇פי פי עמק אלארץ̇; Ibn-Tibbon: החכמה תקועה בתולדת האדם וטבעו ובכח הכרתו כמים הטמונים בלב הארץ; Hyamson: ‘wisdom is innate in a man’s being, in his nature and faculties of perception, like water that is hidden in the bowels of the earth’.58 |
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(e) |
פרע (فرع): Ibn-Paquda: קד קטעוא אג̇ל אעמארהם בעלם אלשואד̇ מן פרוע אלאחכאם וכל גריב מן עויץ קצ̇איא אלחכאם; Ibn-Tibbon: כלו ימיהם בידיעת העניינים הנכרים מתולדות הדינין והזר הקשה מפסקי הדינין; Hyamson: ‘they spend their days in the study of singular deductions from the legal principles and of what is strange and difficult in the final decisions’.59 |
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(f) |
מתואלד (متوالد): Ibn-Paquda: תשגל פארגהם במתואלדאת פנתהא ותמכן פי קלובהם עלקהא; Ibn-Tibbon: לטרוד לבותם בתולדות רהביו ולישב בלבם גלגוליו; Hyamson: ‘troubling their hearts, each one worried by the result of his arrogance and brooding on his vicissitudes’.60 |
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(g) |
נתיג̇ה (نتيجة): Ibn-Paquda: ואמא פאידה̈ אלמחאסבה אלמד̇כורה פי אלנתיג̇ה; Ibn-Tibbon: אך תועלת החשבון הנזכר היא התולדה; Hyamson: ‘the benefit of spiritual accounting here discussed, consists in the results’.61 |
3.4 Rabbinic lexemes with new meanings
As is common in many developing languages, semantic shifts are an elementary method for enriching an existing vocabulary and for bringing back into use lexemes that were once part of the lexicon. Like many others before him, Ibn-Tibbon used metaphors and metonymies for this purpose. On rare occasions, he used ellipsis, folk etymology, and loan shifts. All these rare cases involve biblical lexemes or other medieval neologisms, and therefore I will not present them here.62 Here are some examples of the metonymies and metaphors Ibn-Tibbon used in the case of rabbinic lexemes.
(12) |
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וקיעה (وقيعة): Ibn-Paquda: ופי תחליל אלגיבה ואלוקיעה; Ibn-Tibbon: וממחילת הדבור הרע והגנוי; Hyamson: ‘in regard to forgiveness of evil speech and depreciation’.63 |
The lexeme גִּנּוּי appears in the Palestinian Talmud with the meaning of ‘shame, disgrace, defamation’.64 Ibn-Tibbon used here the meaning of the process instead of its result, and the metonymy ‘to shame, to defame’ was created.
(13) |
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נאטק (ناطق): Ibn-Paquda: ומן אשרף נעמה אנעם בהא עלי אלנאטקין בעד איג̇אדה להם עלי צפאת יתם בהא תמייזהם ויכמל פהמהם; Ibn-Tibbon: והגדולה שבטובות אשר הטיב בהם הבורא לעבדיו המדברים אחרי המציאו אותם על תכונת הכרתם בהן גמורה והבנתם שלמה; Hyamson: ‘the noblest of the gifts which God bestowed on His human creatures, next to having created them with mature faculties of perception and comprehension’.65 |
The root דב״ר occurs in Piel in Biblical Hebrew.66 The participle מְדַבֵּר occurs as a noun in Rabbinic Hebrew. However, only in the translation of Ibn-Tibbon does this lexeme start to convey the meaning of a ‘human being’, as opposed to animals, which cannot talk. The metonymy here represents the main characteristic of the object, just as in the case of the biblical lexeme זוֹחֵל ‘crawl’ (cf. זֹחֲלֵי אֶרֶץ ‘snakes’), and in the case of דּוֹמֵם ‘inanimate’, another neologism of Ibn-Tibbon.
