ADVERTISEMENT. THE true pronunciation of the Hebrew language, as Doctor Lowth observes, is lost. To refer us for assistance to the Masoretic points would be to launch us on a sea without shore or bottom: the only compass by which we can possibly steer on this boundless ocean is the Septuagint version of the Hebrew Bible; and as it is highly probable the translators transfused the sound of the Hebrew proper names into the Greek, it gives us something like a clew to guide us out of the labyrinth. But even here we are often left to guess our way for the Greek word is frequently so different from the Hebrew, as scarcely to leave any traces of similitude between them. In this case custom and analogy must often decide, and the ear must sometimes solve the difficulty. But these difficulties relate chiefly to the accentuation of Hebrew words: and the method adopted in this point will be seen in its proper place. : I must here acknowledge my obligations to a very learned and useful work -the Scripture Lexicon of Mr. Oliver. As the first attempt to facilitate the pronunciation of Hebrew proper names, by dividing them into syllables, it deserves the highest praises but as I have often differed widely from this gen tleman in syllabication, accentuation, and the sound of the vowels, I have thought it necessary to give my reasons for this difference, which will be seen under the Rules: of the validity of which reasons the reader will be the best judge. N. B. As there are many Greek and Latin proper names in Scripture, particularly in the New Testament, which are to be met with in ancient history, some of them have been omitted in this selection: and therefore if the inspector does not find them here, he is desired to seek for them in the Vocabulary of Greek and Latin Names. FOR PRONOUNCING SCRIPTURE PROPER NAMES. 1. IN the pronunciation of the letters of the Hebrew proper names, we find nearly the same rules prevail as in those of Greek and Latin. Where the vowels end a syllable with the accent on it, they have their long open sourd, as Na' bal, Je' hu, Si' rach, Go'shen, and Tu' bal. (See Rule 1st prefixed to the Greek and Latin Proper Names.) 2. When a consonant ends the syllable, the preceding vowel is short, as Sam' u-el, Lem' u-el, Sim' e-on, Sol' o-mon, Suc' coth, Syn' a-gogue. (See Rule 2d prefixed to the Greek and Latin Proper Names.) I here differ widely from Mr. Oliver; for I cannot agree with him that the e in Abdiel, the o in Arnon, and the u in Ashur, are to be pronounced like the e in seen; the o in tone, and the u in tune, which is the rule he lays down for all similar words. 0 3. Every final i forming a distinct syllable, though unaccented, has the long open sound, as A'i, A-ris'a-i. (See Rule the 4th prefixed to the Greek and Latin Proper Names.) 4. Every unaccented i ending a syllable, not final, is pronounced like e, as A'ri-el, Ab' di-el; pronounced A're-el, Ab' de-el. (See Rule the 4th prefixed to the Greek and Latin Proper Names.) 5. The vowels ai are sometimes pronounced in one syllable, and sometimes in two. As the Septuagint version is our chief guide in the pronunciation of Hebrew proper names, it may be observed, that when these letters are pronounced as a diphthong in one syllable, like our English diphthong in the word daily, they are either a diphthong in the Greek word, or expressed by the Greek & or, as Ben-ai' ah, Bavaía; Hu'shai, Xeoì; Hu'rai, Ougi, &c.; and that when they are pronounced in two syllables, as Sham' ma-i, Shash' a-i, Ber-a-i'ah, it is because the Greek words by which they are translated, as Σαμαί, Σεσίε, Βαραΐα, make two syllables of these vowels. Mr. Oliver has not always attended to this distinction: he makes Sin'a-i three syllables, though the Greek makes it but two in Eva. That accurate. prosodist Labbe, indeed, makes it a trissyllable; but he does the same by Aaron and Canaan, which our great classic Milton uniformly reduces to two syllables, as well as Sinai. If we were to pronounce it in three syllables, we must necessarily make the first syllable short, as in Shim' e-i; but this is so contrary to the best usage, that it amounts to a proof that it ought to be pronounced in two syllables, with the first i long, as in Shi-nar. This, however, must be looked upon as a general rule only: these vowels in Isaiah, Græcised by 'Hoatas, are always pronounced as a diphthong, or, at least, with the accent on the a, and the i like y articulating the succeeding vowel; in Caiaphas likewise the ai is pronounced like a diphthong, though divided in the Greek Kalapas; which division cannot take place in this word, because the i must then necessarily have the accent, and must be pronounced as in Isaac, as Mr. Oliver has marked it; but I think contrary to universal usage. The only point necessary to be observed in the sound of this diphthong is, the slight difference we perceive between its medial and final position; when it is final, it is exactly like the English ay, without the accent, as in holyday, roundelay, galloway; but when it is in the middle of a word, and followed by a vowel, the i is pronounced as if it were y, and as if this y articulated the succeeding