SEMPHIL 220R / HDS 1160 – Northwest Semitic Inscriptions

SEMPHIL 220R / HDS 1160 – Northwest Semitic Inscriptions

Semester: Spring
Offered: 2024
Course Head: Andrew Teeter
Instructor: TBA
Meeting Time: T 9:00am – 11:45am

An introduction to the Old Northwest Semitic languages (especially Old Hebrew, Old Phoenician, Moabite, and Old Aramaic), with a focus on comparative linguistic reconstruction of their grammars and reading and analysis of the major texts attested in these languages. Attention will also be given to the scripts in which these languages were written and to the early history of the alphabetic writing traditions that originated in the Levant and subsequently developed and spread throughout the world.

Prerequisite: a good knowledge of Classical/Biblical Hebrew (represented by at least two years of study, ideally); knowledge of another Semitic language is a plus but not required.

Recommended Prep: Semitic Philology 151.

Offered jointly with: Harvard Divinity School as HDS1160.

For more details please visit the Harvard Course Catalog.