[B-Greek] SBL article on biblical language
R Yochanan Bitan Buth
ybitan at mscc.huji.ac.il
Wed Aug 17 13:36:13 EDT 2005
I saw a long discussion on list about learning Greek and I still
wonder how many listers ever ask themselves what it means to know a
language?
Do people ever compare their Greek with their successful German?
Successful German? What would that be? Well, I leave that for people
to sort out.
Here in Jerusalem there are many who will give advice to newcomers on
how to learn Hebrew. I get my fare share of requests, too. I preface
any advice with a word of wisdom for evaluating conflicting claims:
weigh the advice from successful learners over those who 'want to
learn', especially if they have been wanting a long time.
Now for another direction. The SBL forum site has posted an article on
Hebrew textbooks. Much of what is says is relevant to Greek, as well.
http://www.sbl-site.org/Article.aspx?ArticleId=420
SBL Forum
Why Hebrew Textbooks Are Different From Those For Other Languages
Frederick E. Greenspahn
It is an interesting and fair discussion to which several parallel
issues arise as well: doesn't a class need to be more than a textbook?
It seems to be possible to take any textbook and misteach: so what
would a good class be like? What language would it be in? Is
metalanguage language learning? Success may need to be measured in
ways that no one is currently measuring. KAI TA LOIPA
Anyway, the above article is presented as a promising starting point,
though I would say that the issue of 'color' is a redherring.
ERRWSQE
Randall Buth
Randall Buth, PhD
Director, Biblical Language Center
www.biblicalulpan.org
and Director, Biblical Studies in Israel
Hebrew University, Rothberg International School
ybitan at mscc.huji.ac.il
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