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Casanellas, Pere: Translational Techniques in the Targum of Zechariah
In the Targum of Zechariah we find some of the known translation techniques
that are generally used in the Targums and specially in Targum Jonathan. In
this paper, some of these techniques will be compared to the translational
characteristics that we find in other ancient versions of the Hebrew text:
the Septuagint, the Peshitta and the Vulgate.
Cook, Edward : The Vocabulary
of Targum Onkelos and its Implications
The idea that Targum Onkelos may not have originated in Palestine has
gained some ground in recent years after having been neglected by scholars
of
the targums. My own suggestion has been to site the language of Onkelos
in a
putative "Central
Aramaic," which could display likenesses to both "Western" and "Eastern" Aramaic.
An examination of Onkelos' vocabulary provides support to my earlier
study, which was based on morphology.
Díez
Merino, Luis: The Oldest Zaramaic Bible according to the manuscripts
At the beginning of the Aramaic Bible, there was only the transmission
of manuscripts, while the text-critical editions arrived at the end.
In the
middle, there are
more questions than answers. One key question is, when did the complete
Aramaic Bible receive its latest editorial form? We know the complete
Aramaic Bible
appeared in the Rabbinic Bibles (1515-17 and 1524-25), although Targum
Chronicles is missing. In the thirteenth century, we know of some MSS
with the complete
text of the Aramaic Bible (TgChron included). However, the Palestinian
Targums (Pseudo-Jonathan, Fragmentary Targums, Neofiti 1) are missing
from them.
From the sixteenth century on, two Esther Targums are transmitted,
while formerly
only one Tg Esther was known. This paper will present the oldest MSS
in order that we may ascertain in some way the history of the Targum’s
transmission through the ages.
Flesher, Paul: Jewish
Aramaic in Palestine
How is the Aramaic dialect of Rabbinic Galilee--that in which the Palestinian
Targums are written--related to the Aramaic of Judea? Fitzmyer’s
periodization of Aramaic implies a direct development, as if Galilee and
Judea were the
same location. While some linguistic evidence fits this interpretation,
other evidence
contradicts it.
This paper explores the possibility that the Aramaic dialect of third-century
CE Galilee originated from second-century BCE Judea. When the Hasmoneans
repopulated Galilee, did the transplanted Judeans bring their dialect
with them? If so,
then Galilean Aramaic developed from Judean Aramaic as used not at
the end of the Middle Aramaic Period, as Fitzmyer’s scheme
suggests, but from that used at the period’s beginning.
Freedman,
Harry: The Halakhic Sources for Targum Pseudo Jonathan
The sources for the legal material in Targum Pseudo Jonathan are
overwhelmingly tannaitic. In many cases it is possible to identify
sound exegetical
reasons why a particular tannaitic opinion was included, irrespective
of the majority
view or the eventual legal codification. The targumist made use
of Mishnah, Mekhilta d’Rabbi Ishmael, Sifra, Sifrei Numbers
and a text similar to Midrash Tannaim. There is also regular use
of halakhic targumic traditions.
Many halakhic remarks within the targum have no parallel elsewhere
and can be shown to be derived from the targumist’s independent
reasoning There is no halakhic evidence that the targumist was
aware of either the Palestinian
or Babylonian Talmuds, nor of Pirkei d’Rabbi Eliezer.
Giralt-Lopez,
Elisabeth: Reward and Punishment in the Targum to Amos
The eternal salvation of the righteous and the definite perdition
of the wicked in the Day of Judgment is a recurrent theme in
the targumic
interpretation
of Prophets. Targum to Amos echoes this image defending that
last decision of every member of the congregation of Israel will
determine
the final
consequences for each individual: whether they receive an end
to their sufferings or an
eternal punishment.
Houtman, Alberdina:
The Role of Abraham in Targum Isaiah
One of the most important representations of Israel is Abraham.
It is therefore rather surprising that in the biblical prophetic
literature
he does not play
a very important part. Only seven times his name is mentioned,
of which four in the book of Isaiah, i.e., TgIs. 29:22, 41:8,
51:2, and 63:16.
Apart from these four cases in the biblical book of Isaiah,
however, there are no less than nine extra references to Abraham
in Targum
Jonathan to Isaiah.