vowel: thus Ben-ai'ah is pronounced as if written Ben-a'yah. 6. Ch is pronounced like k, as Chebar, Chemosh, Enoch, &c. pronounced Kebar, Kemosh, Enock, &c. Cherubim and Rachel seem to be perfectly anglicised, as the ch in these words is always heard as in the English words cheer, child, riches, &c. (See Rule 12 prefixed to the Greek and Latin Proper Names.) The same may be observed of Cherub, signifying an order of angels; but when it means a city of the Babylonish empire, it ought to be pronounced Ke'rub. 7. Almost the only difference in the pronunciation of the Hebrew, and the Greek and Latin proper names, is in the sound of the g before e and i: in the two last languages this consonant is always soft before these vowels, as Gellius, Gippius, &c. pro nounced Fellius, Jippius, &c.; and in the first, it is hard; as Gera, Gerizim, Gideon, Gilgal, Megiddo, Megiddon, &c. This difference is without all foundation in etymology; for both g and c were always hard in the Greek and Latin languages, as well as in the Hebrew: but the latter language being studied so much less than the Greek and Latin, it has not undergone that change which familiarity is sure to produce in all languages: and even the solemn distance of this language has not been able to keep the letter e from sliding into s before e and i, in the same manner as in the Greek and Latin: thus, though Gehazi, Gideon, &c. have the g hard, Cedrom, Cedron, Cisai, and Cittern, have the c soft, as if written Sedrom, Sedron, &c. The same may be observed of Igeabarim, Igeal, Nagge, Shage, Pagiel, with the g hard; and Ocidelus, Ocina, and Pharacion, with the c soft like s. с C 8. Gentiles, as they are called, ending in ines and ites, as Philistines, Hivites, Hittites, &c. being anglicised in the translation of the Bible, are pronounced like formatives of our own, as Whitfieldites, Jacobites, &c. 9. The unaccented termination ah, so frequent in Hebrew proper names, ought to be pronounced like the a in father. The a in this termination, however, frequently falls into the indistinct sound heard in the final a in Africa, Etna, &c.; nor can we easily perceive any distinction in this respect between Elijah and Elisha: but the final h preserves the other vowels open, as Colhozeh, Shiloh, &c. pronounced Colhozee, Shilo, &c. (See Rule 7 prefixed to the Greek and Latin Proper Names.) The diphthong ei is always pronounced like ee: thus Sa-mei' us is pronounced as if written Sa-mee' us. But if the accent be on the ah, then the a ought to be pronounced like the a in father; as Tah' e-ra, Tah' pe-nes, &c. 10. It may be remarked, that there are several Hebrew proper names which, by passing through the Greek of the New Testament, have conformed to the Greek pronunciation; such as Aceldama, Genazareth, Bethphage, &c. pronounced Aseldama, Jenazareth, Bethphaje, &c. This is, in my opinion, more agreeable to the general analogy of pronouncing these HebrewGreek words than preserving the c and g hard. A Rules for ascertaining the English Quantity of the Vowels in 11. With respect to the quantity of the first vowel in dissyl lables, with but one consonant in the middle, I have followed the rule which we observe in the pronunciation of such dissyllables when Greek or Latin words. (See Rule 18 prefixed to the Greek and Latin Proper Names :) and that is, to place the ac cent on the first vowel, and to pronounce that vowel long, as Ko'rab and not Kor' ah, Mo' loch and not Mol' och, as Mr. Oliver has divided them in opposition both to analogy and the best usage. I have observed the same analogy in the penultimate of polysyllables; and have not divided Balthasar into Bal-thas' ar, as Mr. Oliver has done, but into Bal-tha' sar. 12. In the same manner, when the accent is on the antepenultimate syllable, whether the vowel end the syllable, or be followed by two consonants, the vowel is always short, except followed by two vowels, as in Greek and Latin proper names. (See Rule prefixed to these names, Nos. 18, 19, 20, &c.) Thus Jehosaphat has the accent on the antepenultimate syllable, according to Greek accentuation by quantity, (see Introduction to this work,) and this syllable, according to the clearest analogy of English pronunciation, is short, as if spelt Je-hos' aphat. The secondary accent has the same shortening power in Othonias, where the primary accent is on the third, and the secondary on the first syllable, as if spelt Oth-o-ni' as: and it is on these two fundamental principles of our own pronunciation, namely, the lengthening power of the penultimate, and the shortening power of the antepenultimate accent, that I hope I have been enabled to regulate and fix many of those sounds which were floating about in uncertainty; and which, for want of this guide, are differently marked by different orthoëpists, and often differently by the same orthoëpist. (See this fully explained and exemplified in Principles of English Pronunciation prefixed to the Critical Pronouncing Dictionary, Nos. 530, 547, &c.) Rules for placing the Accent on Hebrew Proper Names. 13. With respect to the accent of Hebrew words, it cannot be better regulated than by the laws of the Greek language. I |