(14) |
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הצ̇ם (هضم): Ibn-Paquda: ולא יתם הצ̇ם אלטעאם פי מעדה̈ אחד מן אלחיואן עלי כמאלה; Ibn-Tibbon: ולא היה נגמר בשול המאכל בבטן אחד מבעלי חיים כראוי; Hyamson: ‘even food would not be perfectly digested by any living creature’.67 |
In the Mishnah, the verbal noun בִּשּׁוּל means ‘preparing food for eating by heating with fire’, and, in the Talmud, the meaning was expanded to ‘ripening, becoming good for eating’.68 In Ibn-Tibbon’s translation, another metaphor is used, and hence the meaning ‘digestion’ was added in order to reflect the meaning of the Arabic equivalent הצ̇ם. It is important to note that this lexeme with such a meaning was rare in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation and that this meaning is omitted in various modern Hebrew diachronic dictionaries.69
(15) |
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(a) |
אשתראך (إشتراك): Ibn-Paquda: והו אתחאד בעצ̇הא בבעץ̇ ואצל אלאשתראך אלוחדה; Ibn-Tibbon: והוא התאחד קצתם עם קצתם ועיקר השיתוף האחדות; Hyamson: ‘and its parts unite. The basic principle of Synthesis in Unity’.70 |
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(b) |
שרך (شرك): Ibn-Paquda: וכד̇לך צאחב אלתקליד פי תוחידה גיר מאמון עליה אלשרך; Ibn-Tibbon: וכן המיחד מצד הקבלה אין בוטחין בו שלא יבא לידי שיתוף; Hyamson: ‘so, too, if a man accepts the doctrine of the Unity on the grounds of tradition only, he can never be sure that he will not come to associate the worship of the One God with the worship of another being’.71 |
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(c) |
משארכה (مشاركة): Ibn-Paquda: אן תכון אלתובה מנה בד̇לך אלחאל ופי ד̇לך אלנוע אלד̇י כאן אלכ̇טא פיה מן משארכה̈ אלקלב פי ד̇לך באלאכ̇לאץ ללה תעאלי; Ibn-Tibbon: שתהיה תשובתו ממנו באותו ענין ובאותו מין שהיה חוטא בו עם שתוף הלב בכוונה לאלהים; Hyamson: ‘the repentance should refer to the particular sinful act, and also to the class to which the act belongs; the heart should cooperate in its devotion to God’.72 |
The rabbinic meaning that Ibn-Tibbon relied on in order to achieve the metaphor that is reflected in the equivalents (a) to (c) is ‘to participate, joining someone to work together on something’.73 This meaning is used in Rabbinic Hebrew in the Palestinian Talmud. The metaphor created by Ibn-Tibbon is the result of the resemblance between ‘shared work’ and ‘polytheism’, as some idols were alleged to work together to fulfil all of the people’s needs.
3.5 Root and stem combination: Rabbinic roots
The root and stem combination as applied to rabbinic roots is reflected in several verbal nouns of three different verbal stems. Here I will present briefly the verbal nouns that were created by Ibn-Tibbon from rabbinic roots, divided according to their verbal stems. It is obvious that Ibn-Tibbon created these lexemes under direct influence of Arabic, either due to root resemblance (as in example 16) or due to the use of the Hebrew root as an equivalent of one or more Arabic roots.
Hifil: six separate verbal nouns of this stem were innovated by Ibn-Tibbon in his translation, using both the haqṭala and the heqṭel patterns (examples 16–21). Some of these lexemes are common in the translation and some are relatively rare.
(16) |
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תדריג̇ (تدريج): Ibn-Paquda: ואחד̇ר אלאפראט ואלסרף בגיר תדריג̇ פתהלך; Ibn-Tibbon: והזהר מן הרבוי וההפלגה מבלי הדרגה פן תאבד; Hyamson: ‘beware of excess and exaggeration, of aught that does not proceed gradually lest you perish’.74 |
(17) |
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(a) |
אנתט̇אם (إنتظام): Ibn-Paquda: ואלזהד אלעאם הו אלמתסעמל לצלאח אג̇סאמנא ואנתט̇אם אחואלנא; Ibn-Tibbon: והפרישות הכוללת הוא הנהוג בה לתקנת גופינו והסדרת ענינינו; Hyamson: ‘general abstinence is that which is practiced to improve our physical condition and keep our secular affairs in order’.75 |
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(b) |
נט̇אם (نظام): Ibn-Paquda: פליס תכ̇פי פאידה̈ ד̇לך לנא פי תדביר אג̇סאמנא ונט̇אם חרכאתנא; Ibn-Tibbon: אין תועלתם לנו נעלמת ממנו בהנהגת גופנו והסדרת תנועותינו; Hyamson: ‘the value of these faculties in the care of our bodies and ordering of our activities is known to all’.76 |
(18) |
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קיאם (قيام): Ibn-Paquda: פעלי חסב כפאיה̈ אלכ̇אלק תעאלי מנה וקיאמה באמורה; Ibn-Tibbon: וכפי הגנת הבורא עליו והספקתו בכל עניניו; Hyamson: ‘so, too, in accordance with the Creator’s protection of him and providing for him in all his affairs’.77 |
(19) |
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סרף (سرف): Ibn-Paquda: ואחד̇ אלאפראט ואלסרף בגיר תדריג̇ פתהלך; Ibn-Tibbon: והזהר מן הרבוי וההפלגה מבלי הדרגה פן תאבד; Hyamson: ‘beware of excess and exaggeration, of aught that does not proceed gradually lest you perish’.78 |
(20) |
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אצראר (إصرار): Ibn-Paquda: ומן אעט̇ם מפסדאתהא אלאצראר עלי אלמעציה והו אלדואם עלי עמלהא; Ibn-Tibbon: וממפסידיה עוד ההסכם על העבירה והוא ההתמדה על עשותה; Hyamson: ‘to these should be added complaisance in sinning; this means continuance in transgression’.79 |
(21) |
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חס (حس): Ibn-Paquda: ואלדמאג מסכן אלקוי אלרוחאניה וינבוע אלחס ואצל אלעצב; Ibn-Tibbon: והמוח משכן הכחות הרוחניים ומבוע ההרגש ושרש העצבים; Hyamson: ‘the brain is the seat of the spiritual faculties, the well-spring of sensation and the root from which the nerves begin’.80 |
The roots פל״ג ,סכ״ם ,ספ״ק ,סד״ר and רג״ש are documented in Rabbinic Hebrew in the Hifil stem, but not as verbal nouns. Like these roots, דר״ג also occurs as a verb in Rabbinic Hebrew, but the meaning used by Ibn-Tibbon reflects a semantic shift in comparison with its original rabbinic meaning.
