Exegetical Terms Used in Medieval Hebrew Biblical Commentary (Parshanut)
Jonathan Homrighausen, under the guidance of Marc Brettler
Last Revised March 19, 2021
Although many terms used in medieval Jewish grammatical and exegetical works are familiar to the modern student of the Hebrew Bible, others are less known. Partially, this complication arises from the fact that the modern student of Classical Hebrew is confronted with terms from different grammatical traditions, such as those from comparative Semitics (e.g., G-stem and N-stem) and from Latin and Greek grammar (e.g., genitive and accusative). Further, medieval conceptions of Hebrew grammar are not identical to contemporary understandings, and some now-familiar terms had a different meaning. This glossary is only intended as a starting-point; for a brief introduction to the topic of grammatical thought in medieval Jewish biblical exegesis, see Kearney.
This brief glossary helps the modern English-speaking student navigate technical terminology in parshanut, focusing especially on the northern French school (Rashi, Rashbam, and others), Ibn Ezra, and the Qimhis. A bibliography is supplied at the end. The glossary is arranged alphabetically, with verbs under their root and nouns as themselves as in HALOT; when multiple words or phrases fall under the same root, the first entry is bolded. Occasionally the lexeme or verbal root is bracketed off before a word or phrase to clarify. If you are unable to find a given phrase, it may be listed under a different word in the phrase, and you can search (Ctrl + F; Command + F for Macs) to find it.
The core of this glossary was built from the glossaries of Baker and Nicholson, Feldstern, Friedländer, and Talmage (see bibliography). In the future we hope to add examples from primary parshanut literature and Arabic equivalents for key terms. We did not include all terminology; see Yeivin, Khan 2020, and the glossary in Miqra’ot Gedolot haKeter for Masoretic terminology, and “ביאור מונחים וביטויים שבפירוש רלב״ג” for philosophical and scientific terms found in Ralbag. We will also add the names of the vowels and the cantillation/accentuation marks as appendices. We are continually adding more references and examples, and welcome any suggestions, corrections, additions or refinements at marc.brettler@duke.edu or jh596@duke.edu; please use the subject line: Corrections to parshanut glossary.
Bibliography
“ביאור מונחים וביטויים שבפירוש רלב״ג” [Explanation of Terms and Expressions in the Commentary of Ralbag]. In Miqra’ot Gedolot HaKeter. At mgketer.org/article/2/ביאור-מונחים-וביטויים-שבפירוש-רלבג.
Bacher, Wilhelm. Die Exegetische Terminologie der jüdischen Traditionsliteratur. Leipzig: Hinrichs, 1899.
———. “Die Grammatische Terminologie des Jehuda b. David Hajjugs.” Vienna, 1882.
Baker, Joshua, and Ernest W. Nicholson. “Glossary.” Pages 171–90 in The Commentary of Rabbi David Kimḥi on Psalms CXX-CL. Edited by Joshua Baker and Ernest W. Nicholson. University of Cambridge Oriental Publications 22. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press, 1973.
Berlin, Adele. Biblical Poetry Through Medieval Jewish Eyes. Indiana Studies in Biblical Literature. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1991.
Castelli, D. “Le séfer sékhel tob—abrégé de grammaire hebraïque de Moïse Qimhi.” Pts. 1 and 2. Revue des Études Juives 28 (1894): 212–27; 29 (1894): 100–110.
Chomsky, William. David Kimhi’s Hebrew Grammar (Mikhlol): Systematically Presented and Critically Annotated. Philadelphia: Dropsie College, 1933.
Cohen, Mordechai Z. Three Approaches to Biblical Metaphor: From Abraham Ibn Ezra and Maimonides to David Kimhi. Études Sur Le Judaïsme Médiéval 26. Leiden: Brill, 2003.
Cooper, Alan Mitchell. “Biblical Poetics: A Linguistic Approach.” PhD diss., Yale University, 1976.
EHLL = Khan, Geoffrey, ed. The Encyclopedia of Hebrew Language and Linguistics Online. Brill, 2013. https://referenceworks.brillonline.com/browse/encyclopedia-of-hebrew-language-and-linguistics.
Englander, Henry. “Grammatical Elements and Terminology in Rashi’s Biblical Commentaries: Part I.” Hebrew Union College Annual 11 (1936): 367–89.
