Wheeler M. Thackston, Introduction to Syriac. Bethesda, MD: Ibex Publishers, 1999. Pp. xxvii + 228. Paper, $30.00. ISBN 0-936347-98-9.
Stephen J.
Shoemaker
Dept. of Religious Studies
Beth Mardutho: The Syriac Institute
George A. Kiraz
James E. Walters
TEI XML encoding by
html2TEI.xsl
Beth Mardutho: The Syriac Institute
January 2003
Vol. 6, No. 1
For this publication, a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International
license has been granted by the author(s), who retain full
copyright.
https://hugoye.bethmardutho.org/article/hv6n1prshoemaker
Stephen J. SHOEMAKER
Wheeler M. Thackston, Introduction to Syriac. Bethesda, MD: Ibex Publishers, 1999. Pp. xxvii + 228. Paper, $30.00. ISBN 0-936347-98-9.
https://hugoye.bethmardutho.org/pdf/vol6/HV6N1PRShoemaker.pdf
Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies
Beth Mardutho: The Syriac Institute, 2003
vol 6
issue 1
Hugoye: Journal of Syriac Studies is an electronic journal dedicated to the study
of the Syriac tradition, published semi-annually (in January and July) by Beth
Mardutho: The Syriac Institute. Published since 1998, Hugoye seeks to offer the
best scholarship available in the field of Syriac studies.
Syriac Studies
Syriac Grammar
File created by XSLT transformation of original HTML encoded article.
[1] I wish
that this grammar had been around when I was learning Syriac.
Thackston's grammar is without doubt the best introduction to
the Syriac language presently available, and although I have
not been asked to write an overview of introductory Syriac
grammars, I find that some comparison will be necessary.
Thackston's introduction far surpasses Robinson's trusted
grammar in several areas: better exercises, clearer
explanations, a better glossary, a real index, and a very nice
chrestomathy. Although Takamitsu Muraoka's recent Classical
Syriac: A Basic Grammar with a Chrestomathy certainly has
some strengths in comparison with Thackston's grammar (which
will be noted), Muraoka's presentation of the language and
extremely limited exercises limit its practicality as a
teaching grammar. In my opinion Muraoka's grammar might instead
be used with students as a "light" version of a reference
grammar, a role in which I have found it useful.
[2]
Thackston's grammar begins with a brief introductory chapter
presenting phonetics, the alphabet, vocalization. Following
this are twenty separate lessons that gradually present the
language, each with a set of exercises, including English into
Syriac as well as Syriac into English. Each chapter also
includes a list of vocabulary that is geared toward enabling
the student to read real texts from the Peshitto as soon as
possible. Thackston's decision to focus on the Peshitto is
based on its importance as a (perhaps the) foundational text of
Syriac culture, the Biblical text's familiarity to the likely
student, and the fact that its language and vocabulary had a
considerable influence on later Syriac style.
[3] In order
to use real examples from the Peshitto almost from the
beginning, Thackston must present at least some aspects of the
verb earlier than is done in Robinson's grammar, for instance.
Rather than postponing all verb forms until the second half of
the grammar as Robinson does, Thackston presents the perfect
form of the verb in the second lesson. This organization has
several benefits: it not only allows the student to read more
interesting sentences from a real text, but more importantly
perhaps, it also enables the student to begin learning verbs,
along with other parts of speech, right from the beginning. The
full conjugation of the verb, however, is postponed until the
second half, enabling the student to gain some footing in the
language before tackling the numerous verbal forms.
[4]
Throughout the grammar, forms and exercises are given in the
Estrangelo script, which is also an improvement over Robinson
(who uses Serto), since most textual editions tend to be
printed using this script (although one wishes the publisher
had found a better font!). The chrestomathy, however, while
favoring Estrangelo, includes texts in all three scripts on a
variety of topics and at different levels of difficulty.
Unfortunately, all of these texts are unvocalized, and it would
be helpful to have a couple of texts where the two different
systems of vocalization are used, so that the student may begin
learn these as well (especially the East Syriac system).
Furthermore, it would be nice to have the sort of helpful
grammatical and vocabulary notes that Muraoka provides for his
chrestomathy, although I suppose that one has no right to
expect this (and in this regard, I find Muraoka's chrestomathy
superior).
[5] The
grammar's greatest strength in my opinion is the way that
Thackston handles the issue of vocalization. In presenting the
language, Thackston gives all words and forms in both
unvocalized Syriac and a vocalized transcription, in the
glossary as well as in the grammar. The unvocalized Syriac
prepares the student from the beginning for eventually reading
texts without vowels, while at the same time encouraging them
to learn the vocalizations, which they become able to associate
with the unvocalized forms. A real weakness of Thackston's
grammar in this regard is the collection of verbal paradigms at
the end of lessons. In this he departs from the pattern of the
lessons and gives the verbal forms only in Roman transcription.
While this is certainly helpful for seeing the vocalization of
the verb forms clearly, it is not so useful for reading the
unvocalized forms of the chrestomathy. Here Thackston should
have continued his pattern of providing the Syriac script and a
transliteration, as Muraoka has done in his more useful
paradigms.
[6] Also, in
contrast to Muraoka, Thackston does not mark the pronunciation
of the Beghadhkephat letters, either in the Syriac or the
transcription, and this might be helpful for the beginning
student. Thackston also provides a brief, very basic
bibliography after these paradigms which, while sufficient,
cannot compare to the outstanding bibliography (prepared by
Sebastian Brock) in Muraoka's grammar.
[7]
Thackston's grammar is designed to be user-friendly for the
student who does not know a Semitic language, and I think that
it succeeds in this. It is a rather condensed presentation of
Syriac grammar, although in comparison with Robinson, it is
effusive. Perhaps it would be a bit much for a novice to
Semitic languages to teach him or herself, but with the help of
a teacher, the pace is about right. If its discussions of
certain topics may seem a bit terse for some experts, I think
that we would do well to remember that this is a teaching
grammar, whose purpose is (and should be) to get the student
into the chrestomathy (and other real texts) as soon as
possible, where the finer points of Syriac and Semitic grammar
can be learned. I have used this grammar to teach a student
Syriac, and it worked very well (although the student had
previously studied a year of Hebrew).
[8] One
final weakness, and this is considerable in my mind, is the
lack of an English-Syriac glossary. Since the grammar assigns
English into Syriac exercises for the first fifteen of the
twenty chapters, it seems only fair (and extremely useful) to
provide such a tool. In this regard (and perhaps this one
alone), the nod still goes to Robinson.
[9] On the
whole, this is the best teaching grammar for Syriac that is
presently available, and in spite of a few weaknesses, it is
far superior to its nearest competitor, which in my opinion
remains Robinson's venerable (and out of print) grammar.