Piel: only one verbal noun is created by Ibn-Tibbon in the qiṭṭūl pattern (example 22). As with the previous examples, the root אצ״ר exists in the Piel stem in Rabbinic Hebrew, but not as a verbal noun.
(22) |
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אחתכאר (إحتكار): Ibn-Paquda: ואלרפו ואלכתאבה <וכאלתאג̇ר> באחתכארה אלסלע וכרא אלמנאצפין ואלכ̇ול ואלמתצרפין פי פלאחה̈ אלארץ̇; Ibn-Tibbon: וכאחוי והספרות ואצור המסחרים ושכיר האריסים והפועלים והשמשים בעבודת האדמה; Hyamson: ‘like … weaving, writing, warehousing; hiring gardeners, workmen and agricultural labourers’.81 |
Hitpael: six verbal nouns in hitqaṭṭǝlūt pattern are neologisms of Ibn-Tibbon (examples 23–28):
(23) |
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(a) |
אמכאן (إمكان): Ibn-Paquda: כאנת אעסר וג̇ודא ואקל אמכאנא; Ibn-Tibbon: תהיה מציאותו יותר קשה והזדמנותו מעוטה; Hyamson: ‘… is scarcer and harder to obtain’.82 |
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(b) |
תמכן (تمكن): Ibn-Paquda: אן יכון תרכה ללמעאצי בעד אלקדרה עליהא ואלתמכן מנהא; Ibn-Tibbon: שתהיה עזיבתו העבירות אחר יכלתו עליהם והזדמנותם לו; Hyamson: ‘abandonment of transgressions while one has the capacity and opportunity to commit them’.83 |
(24) |
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סקוט (سقوط): Ibn-Paquda: ת̇ם יפכר פי סקוט עט̇ים כלפהם <וחקוקהם> ולואזמהם ענה; Ibn-Tibbon: ויחשוב אחר כך בהסתלקות כובד משאם וחובותם מעליו; Hyamson: ‘he should also consider that … he is freed from the heavy burden of maintaining relatives and fulfilling obligations to them’.84 |
(25) |
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These two forms occur in different manuscripts containing Ibn-Tibbon’s translation of Duties of the Hearts as free variations. |
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(a) |
אג̇תהאד (إجتهاد): Ibn-Paquda: ואן אג̇תהאדהם כאן פי ג̇מל אלאחכאם ועקד אלחלאל ואלחראם; Ibn-Tibbon: ושהשתדלותם היתה בכללי הדינים ולברר ענין איסור והיתר; Hyamson: ‘their endeavour was first to ascertain and establish general principles, and make clear what is permitted and what is forbidden’.85 |
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(b) |
תאכיד (تأكيد): Ibn-Paquda: פכ̇ופה נזול אלמות עליה יזידה תאכידא וחת̇א; Ibn-Tibbon: ופחדו שיבואהו המות פתאום ביומו יוסיף לו השתדלה וזריזות; Hyamson: ‘the fear that death may suddenly overtake him increases his effort and zeal’.86 |
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(c) |
ג̇ד (جد): Ibn-Paquda: אגתנם פסחה̈ סאעה מנה ועמל פי ארצ̇ה בג̇ד ונשאט; Ibn-Tibbon: היה עושה באדמתו שעה אחת בהשתדלה וחריצות; Hyamson: ‘he worked an hour … industriously and zealously’.87 |
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(d) |
ג̇הד (جهد): Ibn-Paquda: פכיף אנך לא תצלין אלי מטאלבך מנהא מע טול ג̇הדך בהא; Ibn-Tibbon: כל שכן שלא תגיעי בו אל משאלותיך עם אורך השתדלותך בהם; Hyamson: ‘you will not fulfil your wishes, however long you strive for them’.88 |
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(e) |
חזם (حزم): Ibn-Paquda: ומנהא אלא יקע בוהמה אנה יסתדימהא בחזמה; Ibn-Tibbon: ומהם שלא יעלה במחשבתו שיתמידה בהשתדלותו בה; Hyamson: ‘it should not enter his mind that he can secure its continuance by his striving’.89 |
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(f) |
