What Language Did Jesus Speak?
What Language did Jesus speak?
If someone is influential, then people study every minor detail about them and try to become like them by adopting these details. From the common language you speak to the type of shoes you wear, people focus on everything. Influential people do not just influence people but also influence history greatly. They can make anything trendy. After all, everybody tries to be like them. The influence of a person is dependent on the things he loves. And, if the influential figure is someone like Jesus Christ, then people, especially his followers, consider his every move to be sacred and every breath to be holy. Thinking of all of this, people would also try to learn the everyday language he spoke along with following his teachings.
Genesis
Among the other biblical languages such as the Hebrew language, Aramaic has been of great importance. But as of currently, it has been long forgotten. As admirers of history and language, we are glad to detail you about this classical native language of the middle east. To all the Abrahamic religions, it has been of huge significance, and we are going to elaborate on it here.
What do people view Jesus as?
Jesus of Nazareth, Jesus of Galilei, or simply Jesus, is the key figure in one of the world’s largest religions, Christianity. All the Abrahamic religions acknowledge that Jesus existed, and all three of them view it differently. Christians view Jesus as an incarnation of Go,d while Muslims consider Jesus an Islamic Prophet. At the same time, both religions agree on the prophecy that near the final days, Jesus will come/be sent back to Earth as the promised Messiah.
Both religions also agree that Jesus is the son of the Virgin Mary and was born without a father. Historically, Jesus was born around 4 BC. Christians and Muslims also differ in their belief about his final days. According to Christians, Jesus was crucified,d but according to Muslims, Jesus was lifted to the Heavens unharmed.
What Language did Jesus speak?
Jesus is one of the most influential figures in history, both religiously and historically. For centuries, people have debated about which dominant language he spoke, and now we all have the answer. According to many religious scholars and literary evidence, It’s Aramaic. While Jesus was originally a Jew and often referred to himself as a Rabbi, he spoke Aramaic instead of Hebrew, which is just another Semitic ancient Language. Do you know why?
It is because the Hebrew language didn’t exist back then. Before Hebrew, Aramaic used to be the mother tongue of the Jewish population. Arabic and Hebrew later descended from Aramaic. This is also another reason why people sometimes consider Aramaic the liturgical language of Christianity.
Aramaic, an ancient Semitic Language
Aramaic is an ancient Semitic language that originated among Arameans in the historical region of Syria. It belongs to the Afro-Asiatic family of languages. It uses the Aramaic Alphabet, which is derived from the Phoenician alphabet. West Aramaic and East Aramaic are subdivisions of this original language. Its early forms include Old Aramaic and Middle Aramaic. Aramaic developed throughout its three thousand years long history. It has beenthe Lingua Franca of different Empires as well as the language of divine worship.
Difference between Aramaic and Arabic
Though Aramaic and Arabic are both Semitic languages and originated in the Middle East, there are considerable differences between them. Both of these primary languages somewhat share the same vocabulary, pronunciations, and even grammar, but they are different from each other. Historically, both languages have played completely different roles. Arabic and Aramaic differ in the writing system. Both of these languages use different alphabets. While the Arabic language uses only Arabic script, Aramaic uses Syriac, Cyrillic as well as Hebrew script. Arabic is related to Islam, while Aramaic is related to Christianity because it is a popular belief that Jesus and many of his apostles spoke Aramaic.
Importance of the Aramaic Language
Throughout human history, people have thought of Aramaic as a sacred and holy language. Portions of the book of Ezra and Daniel were originally in. Aramaic. Many ancient holy scriptures were in Aramaic. Historically, Aramaic was the Lingua Franca of the Assyrian Empire. Under the rule of the Assyrian Empire, Aramaic became a very prestigious language, and its use spread throughout the Levant, Mesopotamia, and parts of Asia Minor.
Before the advent of Hebrew, Aramaic was the language of the Jewish people as well as several other communities like the Gentiles in the Near East. To be true, Aramaic is an important language to study the Bible, whether the New Testament or the Old Testament. Aramaic is a strong language historically, and history, especially that of the Middle East, as well as various religious studies, would be incomplete without it.
Is it extinct yet?
Aramaic is a dead language. It eventually died out in the 7th Century, and languages like Arabic and Hebrew replaced it. During the 6th to 7th centuries, Muslim armies conquered the majority of the Middle East, establishing Arabic as the key language. It is one of the most influential dead languages, and there are some communities and individuals who managed to use it. In the remote areas of Turkey, Iran, Iraq, and Syria, there are some Aramaic-speaking communities making the language extinct instead of dead. As of now, common people also refer to it as Syriac, Neo-Syriac, and even Assyrian and Chaldean, when the latter two are actually its dialects. If you are in need of English to Hebrew translation services contact us today.
Are there Aramaic Translations available?
Though Aramaic is a dead language, still there are excellent translation services available for it. Aramaic is not an official language of daily use currently so the translation demand is comparatively low than the other languages. It is usually Aramaic manuscripts, earlier documents, and ancient writings that people seek translation services for.
On the internet, you will find numerous translation websites that offer precise translations from Aramaic to English and from English to Aramaic. Because of low literal translation demand and Aramaic being a dead language, the English translation may be costly. It is completely understandable since there are no well-written guides or courses to learn Aramaic. For a language having very little information to talk about, slightly expensive prices are understandable.
Can you learn Aramaic?
It is not like everyone can learn Aramaic. But yes, if you already know Hebrew or even Arabic, then it will be easy for you to do so. Modern languages such as Hebrew and Arabic descended from Aramaic. All three of these languages share a number of similarities, including somewhat similar vocabulary and pronunciation. If you think of learning Aramaic as a challenge and as a living carrier of history, you will surely end up learning it. There are not many tutors or classes for learning Aramaic, so all you have got is you and your motivation to learn it.
Closure
For everyone who loves history, religion, and language, it should be a great pleasure to make efforts to revive a beautiful language like Aramaic. If not revival, at least we should all collectively try to make efforts to make the studying of heritage and language interesting and popular. Again, if neither of them is possible, we should try to protect the descendent languages of Aramaic, like Arabic and Hebrew, so that Aramaic would not be completely forgotten and gradually fade into the ocean of history. If we can make efforts to protect animal and plant species, then we can also do this. It should not be a big deal.
