Course Descriptions

HCL 6/442 Introduction to Aramaic Dialects - Credit Hours: 3

Semester normally offered: Alternate Spring Semesters

Course Description

The basic structures of Jewish Palestinian Aramaic will be studied in relation to Hebrew and Aramaic dialects of the 1st – 6th centuries AD. Selected texts will be read from Qumran, Bar Kochba, the Palestinian Targum, the Palestinian Talmud and Megillat Antiochus. A special focus will be on the relationship between the Targumic traditions and the interpretational methods of the Midrashic schools. Prerequisite: HCL 6/440.

Course Equivalencies

This course fills equivalencies in the following areas:  

• Language - Aramaic

Course Objectives

By the end of the course, the student should be able to:

• read texts in Jewish Palestinian Aramaic with some degree of fluency;
• understand the position of Jewish Palestian Aramaic in the Aramaic family of languages, as well as identify the major dialectal features of the language;
• understand the purpose and nature of the Targumim, as well as their influence on the New Testament; and
• have a basic understanding of the midrashic method in Jewish exegesis.

Field Study

A one-day interactive field study at a site where students can encounter biblical Hebrew texts, such as the Israel Museum or a synagogue.