סעי (سعي): Ibn-Paquda: פאן אנתפע בהא שכרהא ושכר סעיה פיהא וחרץ עליה; Ibn-Tibbon: ואם הן מועילות אותו ישבח אותן וישבח השתדלותו בהן ובחירתו אותן; Hyamson: ‘If they bring him a profit, he lauds them, and praises his own diligence in using and choosing them’.90 |
(26) |
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אשתראך (إشتراك): Ibn-Paquda: אלתי לא תצח מנה אלא באשתראך גירה מעה פי אלפעל ואלאנפעאל; Ibn-Tibbon: אשר לא יוכל לעשותם אלא בהשתתפות זולתו עמו בפעל ובהפעל; Hyamson: ‘that cannot be discharged, save with the cooperation of another person in mutual relationship, one of them active, the other passive’.91 |
(27) |
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מט̇אפרה (مظافرة): Ibn-Paquda: ואליסיר מן מט̇אפרתה לתסתדרג̇ בד̇לך אלי מא פוקה; Ibn-Tibbon: והמצער מהתגברותו כדי שיהיה לך מדרגה אל מה שלמעלה ממנו; Hyamson: ‘the least increase of your power over him regard as important, so that it may be to you a step to a greater victory’.92 |
(28) |
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תזיין (تزيين): Ibn-Paquda: אמא מואד אלכ̇לק אלת̇אני פהו פצ̇ול אלכלאם וכת̇רה̈ אכ̇תלאט אלנאס ואלתזיין להם; Ibn-Tibbon: אבל כחות המדה השנית הם מותרי הדבור ורב חברת בני אדם והתנאות להם; Hyamson: ‘the forces that uphold the latter evil disposition are superfluity of speech, excessive social intercourse’.93 |
The roots שד״ל ,נא״י ,גב״ר and שת״פ all exist in the Hitpael stem in Rabbinic Hebrew, but do not occur as verbal nouns. The roots זמ״ן and סל״ק also exist in Rabbinic Hebrew, but the relevant meanings of these roots are semantic neologisms coined by Ibn-Tibbon.
3.6 Linear word-formation: Rabbinic stems
Five of Ibn-Tibbon’s neologisms in this translation were created by deriving new lexemes from rabbinic stems. Four of them (examples 29–32) are adjectives that were derived with the suffix -ī, while one of them (example 33) is an abstract noun that was created with the suffix -ūt.
The suffix -ī: this suffix, yāʾ an-nisba, was originally used in Semitic languages for expressing relationships (mostly with regard to tribes, families, and places), and it appears in Hebrew already in Biblical Hebrew. In Medieval Hebrew, mostly due to the influence of Arabic, and Ibn-Tibbon’s contribution, the use of this suffix widened, creating a wide variety of semantic meanings.94
(29) |
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The lexeme אֲוִיר in rabbinic Hebrew means mainly ‘air, space, gap, weather’. With the suffix -ī, Ibn-Tibbon created a lexeme that means ‘a resemblance to air’. Judging from the Arabic original, it is reasonable to assume that Ibn-Paquda meant here ‘a resemblance to fire’ and this lexeme was in fact created due to a mistake on the part of Ibn-Tibbon.95 |
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נוראני (نوراني): Ibn-Paquda: ת̇ם קרן בה ג̇והרא רוחאניא נוראניא משאכלא לרוחאניה̈ אלאשכ̇אץ אלעאליה; Ibn-Tibbon: וחבר אליו עצם רוחני אוירי דומה לרוחניות האישים העליונים; Hyamson: ‘to this human body God has joined a spiritual and ethereal entity akin to the spirituality of the higher beings’.96 |
Examples 30 and 31 represent two lexemes that were formed by using the same rabbinic stem (see example 9) and two different realisations of the suffix -ī. Apparently the realisation -anī in גּוּפָנִי was created under direct Arabic influence of the lexeme جسماني. However, it is not clear why two separate and different forms were created by Ibn-Tibbon.
