July, 2017
When it comes to dikduk I have found two groups –those fastidious about getting it right, and, those that have little patience of the first group.
As a rav I have to make both groups happy while always with the goal toward the correct pronunciations.
This is not always a simple task.
My first years in rabbanus I soon came to recognize how important proper dikduk was to many members, and how deeply some were offended when I would slip. Some delighted in informing me how my errors were signs, in their eyes, of a lack of focus on these matters in traditional chinuch. They were wrong, I would explain, as many of our gedolim are/were masters of dikduk, rather I was just a poor student.
Several years ago I mentioned in this space something-or-other to do with the dor haflaga in parshas noach. A few weeks later I received a letter in the mail from a reader. He informed me, nicely and with wonderful research, that it is not pronounced haflaga, but rather hapalga.
“It couldn’t be!’ I thought to myself, “Doesn’t everyone say haflaga?”
It turns out that not only was he correct, but after checking chumashim which have nekudos placed in Rashi (where this phrase is used -see Artscroll, Rashi 10:28 and 10:8, and their Midrash Rabba ad loc. 32) the talmidei chachamim editors often pronounce it hapalga –like this writer insisted!
But here is the rabbinic conundrum –
The other week I was delivering a derasha on parshas noach.
Always being mindful to use proper didkuk, I remembered that letter and referred to the generation of the dispersion not as the dor haflaga –but rather the correct, although rarely used pronunciation hapalga (as the hei is not a part of the root; hap’laga would also be correct).
Thinking that this will make the ballei didkuk happy, it instead only confused the masses.
I’ve had the same result when I tried to pronounce the daughter of Pharoah correctly as Bisya and not Basya. While correct (see Divrei Hayamim 1:4), it causes everyone’s focus away from the real topic and only fetches confusion and murmuring. (Bisya is the biblical name for this princess, however when naming a baby with this same root today we doindeed pronounce itBasya, as explained by Rav Chaim Kinievsky. See also Vayikarei Shemo B’Yisroel).
So what is a rav to do?
Well, just this week, the gemara in daf yomi was discussing issues surrounding the dor haflaga/hapalga. I mentioned to the shiur all of the above and was then excitedly shown by several in the group how the Artscroll gemara (Sanhedrin 107a note 50) struggled with these same questions. They there write that although the likely pronunciation is in fact hapalga (or hap’laga), so as not to confuse the reader away from the popular pronunciation, they made the editorial decision to use haflaga.
As a point of related interest, and so as to remind them that no particular group should be falsely defined as having little lashon kodesh expertise, I then shared with my group that as the Modern-Hebrew language was being formed, Eliezar Ben Yehudah and the other acutely educated secularists charged with its formation, often turned to the extraordinary gedolim living in Yerushalaim at the time to help with certain words and phrases found in chazal (see “Guardian of Jerusalem” Artscroll, pages -322-330).
Because a language was being partly invented, the endorsed linguists had no choice but to be precise in their word choices and meanings as they are found in chazal and tanach, and who better to turn to than the men who devoted their lives to studying those very words.
The famous leader of the Agudah in Israel (pre-state) Rav Moshe Blau recorded in his memoirs how his father-in-law once stopped in the middle of a shiur to step outside because he heard that Ben Yehudah was waiting with a question as to the proper translation of the word amim found in a gemara zevachim. He explained to his students –who were no doubt shocked at his interrupting his shiur for this man –that “It is a Kiddush hashem for a Yiddish speaking rav to explain to Ben Yehudah the meaning of a Hebrew word that he, the famous Hebrew lexicographer, could not fathom” (ibid. p.323, footnote).
But as complex as translations are, dikduk is a far more intricate arena.
Like the English words address, contrast, present and project, lashon kodesh has many, many words who’s meaning utterly changes upon where one places the accent, where one stresses the syllable.
The story goes that a mechanech complained to Rav Moshe Feinstein regarding why, as this mechanech saw it, yeshivos are not focusing more on proper dikduk. This concerned him, he explained, because parts of teffila and tanach can potentially be misread if one misunderstands proper pronunciation.
Rav Moshe is purported to have humorously responded, “Dikduk? Don’t you mean, dikDUK!” By correctly stressing and accenting the last syllable, Rav Moshe was showing that even those passionate about this subject often misunderstand their intense rules.
This story is similar to another. Rav Yosef Chaim Sonnenfeld, the rav of Yerushalim during the critical pre-State years, also had many dealings with Ben Yehudah. An amusing tale is recorded (ibid.) where Ben Yehudah directly challenged the chinuch among chareidim being delivered in Yiddish and not Modern Hebrew.
“Is there not a promise, recorded in the Talmud Yerushalmi, that anyone who lives in eretz yisroel” and speaks lashon kodesh is guaranteed a share in olam habah?” asked Ben Yehudah.
Although on friendly terms, Rav Sonnenfeld responded sharply.
Ben Yehudah countered to the sharp retort by saying in Yiddish “What kind of shtussim are you saying?!”
Rav Sonnenfeld smiled and said, “You mean, ‘shduyot’!”
Even how to pronounce a yeshiva’s name has entered into the fray. The online encyclopedia Wikipidia keeps on record not just the finished edit of each page, but one can also discover the dialogue and discussions that went into each choice and omission.
The page on the Lakewood Yeshiva – Beth Medrash Govoha –has a most telling back-and-forth between a few lay-editors.
It begins calmly enough discussing the transliteration of the term ‘gevoah’:
-The grammatically-correct transliteration of the Hebrew גָּבוֹהַּ is GOVOAH. NOT GOVOHA. (Just like נֹחַ is Noach, not Nocha)
-You’re right about the grammar, but the {English transliteration is not meant to reflect the Hebrew, per se, and therefore the} name of the school is ‘Govoha’.
-I’m not so sure you are right, as Noach has no nekudah in the Ches while Govoha does have a nekudah in the Heh.
But this dialogue soon turns back into that unfortunate myth about bnei hayeshiva:
-But while we’re on the subject of Hebrew grammar, the correct Hebrew word for study group is ‘chavurah’, not ‘chaburah’ as it is called many times in the article. The latter term (“chaburah”) means injury or wound. Well, the yeshivah world tends to be rather ignorant of and oblivious to Hebrew grammar, in general, and here you have just one more telling example
-It’s Aramic not Hebrew.
-Mmmm… seems unlikely. Could you cite a source for that, or an example from a recognized (pointed) Aramaic text, please?
-I did take the time to search for one, Pasachim 86b.
– clearly you were offended by something I wrote. So sorry, I sincerely ask your mechilah.
Seems the bnei hayeshiva did have it right all along!
We all must be careful with how we pronounce certain words-especially by laining and davening, and, we all could use a little improvement. However, let not our fidelity to dikduk cause hurtful words and broad characterization of certain groups either. That type of error in speech is far worse than a mistaken accent.
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