Page:Gesenius' Hebrew Grammar (1910 Kautzsch-Cowley edition).djvu/74

 origin of the words in question (which is of course the surest guide), may depend meanwhile on the following principal rules:—

1. The sign is  in a toneless closed syllable, since such a syllable can have only a short vowel. The above case occurs—

(a) When follows as a syllable-divider, as in   (wisdom),   (food). With  is   and according to the usual view stands in an open syllable with a following, e.g.   (she ate); but cf. .

(b) When a closed syllable is formed by, e.g. (have mercy upon me); but  (with ,  ζ).

(c) When the syllable in question loses the tone on account of a following, e.g.   (all men).

In and   with  is replaced by a conjunctive accent ; so by,  with , and  with  (so Baer after Qimḥi; ed. Mant., Ginsburg, Kittel ).

(d) In a closed final syllable without the tone, e.g.  (and he stood up).—In the cases where  or  in the final syllable has become toneless through   and yet remains, e.g. ,  , it has a  in correct manuscripts and printed texts.

In cases like, , the tone shows that  is to be read as.

2. The cases in which appears to stand in an open syllable and yet is to be read as  require special consideration. This is the case, (a) when follows, e.g., or simple vocal , e.g. ;  ;  (so ed. Mant., Ginsb.) preserve , cf. and the cases mentioned in, n., and , n.; other examples are , ); follows in  (so Ginsburg; Baer ) ,  24:11, and  (so Baer, , others ); (b) before another , e.g. ; on  and  , see ; (c) in the two plural forms  and  (also written  and ). In all these cases the Jewish grammarians regard the  accompanying the  as indicating a Qāmeṣ raḥabh (broad Qameṣ) and therefore read the  as ; thus , , , . But neither the origin of these forms, nor the analogous formations in Hebrew and in the cognate languages, nor the transcription of proper names in the