(30) |
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(a) |
ג̇סמאני (جسماني): Ibn-Paquda: ושגלוא להא חואסהם אלג̇סמאניה לג̇דמתהא ענד אלחאג̇ה ואלצ̇רורה אסתכפאפא בהא; Ibn-Tibbon: והתעסקו בהם בחושיהם הגופיים בעת הצורך והדוחק מפני זולותו אצלם; Hyamson: ‘occupying themselves in these concerns, with their physical senses, only when it is necessary and urgent, because they regard this world cheaply’.97 |
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(b) |
ג̇סמי (جسمي): Ibn-Paquda: אחדהמא חב אללד̇את אלג̇סמיה מן אלטעאם ואלשראב ואלג̇מאע וסאיר דואעי בדנך; Ibn-Tibbon: אחת מהן אהבת ההנאות הגופיות מן המאכל והמשתה והמשגל ושאר צרכי גופך; Hyamson: ‘one of them is love of physical pleasures — eating, drinking, excessive gratification of the sexual impulse and other bodily needs’.98 |
(31) |
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ג̇סמאני (جسماني): Ibn-Paquda: וקאל אכ̇ר אלזהד מנע אלנפס מן כל ראחה ולד̇ה ג̇סמאניה; Ibn-Tibbon: ואמר אחר הפרישות מניעת הנפש מכל מנוחה ותענוג גופני; Hyamson: ‘another said that abstinence means denying oneself all relaxation and physical pleasure’.99 |
According to Ben-Yehuda,100 the noun מִנְיָן is the verbal noun of the verb מָנָה ‘to count’ in the Qal stem. The rabbinic meanings of מִנְיָן are ‘number’ (a synonym for the Hebrew word מִסְפָּר) and ‘counting’ (a synonym to the Hebrew word מְנִיָּה). Only in medieval Hebrew does the lexeme מִנְיָן acquire the meaning of a group of ten men. In his creation of the word מִנְיָנִי, Ibn-Tibbon uses the original rabbinic meaning.
It is interesting to note that in Ibn-Tibbon’s translation method, which is at times literal and at times contextual, the adjective מִנְיָנִי in the following examples correlates alternatively with the Arabic maṣdar — equivalent (a) — and with an Arabic adjective — equivalent (b):
(32) |
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(a) |
עבר (عبر):101 Ibn-Paquda: קארבוא אלנט̇ר ואלתפכיר ואלעבר ואלתד̇כיר פכ̇רקוא חג̇ב אלבצאיר פי טרק אלצ̇מאיר; Ibn-Tibbon: קרבו אל העיון המחשבי והמניני והמועצי קרעו מסך הראות בדרכי המצפונים; Hyamson: ‘they approached subjects belonging to abstract thought, mathematics and applied sciences; they rent the curtain that kept them from seeing ways that are hidden’.102 |
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(b) |
עדדי (عددي): Ibn-Paquda: אן אלוחדה אקדם מנהא כתקדם אלואחד אלעדדי לסאיר אלעדד; Ibn-Tibbon: כי האחדות קדמתו כקדימת האחד המניני לשאר המנין; Hyamson: ‘that unity preceded it, just as the numeral one precedes the remaining numbers’.103 |
The suffix -ūt: this suffix, which expresses abstract ideas, has its origin in III-waw nouns to which the feminine suffix -t was added, e.g., דְּמוּת ,כְּסוּת. Its use was later expanded to non-III-waw roots, consequently forming part of new nominal patterns, e.g., qǝṭilūt, qaṭlūt, hiqqaṭǝlūt, and hitqaṭṭǝlūt — probably due to Aramaic influence, where this suffix is used to form the verbal noun.104
(33) |
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This lexeme was created by the suffixation of -וּת to the lexeme פָּחוּת. All four equivalents below have the meanings ‘unimportance’ and ‘vice’: |
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(a) |
כ̇סאסה (خساسة): Ibn-Paquda: פאד̇א כנת עלי מת̇ל הד̇א אלחרץ ואלאג̇תהאד פי מצאלח ג̇סמך עלי כ̇סאסתה ורד̇אלתה; Ibn-Tibbon: ואם אתה נוהג בחריצות הזאת וההשתדלות הזאת בתקנת גופך עם פחיתותו וגנותו; Hyamson: ‘if you use so much diligence and effort to further the well-being of your body, despite its pettiness and unworthiness’.105 |
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(b) |
סקוט (سقوط): Ibn-Paquda: אפלא תרי נקצאנך וסקוטך פי הד̇א אלמעני; Ibn-Tibbon: הלא תראה חסרונך ופחיתותך בדבר הזה; Hyamson: ‘do you realize how faulty and mean your behaviour in this regard has been?’.106 |
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(c) |
צגר (صغر): Ibn-Paquda: אלאהי לא יחמלני עלי אלוקוף בין ידיך ג̇הלי בצגר קדרי ולא קלה̈ מערפתי בג̇לאלתך; Ibn-Tibbon: אלהי לא נשאני לעמוד לפניך סכלי בפחיתות ערכי ומעוט ידיעתי בגדולתך; Hyamson: ‘O my God, neither my ignorance of my insignificance, nor my little knowledge of Thy greatness’.107 |
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(d) |
