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41.



THE JEWISH ENCYCLOPEDIA

41

there are two or more words, the I'Dlluwing of abtireviatioii prevail: (0) n'3.-" •U'N7; („) The initial letter of every word, whether it tie a radical or a formative element or an insepai-alile particle, is retained— the rest is omitted; n-y = v^;; n-^j-ps 'N. ij-^s cn^as; for example, n"n =

When

modes

ci'-B-n

=

v'|i

.

-i^ni

S|->

It is to

.

noticed, however,

lie

that, if the first word of the eomliination hefiins with an inseparable particle, sik h particle is not counted; d-nh = t,-D j^nh. s'-;2 for example, n"as = ) N'TJinn =

= np



DH^3N 13 2-j s-d- 2-y 3in_ j,nd more usiiallv written p"'tt'.T.

Two

(i)

«'.73N

3'K73 =

=

but

1!"?^? =?!',

3-i>t ="',';

r'>:'X?,''

'

Hebrew. P''3P 'S'D: Sometimes the final letters of sevwords are combined into a group. This, where the initials make no sense, is done for mnemotechnic (_(/)

eral



DJ3!<

=

I'DN;

^7;P:' •"'^"VJ?

or last word of the combination sometimes retained in the abbreviation

tlie first

is short, it is

entire; for example, = yi mr; n'<3N =

p'jr

'''>>>'

=

n"^-'

"s ''X l^"



=

",'

^}^':

'ii;;n ^^^(

of a larjrer (< 11'!'. ^^ r?"'" I'«; 'I'xxi *<-.sn inNi

nicN

HNj.-i

'jp3 v)s

i3''n •^;3

T^'Dt<

-licVt

inN

n"33



o"C

n"n

=

bin fx.

This splitting ip into groups is at limes guided by no principle (for exnsn;i-i hot f! P'? 3N l'Njn)_ j„„ ample, r'^BT T3(:

«;

gives the words <3s:

i-ik: 113J1

pronounced J's below)

'?;? Si? yields an assonance when ^il? 3? (compare Pronunciation,

V."'

-.'.'

'"!

= D'ii3j numbers 91.

dV: o'-jna dS: B-airiN oSr

3"r k-3

2'2. 23. gives the serial longer groups, particles and sometimes one ( In or more whole words may be left unrepresented for = ?«•:; example, t^" = N37 Bv-irc] NspijS; 3'nN3 c'ly tjci = jn7?!t bt n'-Myni KC'C ",'13^^; p'cb' =' r'"i33rp:.':| ^^n ri'3-;

'''pO'i

iNCD'''; n'BJ

'^i;'?

=

=

'^n';

^.'j;?',':

"'"^

'''^"

!rir[r3,]'''-!331

[B'iif"?i'l

AVhen quoting Scriiitural passages, on (/ r>}'^P: account of religious scruples, only the tirst word is written out in full, the rest being given in Abbreviations. This mode is especially common among Kamitic authors (compare "Jew. Quart. Rev." vii. 303).



PTD'n t'na

=

It''"

^"V-ti

=

"A Fragment

of the

Taimud,"

Ages. This kind of abbreviation does not On the origin of pro|)erly belong lo our subject.

such a"?!''?, compare Griitz, " Gnosticismus im judenthum." p. 100. and •'r.n cd. viii. 90; see also the articles C.ii.M..v and Not.xhikon. (1) Owing to the fact that Ablireviations were frequenily formed into groups which. when read as a word, gave a meaning and were used.

Pronunciation.

exaniple,

i<--;71.-:,

(/')

of the

A

species of Abbreviations consists in the use

lell( rs

with

tiuiiiirical valui'.

Such use goes

to anli(|uily, and was already known to the authors of the Biblical books (compare Ilol/.liiger to in Marli's Gen. xiv. 11. and llerlholet to Kzek. iv.

back

,"1,

"Kur/.er

On

Hand Kommcnlar/um Allen T<siament

this use is also bused the licrmcneutii-

").

rule of

Gkm.vthia. Thise Idlers with numerical value may -' = :i|ll; '"'P = (IIH; be wrillin by Ihcmsclvcs, as. or together, with the .bbrevialions of words, as, p.._ pii-ep ic-y; '•ys = fu"7 B'y2';'3 I'cs = it b'.-u;'

y?-;?!.

It is

furtherto be noticed that in modern limes

n-^y;.

="3?1, r'3,-,1,

'•^"T''..

"-O



such pronunciation of numbers, especially of more than two places; for example,

Equally frequent J"?-"!,

"""1,

is

""P'^'.

Such pronounced Abbreviations are accepted in modern literature as r<'al words, and eviii form derivatives. They are useil both in judse and in jioetry. and the abbreviation signs are not always written a source of perjilcxily lo the uninitiated. Compare (3)

—

rvs'ri, "the heresy of Shabbetliai Zebi.'' fnmi ^"^', the initials of that" name (Gottlober. "Toledot ha"a poem the nuKabbalah." p. 11); "'?.'^'-,^"~ merical value of whose letters in every line is equivalent to the date of the year in which it was composed " (a'33i3n, p. 30, note).

618 618

= =

Cjy

_

B"

21).

as a help lo ilic memory in oral study, kiixls of Abbreviations, even such as have no meaning when taken as

all

words, came in later times to be pronounced with supplied vowels; for example, ?""'.-", (B. B. 464), D-iry (nD.x'n,s ni'', vii. 96), k^'V ((7). 98). This is especially common with names of authors and books: for

«;>"); V'3r'« N3

fol. l,/.'col. 1,

of letters, to

Jlidille

'V'?

[3'i:]

The mystic combination

1"?:

(/)

which dynamic powers were attributed, dates from the early G.ndsis, and was very eoinmon in the

(Gotthiber,

(Lowe, 1.

- 3N3['L-]N3-;[Nj;;u:in]

=''-'-^3.s

purposes; for example,

.

«T3

"ary.

B's-if'j

When

(<•)

=

T'.mN



'^"'1

retained of one or several = r^y2 rii>s 3"NN = -n''N

are

letters

words; for example,

pij

the use of r' ,"• for 1.5, 16 is avoided (such groups being part of the divine name) and i"a a substiIn some eases the numeral n tuted in their stead. " and pronounced "n with allusion to the is written meaning "alive," "living," which the word basin

.

tills

=

Abbreviations

,^3'7i< ns B'i7p>n ay

n3'rN 1 ''sn

an'' D-"

j^r pjn

Swj3

'py. M?';'

"Toledo! ha Kabbalah."

.i.Vn^I

E.:';'

p.

'13

31).

This

=

"the date of the V^^. '=:P'', yields the P'"^ year with the omission of the lliiaisands" Hence, " l.uah Al.ii1H.")K 11. r. (see also (U8 = .">61« ..M. asaf." ii. 31: Uolitzky. "Sliin- Miiiahem." ji. 105). Abbreviations may be divided inlo general and

poem

=

lallerclass belong disirelicaiary Abbreviations formed for spi-eial cases or by certain authors; while the general Uses. ,bbrevialions. through their eonneclion with the history of eullure and of lileniture. have become mouuini'nls of idiiis ami of .seiilimenls. and havi' eonu' to possess hislorii' sigiiilieanee (comspecial.

To the

Till' oldest ri'gular pare Zuiiz. "'/.. (i." p. 4.VI). uses of .Vbbreviations as found in the Talmud are: