To whet your appetite, here is a cool graphic of the Syriac alphabet (Estrangela script) from LearnAssyrian.com (Users of modern Neo-Aramaic dialects often refer to themselves, and to their language, as "Assyrian"):
Syriac scripts are interesting in several ways. They are semi-cursive, unlike the square script used for Aramaic and Hebrew. So, some of the letters join other letters before and after. Also, there are three main scripts used, two of which I'll be learning for now. There are also two different vocalization systems. The main one I'll be using is based on Greek capital letters, only written small and either above or below the consonant. Also, they are angled several degrees from their normal orientation. For that matter, so are many of the consonants from the original square script shapes. This at times makes them a little difficult to recognize, coming from using the square script. However, that will come with practice. Fortunately, the letter names are almost the same in most cases, and the sound patterns are similar to Aramaic and Hebrew. There is also another vocalization that uses dots above and below the consonants. Some scholars believe the dot system may have influenced the development of the nikkud system for Hebrew and Aramaic. The textbooks I'll be using have the Greek-derived vowels, as do the Peshitta Bible pdfs I have. However, a print Bible I will order later on has the dot system for vowels.
Edit: I should add here that, before Syriac developed the vowel signs, the use of certain consonants as vowel letters was introduced, just as it was done in Biblical Hebrew and in Imperial/Biblical Aramaic.
Another thing about the consonants is that some of them look like very stylized versions of the square letters, with one or more parts chopped off. Often, they are on their side instead of upright (e.g., alaph and also the qoph in the Estrangela script). Well, I'm sure it will come together with time and practice.
I've been unable to locate any free Classical Syriac video set similar to Aleph with Beth for Hebrew as yet. Although Ben Kantor has begun a similar free series for Biblical Aramaic, which I will start on asap. Perhaps there will be some overlap with Syriac, since they are just different dialects, though widely separated in time. Dr. Francois does have a set of Syriac videos, but I think his may be closer to the traditional grammar-translation approaches. I'll have to see them to find out.
I've also installed a Syriac virtual keyboard on my MacBookPro laptop and about a half dozen fonts from both main scripts I'll be using (Estrangela and Serto). There is a very nice free package of around 20 Syriac fonts from the Beth Marduto website, which I used. I'll also be working with the language on my Android tablet, using the Keyman app I already have been using for Biblical Hebrew. Keyman is a freeware virtual keyboard app that works with Biblical Hebrew and Aramaic, Syriac, Greek, and other languages. You just install the keyboard in the language(s) you want, type your text, and then you can copy and paste the text into your word processor app or into any digital message app or online forum editing screen. It is available for multiple platforms, which is very handy. I don't know yet if the Beth Marduto fonts will work with Keyman and my Android tablet, but hopefully they will.
I'll be starting off with Thackston's textbook, because there is an answer key for the exercises, and Healey's because there are audio tracks for the sentences he uses to illustrate the grammar. One nice thing is that he uses short passages from the Syriac Bible to illustrate the grammar points. These sentences are on the audio, available from Internet Archive. Also, I found some earlier editions (pdfs) of these online for free from legitimate sources (Academia.edu and LearnAssyrian). Since my budget for books is very limited, free stuff is always good. There are also legit free versions of Muraoka's primer and the Coakley edition of Robinson's Paradigms, another primer. I'll probably use some of C-R's exercises since it also has an answer key available. Healey, alas, does not. Oh, I should mention here that one of the Nerdy Biblical Language Majors members (on Facebook) has been generous to share with me a nice Syriac gospels pdf and has offered to do some free tutoring in Syriac by phone. Since, luckily, we have a cell phone plan with unlimited calling and texting (U.S. and Canada), I will take him up on that.
Dan Reilly, the NBLM member on Facebook I mentioned, and I had a nice get acquainted phone call about a week and a half ago. And we also did a little Syriac from the Odes of Solomon, Ode 14. He was nice enough to help me get started by putting the text he sent in both square script and in the Syriac Estrangela script, and reading the text aloud for me, then discussing the vocab and grammar.
Dan has an M.A. in Semitic languages and also has learned Israeli Hebrew and Arabic. He worked in the U.S. Army as an Arabic/English interpreter and translator in Iraq during the last war there, so has a good feel for how languages really work. He also has a good teaching style and enjoys helping people learn. He can work with Biblical Hebrew and Aramaic, and Syriac as well.
As he believes it is important to get a feel for Biblical Aramaic to fully appreciate Syriac, we are going to be reading the Aramaic passages of Daniel together as well as the Syriac translation of these texts. As I have a solid Biblical Hebrew foundation, and have done an initial look over Daniel’s Aramaic, he feels that should work well for our studies. We will also be reading the Hebrew of Daniel together.
This will be the first time for me to have a study partner for a Semitic language, so I feel pumped and excited for the prospect. Our initial study session, despite my not being familiar with the text, went well and I enjoyed it.
Current plan is to do one study session by phone per week, an hour a week, starting on March 18th.
P.S. Shameless bit of self/blog promotion: back in my initial skim the surface effort in Aramaic (a few years back) I researched and then blogged about the famed "Mene, Mene, Tekel, Parsin/Upharsin" handwriting on the wall incident in Daniel 5. You will now want to, of course, visit there and read that article, which you can do here: https://letancientvoicesspeak.wordpress ... -55-25-26/