נקצאן (نقصان): Ibn-Paquda: פשגל נפסי בה וקצדי אליה נקצאן ביין וכ̇טה פאחש מני; Ibn-Tibbon: אם כן טרוד נפשי בו וכונתי אליו פחיתות נראה וטעות מגונה ממני; Hyamson: ‘since this is so, it would be a manifest degradation and a despicable error to trouble my soul with this world and set my thought upon it’.108 |
4. Conclusion
From the examples presented above, it is obvious that rabbinic Hebrew was a significant part of the nominal lexicon used by Judah Ibn-Tibbon to translate Duties of the Hearts, whether he included rabbinic lexemes that were used with no morphological or semantic changes, biblical lexemes with semantic shifts that occurred in rabbinic Hebrew, rabbinic lexemes that were given new meanings by Ibn-Tibbon, or morphological neologisms that were created by Ibn-Tibbon himself.
As previously noted, this small demonstration serves to indicate the state of the lexicon in Ibn-Tibbon’s translations. Aside from several semantic shifts, which are relatively rare in all periods of Hebrew (i.e., ellipsis and folk etymology), it seems that Ibn-Tibbon used a systematic method for expanding the lexicon according to his needs and the Arabic original. The demonstration here presents this method and its basic components. Nevertheless, we should take into consideration the fact that this method was not employed exclusively with Rabbinic Hebrew by Ibn-Tibbon, for he used the same approach and principles when enriching the lexicon with lexemes from all periods of Hebrew. It seems that methodologically, Ibn-Tibbon was familiar with semantic processes and with the grammatical characteristics of Hebrew and Arabic and that he unquestionably knew how to use them in order to enrich the Hebrew lexicon.
As can be seen in the above examples, the same Hebrew lexeme is frequently used to translate several Arabic equivalents. This obviously reflects the condition of medieval Hebrew, and especially the richness of, and variety in, the Arabic lexicon, in comparison with the insufficiency of Hebrew. Although this is the case with most of the Hebrew entries, one should take into consideration that, at times, the opposite occurred, when the same Arabic lexeme had several Hebrew equivalents. Frequently Ibn-Tibbon created neologisms by adding suffixes to an existing Hebrew lexeme (a lexeme from an earlier stage of Hebrew or a neologism of his own). This suggests a moderately automatic way for creating neologisms and enriching the Hebrew lexicon. Similarly, for Ibn-Tibbon the creation of verbal nouns and nouns from existing Hebrew roots has become a productive method for new lexemes.
Semantically, the lexicon of Rabbinic Hebrew in this translation is varied. An analysis of all the rabbinic entries suggests that the semantic fields from which they were taken were rich and broad, and they correlate with all the subjects Ibn-Paquda deals with in his book: Halakhah (Jewish law), nature, proficiency, economics, time, the human body, faith, knowledge, society, and culture.
In light of all that has been stated above, I have some reservations regarding the declarations of Jewish authors and translators about the state of Hebrew in their era. Although classical Hebrew did not provide all the vocabulary needed in medieval times, it did provide the linguistic and lexical bases on which the lexicon could be evolved. Therefore, as I mentioned above, I believe that these statements regarding the ‘insufficiency of Hebrew’ reflect the approach of these authors and translators to the purity of Hebrew (צחות הלשון), and not only to the state of the language: Classical Hebrew supplied all their lexical and morphological needs, and enabled them to create neologisms. Because they needed the neologisms to translate and compose different works, they had to ‘violate’ the principle of preserving Hebrew as an ancient and holy language.
1 This article is based on some of the findings presented in my PhD dissertation, supervised by Matthew Morgenstern and Tamar Zewi: Barak Avirbach, “The Translation Method of R. Judah Ibn-Tibbon: Issues of Version and Lexicon in His Translation of ‘The Duties of the Hearts’ by R. Bahye Ibn-Paquda” (Haifa University, 2015). These findings were also presented at the 2016 International Workshop on Rabbinic Hebrew, University of Cambridge.