———. “Grammatical Elements and Terminology in Rashi’s Commentaries: Part II: Rashi’s Vowel Terminology.” Hebrew Union College Annual 12/13 (1937): 505–21.
Eppenstein, S. עיון וחקר [Study and Research]. Jerusalem: Mosad haRav Kook, 1976.
Feldstern, Baruch, Some Bible Study Resources. An unpublished guide for students at Pardes Institute for Jewish Studies.
Friedländer, Michael. The Commentary of Ibn Ezra on Isaiah: Edited from Mss. with Notes and Glossary. Vol. 3. London: Society of Hebrew Literature, 1877. http://archive.org/details/commentaryofibne03ibne.
Garfinkel, Stephen. “Clearing Peshat and Derash.” Pages 129–34 in Hebrew Bible / Old Testament: The History of Its Interpretation, Volume 1, From the Beginnings to the Middle Ages (Until 1300), Part 2, The Middle Ages. Edited by Magne Saebo et al. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 2000.
Gruber, Mayer I., ed. Rashi’s Commentary on Psalms. Brill Reference Library of Judaism 18. Leiden: Brill, 2004.
Harris, Robert A. Discerning Parallelism: A Study in Northern French Medieval Jewish Biblical Exegesis. Brown Judaic Studies 341. Providence, RI: Brown Judaic Studies, 2004.
———. “Twelfth-Century Biblical Exegetes and the Invention Of Literature.” Pages 311–29 in The Multiple Meaning of Scripture: The Role of Exegesis in Early-Christian and Medieval Culture. Edited by Ineke Van ’t Spijker. Commentaria 2. Leiden: Brill, 2009.
Kearney, Jonathan F. “Grammatical Thought in Medieval Jewish Exegesis in Europe.” In EHLL.
Khan, Geoffrey. A Short Introduction to the Tiberian Masoretic Bible and Its Reading Tradition. Gorgias Handbooks. Piscataway, NJ: Gorgias, 2014.
———. “Hebrew and Aramaic Terms.” Pages 2:19–24 in The Tiberian Pronunciation Tradition of Biblical Hebrew. Cambridge Semitic Languages and Cultures 1. Cambridge: Open Book Publishers, 2020. https://www.openbookpublishers.com/product/1112.
Lockshin, Martin I., ed. Rashbam’s Commentary on Deuteronomy: An Annotated Translation. Providence, RI: Society of Biblical Literature, 2004.
Ofer, Yosef. The Masora on Scripture and Its Methods. Fontes et Subsidia Ad Bibliam Pertinentes 7. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2019.
Pereira-Mendoza, Joseph. Rashi as Philologist. Semitic Languages 3. Manchester: Manchester University Press, 1940.
Prijs, L. Die Grammatikalische Terminologie des Abraham Ibn Esra. Basel: Sepher-Verl, 1950.
Ta-Shema, Israel. “על הפירוש לפיוטים הארמיים שבמחזור ויטרי” [Concerning the Interpretation of Aramaic Piyyutim in the Machzor Vitry]. Pages 701–8 in כנסת מחקרים: עיונים בספרות הרבנית בימי הביניים [Collected Research: Studies in Rabbinic Literature in the Middle Ages]. Jerusalem: Mosad Bialik, 2003–04.
Talmage, Frank. “רשימת המונחים הדקדוקיים והפרשניים” [List of Grammatical and Exegetical Terms]. Pages 440–48 in Frank Talmage, ed., פירושים לספר משלי לבית קמחי [The Commentaries on Proverbs of the Kimhi Family]. Jerusalem: Magnes, 1990.
Yeivin, Israel. Introduction to the Tiberian Masorah. Translated by E. J. Revell. Masoretic Studies 5. Atlanta: Scholars Press, 1980.
Acknowledgments
I would like to thank Marc Brettler for suggesting this project and including it on his website. In addition, gratitude is due to Barry Dov Walfish, Robert Harris, Yedida Eisenstat, Steven Bob, and Martin Lockshin for their generous feedback and comments. A special thanks to Baruch Feldstern for sending his unpublished classroom glossary and allowing me to use it. All responsibility for mistakes is, however, mine.