I am 58 years old and cannot read or speak Hebrew - - my grandson calls me to tell me what he has learned at school and I don't know what he is saying. We have a Schull in town - the oldest is Iowa but seldom can find enough men for a minion - once or twice a year a young Rabi or student will visit town and help us hold services. My son and I went to Schull yesterday and we were the only ones there. Our community is almost gone. Can anyone point me to records, tapes or computer programs that would help me learn my language?
dear Jacob
I live in Jerusalem Israel and I am a Hazzan (cantor) and Iwas very much touched by your message.
It is esential for a Jew to know his language otherwise he can't read and study all the wide Tora holy books.
I am ready to help you. I can send you some papers and book and try to teach you through my e-mail address which is:
uz12@barak-online.net
I would like to know if you know nothing of Hebrew or you know some letters and words.
good luck
haim salman
I too would like to learn Hebrew, can you also send me the papers and book to learn also? Thanks in advance Jag35211@yahoo.com
Hi. I am a non Jew; however, I am trying to get in touch with my Jewish heratige. I had a great great grandfather killed in Bergen-Belsen with tear gas and would like to be in touch with my inner soul. I also converse back and forth with an e friend of mine who lives in Israel. I would like to be able to have conversations in Hebrew. So, as a request, I ask that you please help me. Thank you.
I wanted to learn authentic hebrew language--iraqi
please help me SIR! e.i., hebrew pronunciation---chanting etc. can you also send me the papers and book to learn! please, thanks a lot in advance HAZZAN HAIM SALMAN. talin_va@yahoo.com
I am looking forward to hear from you SIR!
I was baptized a Catholic as an infant, having been born in a predominantly Catholic country. When I was a child, I was told one of my ancestors fled from Spain during the Inquisition because he was a Jew. He settled down in the Philippines, married a native woman, and I happen to be one of his descendants. I have always been curious to know more about the Jewish religion as well as a desire to learn the Hebrew language. If somebody can point me in the right direction, it will be sincerely appreciated.
Rafael
P.S.- My email is dolphins4raebug@opendiary.com
I have been studying Judaism for over a year now; the next step is obviously to learn Hebrew. I am looking for a very simple cd that I can play either in my car or Sony. Can anyone help me? I will be taking Hebrew I in the Fall. My e-mail address is clonedil49@hotmail.com. Thank-you.
B"H
Questions & Responsa: On Hebrew Grammar
Q: So what does the dagesh (i.e. the dot) do to the Hebrew letters, "Tet" and "Shin," when it appears inside the letter? I think it even appears in the "Qof" at times too.
Is this the same function as when it appears in a "Mem" or "Lamad?" Is this to double or lengthen the sound? Or does it serve some other purpose here? I see this in the siddur all the time.
A: There are only SIX Hebrew letters whose sound changes completely with the adding of a Dagesh (dot or point) , and they are the letters (consonants) "Beged - Kephet." They are 1) "Beth"/"Veth" 2) "Jimel"/"Ghimel" 3) "Daleth"/Dhaleth" 4) "Kaf"/"Khaf" 5) "Pe"/"Fe" 6) "Tau"/"Thau."
Ordinary letters that have the Dagesh (or dot in its middle), only come to stress that particular letter as in "Shammai" (the "Mim" has a Dagesh in it). Other examples are to be found in the letters "Tet," "Shin," "Qof," or "Lamed," as in Hillel, etc., where the Dagesh makes the letter accentuated, that is, we stress its sound. But this is not the only thing a Dagesh (or dot) does to a letter. If the same letter that has a Dagesh in it has also a "Shawa" beneath it (:), then the vowel becomes a "Shawa Na' ," which has almost the sound of a short Patach (if you are Yemenite), or a short Segul (if you are Sepharadi). These are all general rules of grammar. There are other lettters besides these sometimes carrying the Dagesh. We find also the "Yod," and the "Nun," and the "Samach," and the "Tzadi."
Moreover, every letter that comes after the Hebrew letter "He" which is found at the beginning of a word, that is to say, the definite article equivalent to "the" in English, that same letter coming after it always carries a Dagesh, for example:
"Ha-bbayit," Ha-shhofar," "Ha-yyamim," etc. Each of these second syllable letters should be stressed.The only exception to this rule are the Hebrew letters Aleph, He, Het, 'Ayin and Resh, which when they come after the definite article "He" will not carry a Dagesh (dot). All the other letters carry a Dagesh when they come after the definite article "The" in the Hebrew language.
Sincerely, David