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==The Hebrew Script==

==The Hebrew Script==

 

The present day Hebrew alphabet is based on the old Aramaic alphabet, which in turn was based on the Phoenician alphabet. The term "alphabet" is something of a misnomer here, as Hebrew script is not in fact an alphabet, but an abjad; that is, a script with only consonants. Diacritics in the form of dots, called "niqqud" (נִקּוּד), are used to indicate vowels. However, the Hebrew script is not a pure abjad, either, and the characters alef, he, vav, and yod are sometimes (in the case of vav and yod, frequently) used to represent vowels. When consonantal letters are used in this fashion, they are called ''matres lectionis'' (Latin, "mothers of reading").

The present day Hebrew printed letters of the Hebrew Bible and modern literature are not Hebrew, but are Aramaic script. The original Hebrew script was much like its close relatives in the middle east - Caananite, Phoenician, and Moabite, and like them Hebrew is fully alphabetic. This means that a sign, though perhaps having originated as a picture (pictograph) or mental concept or action, represents one sound. This was a great advance in literacy as just a few letters had to be learned to produce the limited particular sound issuing from the mouth, rather than myriads of signs having to be learned to represent the myriads of ideas, actions, and concepts. Greek and Latin developed their alphabetic scripts from the semitic.

== Hebrew in the Bible==

== Hebrew in the Bible==