Moreover, he also appears in a number of Tosefta Targums. In
this presentation we will investigate what role Abraham plays
in the
message the meturgeman
wants to convey to his audience, and how he connects the explicit
references to Abraham
to the biblical text. The following themes will be passed under
separate review: The Calling of Abraham; The Relationship between
Abraham
and God as an Ideal
for the Relationship between the People of Israel and God;
The Covenant; Abraham as a Model of Faith; and The Merit of
the Fathers.
Kasher, Rimon: The Palestinian
Targums to Gen. 4:8. A New Approach to an Old Controversy
This paper will address the Palestinian Targums to Gen. 4:8,
exemplifying a new approach to the dispute between Cain and
Abel, shedding a
different light
on the background of this passage.
Kaufman, Stephen: Using
the Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon for Targumic Research: New Tools
The Comprehensive Aramaic Lexicon project has been bringing
together and encoding Aramaic texts and inscriptions for
well over a decade.
In recent years, it
has been developing tools to help scholar study the Aramaic
data it has assembled. This talk will
Kroeze, David:
The Description of Medieval Targum Manuscripts: MS Göttweich
11
Although there are many catalogues of Hebrew manuscripts
in libraries all over the world, most of their descriptions
concentrate
on
just a few features
of
the manuscript and seldom highlight any targumic translation.
To present aspects of a medieval Targum manuscript in
this paper, an examination
of MS Göttweich
11, a 14th century manuscript (Göttweich, Stiftsbibliothek)
will be given. Its contents, physical features, page
lay-out, decoration, and palaeography
will be described in detail, and this presented description
will be compared with existing literary references. This
paper originates from the project
History
and Origin of Targum Jonathan to the Prophets of Kampen
Theological University, part of which is the creation
of a database of manuscripts containing Targum
texts.
Kuty, Renaud: The expression
of Determination in Targum Jonathan to Samuel
It is a widely accepted view that the system of determination
no longer functions properly in the Aramaic of Targum
Onqelos and
Targum Jonathan:
essentially,
the status emphaticus is held to have lost some or
all of its determining force, to the effect that its
distinctive
uses
and functions have
become difficult
to distinguish from those of the status absolutus.
The issue of determination is an important argument
in the ongoing scholarly discussion on the origin and
development
of Targum
Onqelos and Targum
Jonathan. The present paper will attempt to demonstrate,
on the basis of Targum Jonathan
to Samuel, that in contrast to the current view the
uses of the status emphaticus and status absolutus
follow
specific patterns,
and consequently
that determination
in Targum Jonathan functions according to a largely
consistent linguistic system.
Kvam, Bjørn Olav
Grüner: The Targumic rendering of Num. 22-24
(the story of Balaam) and its links to the Targumic
rendering of Gen. 12-25 (the
story of Abraham)
The Balaam story is extensively treated in ancient
works such as the midrashim, Josephus, Philo, and
Pseudo-Philo, as well
as expanded
upon
in the Targumim.
Several of these texts make a connection between
Balaam and Abraham, and between the passages involving
these
figures.
This paper will focus on the Targumic rendering of
the Biblical texts, paying special attention to Targ.
Onqelos.
It will
ask whether there
are there particular
interpretative items in the targumic texts which
indicate that the Targumists were motivated by significant
traits
of the
Biblical texts
to make a
connection between Numbers 22-24 and Genesis 12-25?
Lieber,
Laura: ‘Open Door, Shut Door’: A Rhetorical Analysis
of the Shared Exegetical Motifs of Genesis 49 in
Targum Neofiti and the Poetry of Yannai
The language, imagery, and exegetical content of
Targum Neofiti of Genesis 49 and the liturgical
poem of Yannai
embellishing
the same
passage display
a number of commonalities, indicating that they
are drawing on the same body of haggadic traditions (written
or oral).
This
paper will
begin
with an exploration
of the commonalities between these two texts (with
comparison to other targumic texts and midrash
traditions as well),
situating both within
the broader history
of interpretation of the biblical passage. The
second part of the
paper will examine the ways in which the distinctive
formal structures and
rhetorical
strategies of these two passages contribute to
different emphases and textures within the context of their
shared exegetical
motifs. Finally,
I will consider
ways in which the results of this single example
could be more broadly applied within the fields
of targumic
and payyetanic
studies.
