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+--- Thread: ALHA meaning (/showthread.php?tid=612)
ALHA meaning - Gentile - 11-20-2003
I was wondering what the actual significations are of the word ALHA. Are they actually linked to the concept of 'something that is worshipped, a deity' in order to understand the word to mean 'God'?
Paul I recall you saying that there is no definite article in Aramaic. SO does that mean that there is no means of distinguishing 'a god' from 'the God'? In Roman alphabets I guess this doesn't pose too much of a prob because of the capitalization. Is there any way of allocating a sense of absoluteness therefore?
In fact in all of the 3 dialects of Hebrew, Aramaic and Arabic the major component appears to be LH. Again, any specific meaning attached? I find it tough to accept that these words derive from 'el' alone unless 'el' may have combine with a 'h' that symoblized the start of a new word.
- Paul Younan - 11-20-2003
Shlama Akhi Gentile,
All Semitic languages descend from Akkadian, the earliest Semitic language used in ancient Babylonia and Assyria. It is now a dead language.
The three Semitic languages all use the same word for "god" - it is derived from the Akkadian "Illu":
- aramaic = alaha
- hebrew = elohim
- arabic = ilahu
For instance, the name of the city of "Babel" is rooted in the Akkadian word, bab-ilu, or "Bab-El," meaning, "gate of God."
The following is an excellent website about Akkadian:
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