פִּיפִיּוֹת PIYPIYOT Isaiah 41:15

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Isaac Fried
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Joined: Sat Sep 28, 2013 8:32 pm

פִּיפִיּוֹת PIYPIYOT Isaiah 41:15

Post by Isaac Fried »

We read there
הִנֵּה שַׂמְתִּיךְ לְמוֹרַג חָרוּץ חָדָשׁ בַּעַל פִּיפִיּוֹת תָּדוּשׁ הָרִים וְתָדֹק וּגְבָעוֹת כַּמֹּץ תָּשִׂים
NIV: "“See, I will make you into a threshing sledge, new and sharp, with many teeth. You will thresh the mountains and crush them, and reduce the hills to chaff."
We notice that פִּיפִיּוֹת is written fully with a yod following the first P. This yod is apparently an intensification of the closing H of פֶּה PEH, 'mouth', shortly standing for היא, 'he/she', and referring to the mouth itself. But now this yod also indicates a xireq under the first P, and a dagesh in the second P becomes unnecessary. Consequently, the second P becomes, by the amusing BKP rule of spoken Hebrew a soft F, by no fault of itself.
We notice further that the the second yod of פִּיפִיּוֹת is with a dagesh, as befitting a consonant following a xireq.

Isaac Fried, Boston University
Isaac Fried
Posts: 1783
Joined: Sat Sep 28, 2013 8:32 pm

Re: פִּיפִיּוֹת PIYPIYOT Isaiah 41:15

Post by Isaac Fried »

Notice that כִּנּוֹר, 'violin', as in Gen. 4:21
יוּבָל הוּא הָיָה אֲבִי כָּל תֹּפֵשׂ כִּנּוֹר וְעוּגָב
KJV: "Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ."
that is written deficiently with no yod following the initial כ K, has a dagesh in the next נ N to hint the xiriq.
On the other hand, צִינוֹק, 'dungeon', as in Jer. 29:26
לְכָל אִישׁ מְשֻׁגָּע וּמִתְנַבֵּא וְנָתַתָּה אֹתוֹ אֶל הַמַּהְפֶּכֶת וְאֶל הַצִּינֹק
KJV: "for every man that is mad, and maketh himself a prophet, that thou shouldest put him in prison, and in the stocks."
that is written fully with a yod following the tzade, the letter nun is left dageshless.
Why? Because the dagesh is not part of the nikud and has no vocal function whatsoever. The dagesh is only an ancient, pre-nikud hint for a vowel.

Isaac Fried, Boston University
Isaac Fried
Posts: 1783
Joined: Sat Sep 28, 2013 8:32 pm

Re: פִּיפִיּוֹת PIYPIYOT Isaiah 41:15

Post by Isaac Fried »

עוּגָב UGAB, 'harp', as in Gen.4:21
יוּבָל הוּא הָיָה אֲבִי כָּל תֹּפֵשׂ כִּנּוֹר וְעוּגָב
KJV: "Jubal: he was the father of all such as handle the harp and organ."
is written מלא, in full, with an וּ, with a shureq, for U, and the gimel is left dageshless. In Job 30:31
וַיְהִי לְאֵבֶל כִּנֹּרִי וְעֻגָבִי לְקוֹל בֹּכִים
KJV: "My harp also is turned to mourning, and my organ into the voice of them that weep."
וְעֻגָבִי is written חסר without the וּ but with a qibbuts under the ayin, yet the gimel is still dageshless. Why? Because at the time the dagesh was introduced into the Hebrew text וְעֻגָבִי was written מלא as ועוּגבי, but with time this וּ was lost.

Isaac Fried, Boston University
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