2 Israel Zinberg, A History of Jewish Literature, vol. 1: The Arabic-Spanish Period (transl. Bernard Levin; Cleveland: Press of Case Western Reserve University, 1972), p. 117; Yehuda Isenberg, “Reason and Emotion in ‘Duties of the Heart’” (in Hebrew), Daat 7 (1981), pp. 5–35; Georges Vajda, “Baḥya (Bahye) Ben Joseph Ibn Paquda”, in: Michael Berenbaum and Fred Skolnik (eds.), Encyclopaedia Judaica (2nd ed.; Detroit: Macmillan Reference USA, 2007), vol. 3, pp. 66–67.
3 Zinberg, A History. It is possible that this is the main reason for the fact that we know so little about Ibn-Paquda himself: the focus was on his writings, while the author was forgotten.
4 Yosef Qafiḥ, Torat Ḥovot ha-Levavot: The Origial Arabic Text with a New Hebrew Translation (in Hebrew and Judaeo-Arabic; Jerusalem: Akiva Yosef, 1973), p. 8.
5 Eliezer Schweid, Our Great Philosophers (in Hebrew; Tel-Aviv: Yediot Ahronot, 1999), p. 60. I am currently working on a new publication of this remnant, which has already been published in three different editions by Adolph Jellinek (Leipzig, 1846), David Sluzki (Moscow, 1871), and Avraham Tsifroni (Jerusalem, 1928). I am comparing these editions of the text with the original manuscript (Leipzig UBL B.H. 39), in order to focus on some major inaccuracies in the printed editions.
6 Ira Robinson, “The Ibn Tibbon Family: A Dynasty of Translators in Medieval ‘Provence’”, in: Jay M. Harris (ed.), Beʾerot Yitshak: Studies in Memory of Isadore Twersky (Cambridge: Center for Jewish Studies, Harvard University, 2005), pp. 193–224, at p. 199.
7 Ibid., p. 200.
8 Ibid., p. 201.
9 See, for example, the opinions of Saadia Gaon in Ha-Egron (ed. Allony, p. 151), of Ibn-Janaḥ in Sefer ha-Riqmah (ed. Vilenski, p. 11), and of Judah Halevi in Ha-Kuzari, for which see Yosef Qafiḥ (ed.), Sefer ha-kuzari (Kiryat Ono: Makhon Mishnat ha-Rambam, 1977), pp. 80–82.
10 Towards the end of the Translator’s Preface to the Ḥovot ha-Levavot, p. 5, in the Moscow edition (Torat Ḥovot ha-Levavot, Moscow: Goldman, 1875).
11 See his apologetic remark, ibid.
12 For all entries see my PhD dissertation, Avirbach, “The Translation Method of R. Judah Ibn-Tibbon”.
13 New meanings for lexemes which occur in Classical Hebrew.
14 New lexemes which were created by using existing morphological elements.
15 Compound noun which did not occur in Classical Hebrew but were based on Classical Hebrew lexemes.
16 In this paper I will not discuss phrases of any kind.
17 As it appears in Qafiḥ, Torat Ḥovot ha-Levavot. Words in angle brackets refer to portions of the Arabic original which were not translated by Ibn-Tibbon.
18 Duties of the Heart, with English translation by Moses Hyamson (5 vols., New York: Bloch Publishing 1925–1945; repr. Jerusalem: Kiryah Neʾemanah, 1965). Hereafter: Hyamson.
19 For the biblical meaning see Francis Brown, Samuel R. Driver, and Charles A. Briggs, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament (Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1906), p. 7; for the rabbinic meaning see Eliezer Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit ha-Yeshana ve-ha-Ḥadasha (Berlin: Langenscheidt, 1908–1959), pp. 7–8.
20 The unity of God, chapter 10.
21 The service of God, chapter 5.
22 Spiritual accounting, chapter 3.
23 Introduction.
24 This is also the opinion expressed in Qafiḥ, Sefer ha-Kuzari, and in Hyamson.
25 Brown-Driver-Briggs, Lexicon, p. 338; Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit, p. 1659.
26 The service of God, chapter 3.
27 Brown-Driver-Briggs, Lexicon, p. 476
28 Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit, pp. 2346–2347.
29 Examination of creation, chapter 5.
30 Ibid.
31 Brown-Driver-Briggs, Lexicon, p. 996; Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit, p. 6934.
32 Repentance, opening.
33 On whether this is a case of guttural weakening or of Aramaic influence, see Shimon Sharvit, “The Verbal Noun Pattern הפעלה in Tannaitic Hebrew”, in: Aharon Maman, Steven E. Fassberg, and Yochanan Breuer (eds.), Shaʿarei Lashon: Studies in Hebrew, Aramaic and Jewish Languages Presented to Moshe Bar-Asher, vol. 2: Rabbinic Hebrew and Aramaic (in Hebrew; Jerusalem: Bialik Institute, 2007), pp. 301–322, at p. 304; Uri Mor, Judean Hebrew: The Language of the Hebrew Documents from Judea Between the First and the Second Revolts (Jerusalem: The Academy of Hebrew Language, 2015), p. 91 n. 53, and the references there.