McNamara, Martin: Targum
and Testament (1973) Revisited
The idea originated in a request from Eerdmans,
publishers of the original in 1972 for a revision,
or a new
book, that aims
to do
the same thing
today, or better yet that provides students of
early Christianity and/or early Judaism
with an entry point. In a review of the original
work, Ben Zion Wacholder wrote that 'although
the thesis
of dependence of the
NT on extant
targums ought to
be rejected, McNamara's book is of immense interest
for rabbinic
studies. Many of the points this book makes to
show targumic priority need further
exploration
in relation to midrashic and geonic literature
as a whole'. The paper will review developments
since
1963/1965
with
regard to
the Aramaic,
dating, publication
projects and related Targum questions; also on
the formation of the early Christian and Gospel
oral
tradition, and
then targumic texts
and themes
that in the speaker's
view merit consideration afresh (e.g., resurrection
on the third day in Tg Hosea 6:2 and the New
Testament), reviewing some reactions
to
themes already
considered.
Morrison, Craig:
The ‘Hour of
Anguish’ in Targum Neofiti and the ‘Hour’ in
the Gospel of John.
The biblical account of Tamar and Judah in
Genesis 38 culminates in 38:25-26 when Tamar
produces
the three pledges and Judah
confesses his transgression.
Tg Neofiti rewrites Gen 38:25 into a lengthy
scene in
which Tamar prays
to God who "answers the distressed in the
hour of their distress." Her
mention of an "hour of distress" reprises
a theme found in several expansions in the Palestinian
Targums and especially in Tg Neofiti. In the
New Testament the term "hour" appears
in the synoptic gospels where it refers to Jesus’ suffering
and death (Mark 14:35.41; Matt 26:45; and Luke
22:53). But in the Gospel of John, the "hour" becomes
a theological lietmotif, that encapsulates Jesus’ passion
and glorification. This paper will examine the
meaning of the expression, "hour of distress" in
Tg Neofiti and then turn to the Gospel of John
to illustrate how its use of the term "hour" parallels
certain aspects of Neofiti’s "hour
of distress".
Ribera, Josep: Aspects
of the Targum of Joel
This paper will explore issues that will assist
in designing a plan for creating a critical
edition of this Targum.
This will include
textual questions,
such as the Eastern and Western traditions on
the Targum
of Joel; liturgical questions,
such as the use of Joel’s haftarot in
the synagogal liturgy; comparative questions,
such as the relationship between this Targum
and the other Targums
of the Prophets, as well as the grammatical,
lexical and stylistic devices found in the
Targum. The Targum’s principle doctrinal
issues will also be studied, including God’s
divine action through his Memra and Shekina;
God’s actions as judge and benefactor;
the image of Israel versus that of the nations,
and the eschatological perspective of the “Day
of the Lord. If there is time, the paper will
also look at the image of the
Prophet
Joel in the Jewish Post-biblical tradition
and in the midrashim.
Sabar, Yona: The Five
Scrolls In Jewish Neo-Aramaic Dialects :
A Comparative Study with Ancient
Aramaic Translations
My lecture will include a general description
of the available translations in manuscripts
and recordings,
discussing
some characteristics of
each scroll or each version/translator. Some
versions are quite literal, while others
interpolate directly or indirectly Targumic-Midrashic
material, and occasionally local
realia. Other kinds of features will be noted,
such as insertions related
to contemporary matters, double translations,
explanations of the translation (an explanation
which itself
may be archaic), samples
of "sound-translations," mistranslations
or misunderstandings of the original Hebrew
word, and confusions of a Hebrew word with
another that is similarly written (homograph)
or pronounced (homophone).
Smelik, Willem:
The Rabbinic Use for Translations
There is little doubt that a distinction
between two modes of translation, the oral-performative
interpretation and
the written
translation
as substitution the original, boasts wide
support
in
rabbinic literature. In his reception-history
of the Septuagint in rabbinic literature
(Eine Tora für den König
Talmai), Veltri marshals the evidence for this distinction to show that
the Septuagint belonged to a category of its own. As a result, he is at
pains
to explain how some texts, notably Sopherim 1.7, claim that the Torah cannot
be
appropriately translated (so Sopherim) except in Greek (so the Yerushalmi)
using the verb l'targem while blurring the distinction between oral and
written modes of translation.
