The applicability of semantic functions to biblical hebrew

Abstract

In traditional grammars of Biblical Hebrew semantic relations between the different elements in sentences are either ignored or integrated with syntax. What is presented as syntax (even in the newest reference grammars like Waltke and O'Connor's Biblical Hebrew syntax and Jou on and Muraoka's A grammar of Biblical Hebrew), is in fact a mixture of syntax and semantics. Therefore, it has become necessary to consciously try for a better distinction between these two levels of linguistic description, although they can never be separated completely. One of the ways in which this can be done, is by testing the applicability of a semantic theory to sentences in Biblical Hebrew in order to try to identify the semantic categories more clearly. In this paper S.C. Dik's theory of Functional Grammar is used for this purpose, in particular the sections on semantic functions. Following a short definition of every semantic category which is relevant for the analysis of logical relations in sentences, examples from Biblical Hebrew are given to test the validity of the various categories and their definitions and to show how this theory can be applied to Biblical Hebrew. It is found that the theory of semantic functions in Functional Grammar can be applied very well to Biblical Hebrew and that a semantic analysis of a sentence can be undertaken in addition to the morphological and syntactic analyses.