Spring 2017/Pasadena

LG546/846

Lundberg Melzian

LG546/846: NORTHWEST SEMITIC TEXTS (4/2 Units: 160 hours). Marilyn Lundberg Melzian.

DESCRIPTION: This course will introduce the student to the more important remains of the literature of the NW Semitic sphere from the first millennium B.C., i.e., Old Phoenician, Old Aramaic, Old Hebrew, Ammonite and Moabite.

LEARNING OUTCOMES: On completion of this course the student will (1) be familiar with the ancient scripts used in alphabetic texts of the first millennium B.C.; (2) be familiar with the basic grammatical forms in Old Phoenician, Old Aramaic, Old Hebrew, Ammonite and Moabite; (3) be able, with the aid of lexicons, to translate texts in Old Phoenician, Old Aramaic, Old Hebrew, Ammonite and Moabite; (4) be aware of the relationship between the Hebrew and Aramaic of the biblical texts and the languages of first millennium alphabetic inscriptions.

COURSE FORMAT: The course will meet twice weekly for two-hour sessions for a total of 40 instructional hours of recitation and discussion of prepared materials.

REQUIRED READING:

Garr, W. Randall. Dialect Geography of Syria-Palestine, 1000–586 B.C.E. Eisenbrauns, 2008. ISBN: 978-1575063874, Pub. Price $49.50 [289 pp.].

Course Reader [257 pp.].

ASSIGNMENTS AND ASSESSMENT:

  1. Class meetings [40 hours].
  2. Assigned translation and analysis of inscriptions. Students will be expected to be familiar with the questions and problems of the assigned text, with the parsing of grammatical units, and with the basic syntax. Students will be expected to translate and discuss the assignments in class (35%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-4]. [70 hours].
  3. Paper/project (20 pages) on a Northwest Semitic text or texts not covered in class. Summaries of papers/projects will be presented informally to the class during class time toward the end of the quarter (35%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-4]. [40 hours].
  4. Final exam covering assigned inscriptions (30%). [This assignment is related to learning outcomes #1-4]. [10 hours].

PREREQUISITES: LG502 or LG502B. No audits.

RELATIONSHIP TO CURRICULUM: LG846 (2 units) is intended for ThM/PhD students. LG546 (4 units) is intended for master’s level students and is an option to fulfill a requirement in the Ancient Context of the Old Testament emphasis or the Ancient Near Eastern Studies emphasis.

FINAL EXAMINATION: Yes.


NOTE: This ECD is a reliable guide to the course design but is subject to modification. Textbook prices are set by publishers and are subject to change.

For your convenience, order these texts online through the Archives Bookshop.