HEBREW NIQQUD VOWEL : SHVA
Andre Widodo
© ORI
Shalom,
SHVA or, in Biblical Hebrew [שְׁוָא] is a Hebrew NIQQUD VOWEL sign written as TWO VERTICAL DOTS "ְ" underneath a letter.
In Modern Hebrew, it indicates either the phoneme /E/ or the complete absence of a vowel (Ø).
The TWO RED DOTS is a SHVA, and makes a sound /E/. In the picture there are Hebrew letters SHIN-VA-ALEPH. Because the letter SHIN has a NIQQUD SHVA, so the letter SHIN will have a sound as /SH.E/.
The second letter is VAV with NIQQUD KAMATZ. The NIQQUD KAMATZ makes a sound /A/, so the letter VAV with NIQQUD KAMATZ will have a sound as /VA/
The thrid letter is ALEPH. ALEPH has no sound of its own, but usually has a vowel associated with it.
So the word [שְוָא], has transliteration as SHVA.
What about TETRAGRAMMATON [יְהוָֹה], YOD-HEY-VAV-HEY? The first letter YOD with NIQQUD SHVA, can we sound the letter YOD as /YE/?
The answer is :
No!
Why?
In ancient Temple times, only the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) would utter the NAME during YOM KIPPUR, inside the TEMPLE only, in the HOLY OF HOLIEST only[TALMUD Yoma 39b].
The Jewish HALAKHAH is to not pronounce the sacred NAME at all, but to substitute the word ADONAI ("my LORD") in its place. Thus, when reading Torah, you do not attempt to vocalize the NAME, but say ADONAI instead. When not reading Torah or the Siddur, most observant Jews refer to the sacred Name simply as HA'SHEM or "the NAME" (Lev. 24:16).
TETRAGRAMMATON is not to be read as YAHWEH nor JEHOVAH.
Why is not YAHWEH?
Because there is no "/WE/" sound in Hebrew
Why is not JEHOVAH?
Because it was just the Masoretes who ensured that the Name of the LORD would not be taken in vain by substituting the vowel marks for ADONAI and putting them under the letters
. So JEHOVAH is just a combination of the word [אֲדֹנָי] and the word [יְהוָֹה], which does NOT reflect the real NAME.
So, let us stick to what the sages have set in the HALAKHAH. If we read the TORAH or SIDDUR, we sound TETRAGRAMMATON as ADONAI. And if we are in secular environment, we sound TETRAGRAMMATON as HA'SHEM.
Andre Widodo
© ORI
Shalom,
SHVA or, in Biblical Hebrew [שְׁוָא] is a Hebrew NIQQUD VOWEL sign written as TWO VERTICAL DOTS "ְ" underneath a letter.
In Modern Hebrew, it indicates either the phoneme /E/ or the complete absence of a vowel (Ø).
The TWO RED DOTS is a SHVA, and makes a sound /E/. In the picture there are Hebrew letters SHIN-VA-ALEPH. Because the letter SHIN has a NIQQUD SHVA, so the letter SHIN will have a sound as /SH.E/.
The second letter is VAV with NIQQUD KAMATZ. The NIQQUD KAMATZ makes a sound /A/, so the letter VAV with NIQQUD KAMATZ will have a sound as /VA/
The thrid letter is ALEPH. ALEPH has no sound of its own, but usually has a vowel associated with it.
So the word [שְוָא], has transliteration as SHVA.
What about TETRAGRAMMATON [יְהוָֹה], YOD-HEY-VAV-HEY? The first letter YOD with NIQQUD SHVA, can we sound the letter YOD as /YE/?
The answer is :
No!
Why?
In ancient Temple times, only the Kohen Gadol (High Priest) would utter the NAME during YOM KIPPUR, inside the TEMPLE only, in the HOLY OF HOLIEST only[TALMUD Yoma 39b].
The Jewish HALAKHAH is to not pronounce the sacred NAME at all, but to substitute the word ADONAI ("my LORD") in its place. Thus, when reading Torah, you do not attempt to vocalize the NAME, but say ADONAI instead. When not reading Torah or the Siddur, most observant Jews refer to the sacred Name simply as HA'SHEM or "the NAME" (Lev. 24:16).
TETRAGRAMMATON is not to be read as YAHWEH nor JEHOVAH.
Why is not YAHWEH?
Because there is no "/WE/" sound in Hebrew
Why is not JEHOVAH?
Because it was just the Masoretes who ensured that the Name of the LORD would not be taken in vain by substituting the vowel marks for ADONAI and putting them under the letters
. So JEHOVAH is just a combination of the word [אֲדֹנָי] and the word [יְהוָֹה], which does NOT reflect the real NAME.So, let us stick to what the sages have set in the HALAKHAH. If we read the TORAH or SIDDUR, we sound TETRAGRAMMATON as ADONAI. And if we are in secular environment, we sound TETRAGRAMMATON as HA'SHEM.
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