34 The service of God, chapter 4.
35 The love of God, chapter 7.
36 Examination of creation, chapter 6.
37 Abstinence, chapter 5.
38 Spiritual accounting, chapter 3.
39 For references see the Maagarim on-line database of the Academy of the Hebrew Language.
40 Trust in God, opening.
41 Spiritual accounting, chapter 6.
42 The service of God, chapter 4.
43 The service of God, chapter 3.
44 Examination of creation, opening.
45 The love of God, chapter 3.
46 Spiritual accounting, chapter 3.
47 The unity of God, chapter 7.
48 Examination of creation, chapter 3.
49 The love of God, chapter 1. For the words inside the angle brackets see note 16 above.
50 The service of God, chapter 3.
51 The unity of God, chapter 6.
52 Spiritual accounting, chapter 3.
53 The unity of God, chapter 8.
54 Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit, pp. 1142–1143.
55 Introduction.
56 The service of God, chapter 1.
57 The unity of God, chapter 6.
58 Introduction.
59 The service of God, chapter 4.
60 Abstinence, chapter 2.
61 Spiritual accounting, chapter 4.
62 For further discussion and examples, see Avirbach, “The translation method of R. Judah Ibn-Tibbon”, pp. 358–359.
63 Humility, chapter 6.
64 Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit, pp. 811.
65 Introduction.
66 E.g., Gen. 8.15.
67 Examination of creation, chapter 5.
68 Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit, pp. 640.
69 E.g., Avraham Even-Shoshan, Milon Even-Shoshan (6 vols.; Tel-Aviv: Hamilon Heḥadash, 2003), Yaakov Knaani, Otsar ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit (18 vols.; Jerusalem and Tel-Aviv: Masada, 1960–1989); Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit.
70 The unity of God, chapter 9.
71 The unity of God, chapter 2.
72 Repentance, chapter 9.
73 Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit, pp. 7493–7494.
74 The love of God, chapter 7.
75 Abstinence, chapter 1.
76 Examination of creation, chapter 5.
77 Spiritual accounting, chapter 3.
78 The love of God, chapter 7.
79 Repentance, chapter 7.
80 Examination of creation, chapter 5.
81 Trust in God, chapter 3.
82 Examination of creation, chapter 5.
83 Repentance, chapter 5.
84 Trust in God, chapter 4.
85 Introduction.
86 Trust in God, chapter 5.
87 Examination of creation, chapter 3.
88 The service of God, chapter 5.
89 The service of God, chapter 7.
90 Trust in God, chapter 5.
91 Trust in God, chapter 4.
92 Wholehearted devotion, chapter 5.
93 The service of God, chapter 5.
94 See e.g., Noah Shapira, “The Development of the Terminology of Chemistry in Hebrew” (in Hebrew), Leshonenu 24 (1960), pp. 95–105.
95 Qafiḥ, Torat Ḥovat ha-Levavot, p. 108.
96 Examination of creation, chapter 5.
97 Repentance, chapter 10.
98 The service of God, chapter 5.
99 Abstinence, chapter 2.
100 Ben-Yehuda, Milon ha-Lashon ha-Ivrit, pp. 3096–3097.
101 For this meaning of the root عبر, cf. Joshua Blau, A Dictionary of Mediaeval Judaeo-Arabic Texts (Jerusalem: The Academy of the Hebrew Language and The Israel Academy of Sciences and Humanities), p. 421.
102 Repentance, chapter 9.
103 The unity of God, chapter 7.
104 See, e.g., Hans Bauer and Pontus Leander, Historische Grammatik der hebräischen Sprache (Halle: Niemeyer, 1922), pp. 505–506; Emil Kautzsch (ed.), Gesenius’ Hebrew Grammar (2nd English edition, trans. by Arthur E. Cowley; Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1910), p. 241 (§86k); Raphael Nir, Word-formation in modern Hebrew (in Hebrew; Tel-Aviv: The Open University Press, 1993), pp. 75–76. Cf. also Zeʾev Ben-Ḥayyim’s note at the end of Aharon Reuveni’s “Letter to the Editor”, Leshonenu 16 (1949), pp. 223–224.
105 Spiritual accounting, chapter 3.
106 Ibid.
107 Ibid.
108 Wholehearted devotion, chapter 5.