The sun. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1833-1916, 1897-04-11
HEBREW A LIVING SPEECH.
GREAT USE OF 1T By JEWS IN COR
RESPONDENCE IND BUSINESS.

INV hStNctunnhcnt vi inc NNe OF HhfDFtW-ttth
by Jews Gonernliy-Tho Improving Literary
styic-tirent Modern Hebrew photography.
About three years ago a pamphlet entitled
Fine dWorstdndens Sprdchc made It's appear
ance In Berlin. The author, Nj. Fabius Schach.
had never been hoard Of rs a Hebrew scholar,
nor has he appeared since its publication as the
author Of any work OF Importance; but that
pamphlet was eminently successful. Within
n very short time It. was reprinted three times.
To the run of German readers Mr.. Schach
Ieemed TO have made n now revelation in show
ing that the Hebrew tongue had arisen like a
phmnlx from its ashes. and been endowed with
sufficient vitality to become the vernncular OF
about ten millions or people. scattered all over
the world at the present time. The success OF
his essay mislcd even some American students
Into quoting him as an authority. although he
never professed to give anything like q learned
treatise OIL his subject, aud his historical and
biblioGrlnhical data wero far from being as
comprehensive and as correct as they might
have been. Only about six months ago tho
announcement that n monthly Hebrew publ
cation had made its appe rance in Berlin was
noticed throughout the European press. and
even found its way into some of the nloat inn
Dortant papers here. as IL IL were of exit avr-
binary Importance. PEOPLE wondered II such
a periodical could find readers enough to pay
the cost OF printing 1t.
This notion that tho Hebrew is q dead tongue
Is based on q popular misa pprehersion. nor 10
there any more reason for the common suppo-
sition that the modern Hebrew. at its hest. 10
able only to express theological and religious
thoughts. The Hebrew literature of the pres
emit time comprises hooks and periodicals. on
every scholastic, scientific, and social subject
IMAGINABLE. So great Is the demand for He
lrnt,. ALL o. ~ ALA Ta-, NHaA
there arc two daily papers IN that language.
The one is published in Warsaw and the other
in st. Petersburg. ard several weekly pa Iers
circulate all over the world. Besides tho
monthly publication recently started in Berlin,
there are many magazines OF great value to the
student of social and scholastic learning. Even
here in New York there Is a Hebrew weekly.
and attempts were made lately to establish q
monthly magazine. aud six or seven umbers
actually appeared. with contents sufficiently
varied and interesting to attract the notice OF
many intelligent readers. New books in the
Hebrew tongue appear very frequently, most
ly In Russia. Austria, Germany. and Palestine.
but sometimes even in the United States; and.
like all such publications, they are largely cir
cu!ated among the Jews In all the lands Of
their dispersion.
Besides the uso that the learned Jews MAKE
OF the Hebrew tongue for the writing of books
and periodicals, the unlearned use IL for the
most common practical purposes. Judicial
and business documents are written In that
language for the most part. and sometimes &C.
cording to the formula or in the diction OF the
rabbis of the first centuries Of the Christian
era. Only a disaffected aud litigious jew will
fail TO recognize the validity OF such documents
ana take his case TO a secular court II he knows
that II rabhinical court would decide against
him. Respectable Jewish business houS Sos even
advertise their wares in the Hebrew tongue;
fltra IN ~ Thn frn n . | n u a ran and
acquaiuting the emigrant jew with their
places OF business before he embarks for Amer
Its way among the Jews ali Ger the world.
Tho fact is that the Hebrew has never been
adead tongue TO the Jews.and their love and VEN
lions and entwined with them. 1t was used for
religious and practical purposes quite COM
monty no to the beginning Of the present CEN
fury. when the Western languages became
current among the Je-s. as q consequence OF
their eman cipatIon { ON medieval oppression
ami exclusivsne,-. The ra1S., c: ~"ar:aG. iacds
and the Jewish merchants also had no other
yebic.e of intercomrlunication with their
brethren except the tongue In which the Bible.
the Mishna, and tho later standard works OF
Hebrew literature were written. Tho great
between the ninth and the fifteenth centuries.
composed In the v~rnncular Arnbto of their
writer's. became known to the jews OF the dia.-
Hebrew. The Jewish bankers. ship owners. ex-
~porters, and importers OF Italy. France. AID
Holland had no language to communicate with
their fellow tradesmen and fellow believers Of
other countries excent the Hebrew. for up to
i lhe Dresest wS Ssn far from fn' BEING anSw ns eon% nj m as Il
is now, When a Jewish traveller came from
germany or the Orient among his brethren In
he was compelled TO make his wishes
known in Hebrew. Hence II is that there are
up in the dialects which the Jews speak in the
various lands of their dispersion. The lib
s5aIirs ID, { l.. n whS ig ,ng sD 5hs r SG,b;ns 1 snS
wants to know nothing OF their sacred tongue.
understands and sometimes unconsciously uses
these words and phrases: more frequently he
rarodies them in I'll, language Of his country.
This II Is that imparts the strange ring to
but which appears quito natural to his fel-
low believers.
Historically. what is called the modern He
sincn the ages Of antiquity. In Mishnaio times,
or from about tEo centuries before the Chris
adop,ed some of the grammatical forms of the
Aramean dialect and many words of the lam
suSgss then current iasT M- among ,t the T JS%1. T IhS
go ne of. the Midrashim.. are classed among
the specimens Of good Hebrew. in spite Of the
Euages. Tho Talmudists. both BAbyloniHn
and jcrusLlemite. introduced moro such terms
bNTds always aimed AZ the diction and gram
NAUTICAL forms of tho auth ors Of the Old Tesla
ment. The poets of Arabic Spain introduced
the rhyme Of their Sernacular into the He
DTb". Dut tuNlT ulttlOu =" ~ hlHObL AlWAyg
without exception purs and in the spirit Of
tho Prophets. so that a David or an Isaiah could
have understood them without the least ain
Guilty. After their time the development OF tbs
language went on. but with q tendency toward
greater grammatical accuracy. The schools
of learning used the Talmud dialect. Prayers
and poems were written In pure Hebrew. Cor
respondence and conversation. the latter mostly
among the Jews OF Oriental lands. depended
on the associations of tn. writer or the speaker.
A man Uf learning invariably used Talmudic
terms OF speech; business .people wrote IN the
MN "a n In VghIph fhav 1..ul1 most aaRllV mAlR
themselves understood, aud where they had
no words TO express ideas or things of praoti-
cal use they inserted In parenthesss tho termD
81 their .vernacula-: Elegant writing was
formed after tho Biblical style. or in that OF
the prayer book.
Wh'rs did tho unlearned Jews get their
knowledge OF Hebrew 50 rs to De able to use
It for common letter writing and for practical
purposes2 In tho middle ages, up to tho be-
ginning OF the present century. there were
few. II any. Jews who did not know their daily
prayers by heart. and who rad not studied the
weekly portions OF Scripture with 1T least one
ra obinlcal commentary. Tho vocabulary. OF
these PRAYERS. Scriptures. and rabbinical
writings Is Of itself almost sufficient for the
expression Of the thoughts ami common wants
# any man. Moreover. the sermons OF
their preachers were b~ristling with quotations