Hebrew alphabet

thumb|right|The phrase "אלפבית עברי" (alefbét ‘ivrí) in a modern serif typeface. The Hebrew alphabet (Hebrew: אָלֶף־בֵּית עִבְרִי, alefbét ‘ivrí), known variously by scholars as the Ktav Ashuri, Jewish script, square script and block script, is traditionally an abjad script used in the writing of the Hebrew language and other Jewish languages, most notably Yiddish, Ladino, Judeo-Arabic, and Judeo-Persian. Quotes thumb|right|"One must be careful with regard to the form of the letters." (Maimonides, Sefer Ahavah 1:19) right לְפִיכָךְ צָרִיךְ לְהִזָּהֵר בְּצוּרַת הָאוֹתִיּוֹת שֶׁלֹּא תִּדְמֶה הַיּוּ״ד לְוָא״ו וְלֹא וָא״ו לְיוּ״ד וְלֹא כָּ״ף לְבֵי״ת וְלֹא בֵּי״ת לְכָ״ף וְלֹא דָּלֶ״ת לְרֵי״שׁ וְלֹא רֵי״שׁ לְדָלֶ״ת Maimonides: Sefer Ahavah, "Tefillin, Mezuzah and the Torah Scroll" 1:19 Translation: One must be careful with regard to the form of the letters, so that a yud [י] will not resemble a vav [ו], nor a vav [ו] a yud [י]; a kaf [כ] should not resemble a beit [ב], nor a beit [ב] a kaf [כ]; a dalet [ד] should not resemble a resh [ר], nor a resh [ר] a dalet [ד]. Eliyahu Touger translation, with additional brackets for clarity. right בשלשים ושתים נתיבות פליאות חכמה חקק יה יהוה צבאות אלהי ישראל אלהים חיים ומלך עולם אל שדי רחום וחנון רם ונשא שוכן עד מרום וקדוש שמו וברא את עולמו בשלשה ספרים בספר וספר וספור׃ עשר ספירות בלי מה ועשרים ושתים אותיות יסוד שלש אמות ושבע כפולות ושתים עשרה פשוטות׃ Sefer Yetzirah 1:1–2 Translation: By thirty-two mysterious paths of wisdom Yah has engraved [all things], [who is] the Lord of hosts, the God of Israel, the living God, the Almighty God, He that is uplifted and exalted, He that Dwells forever, and whose Name is holy; having created His world by three [derivatives] of [the Hebrew root-word] sefar : namely, sefer (a book), sefor (a count) and sippur (a story), along with ten calibrations of empty space, twenty-two letters [of the Hebrew alphabet], [of which] three are principal [letters] (i.e. א מ ש), seven are double-sounding [consonants] (i.e. בג״ד כפר״ת) and twelve are ordinary [letters] (i.e. ה ו ז ח ט י ל נ ס ע צ ק). Yosef Qafih: Sefer Yetzirah Hashalem (with Rabbi Saadia Gaon's Commentary), p. 35. The Committee for Publishing the Books of Rabbi Saadia Gaon, Jerusalem (1972). For reasons that remain obscure, in the case of the Palestinian Jews of Fustat, or Old Cairo—who worshipped in what would eventually become known as the Ben Ezra synagogue—the tradition of geniza was, it seems, extended to include the preservation of anything written in Hebrew letters, not only religious documents, and not just in the Hebrew language. Perhaps, as one scholar has proposed, "the very employment of the Hebrew script ... sanctified written material." Adina Hoffman and Peter Cole: Sacred Trash: The Lost and Found World of the Cairo Geniza, ch. 1, "Hidden Wisdom", p. 14. Schocken Books (2011). 978-0-8052-4258-4. One way or another, the alphabet created a possibility that never existed before, namely of a society of mass, even universal, literacy. With only twenty-two symbols, it could be taught, in a relatively short time, to everyone. We see evidence of this at many places in Tanakh, the Hebrew Bible. Isaiah says "All your children shall be taught of the Lord and great shall be the peace of your children" (Isaiah 54:13), implying universal education. Jonathan Sacks: Exodus: The Book of Redemption. Maggid Books (2010). ISBN: 1-59264-021-4. See also Hebrew numerals External links Category:Alphabets Category:Judaism Category:Hebrew language