A historical understanding of the distinction
between written and oral modes of translation,
and the
concept of Oral
Torah as its
corollary, may help
to explain those texts which seem to belie
the theory. The distinction between two
modes of
translation only achieved full articulation
in
the third and
fourth
centuries CE, when the full-fledged concept
of ‘Torah in the Mouth’ emerged
among both Palestinian and Babylonian Amoraim. That is not to say that
these modes did not exist earlier, but they did not occur out of the blue,
and
previous, sometimes contradictory traditions, opinions and practices had
to be brought
into line with this gradually emerging concept. The correlation between
script and language is an essential feature of the attempts to overcome
conflicting
traditions.
The discussions about translations along
the way to the concept of translation as
Oral Torah
reveal
a proclivity
which may
well explain
why Gaonic opinions
were far more outspoken against (Greek)
translations. In the first part of this
paper I will offer
some comments on the
correlation between script,
language,
and oral versus written translations in
b. Meg. 8b-9b. The editorial structure
of this
sugya
will play a
prominent part
in this evaluation.
In the second
part I will analyze the actual use of translations
in
rabbinic
literature.
The goal of this paper is to suggest, no
matter how briefly, a more historical view
on the
rabbinic reception
of early
Bible translations,
and the distinction
between written and oral translations,
from the Mishnah to Sopherim.
Sysling, Harry:
Early Citations of Targum Jonathan to the Prophets in the Palestinian
Targums
to the Pentateuch
Quotations of targumic passages can be
found in a rich variety of sources: in
the targums
themselves,
in talmudim
and midrashim,
in
magical texts,
in medieval dictionaries, biblical and
talmudic commentaries,
liturgical writings,
in mystical literature and in targumic
manuscripts. A large number of these
targumic fragments
that are not
identical
with the extant
targums
are collected
by Goshen-Gottstein (1983, 1989). In
this paper I will concentrate on the
citations
of prophetic
passages
(or allusions to such
passages) in
the Palestinian Targums
to the Pentateuch. What are their characteristics?
In which ways are they at variance with
Targum Jonathan? Do they
tell us something
about
the existence
of a (complete?) Palestinian targum on
the Prophets?
Talshir, David: Semantic
Shifts of the root sna (Aleph-Nun-Samekh)
in Aramaic
and Hebrew
The derivatives of sna have different
meanings, partly misconstrued in the
scientific literature.
The purpose
of this paper is
to outline the
development
that this root underwent in Aramaic
and Hebrew, highlighting the same usage
of
the verb in
the Aramaic of Onqelos
and in Qumran Hebrew.
Van Staalduine-Sulman,
E.: The Role of Vocalization in Stemmatology
During the past year I have been collating
samples from manuscripts containing
the Targum of Samuel,
including vocalization.
The past months I have
worked with the collated material
to investigate the following questions:
- Does vocalization throw any light
on the stemma of manuscripts?
- Is a stemma of vocalization possible?
- Should an edition of the Targum
include vocalization?
- If so, how can this be achieved
best?
At the IOTS congress I will present
the results of the usual stemmatological
research on
Targum Samuel,
as well
as answers
on the aforementioned
questions. It is possible to use
these results in the discussion about
the
edition
proposal of the Targum Edition Exploratory
Committee.
Wesselius, Jan-Wim:
The Literary Relation between Targum Onkelos and
Targum Jonathan
of the Former
Prophets
In this paper I will explore the
translation of the poetical chapters
and passages
which interrupt the
great History
of Israel, which
stretches from the creation
of the world in Genesis to the
fall of Jerusalem to the Babylonians
in
587 BCE
at the end
of 2 Kings,
nowadays
often designated
as the Primary
History.
These poetical sections are well
known for their expansive translation
in
the Targum,
virtually
the only longer
passages where the Targum
text of these biblical
books is not bound hand and foot
to the Hebrew original, and the
meturgeman has
a considerable
degree of liberty
in rendering
the
Hebrew text.
I will give attention to the agreements
and differences between those in
Targum Onkelos
(e.g. Gen. 49, Ex. 15, Num. 22-24,
Deut. 32 and 33), and in Targum
Jonathan of
the Former
Prophets
(e.g.
Judges
5, 1 Sam.
2, 2 Sam.
22 and 23), in
order to throw some light on the
question
of the literary relation between
these classical targumim.