The Fascinating Secret Behind Hebrew Letters

Hebrew doesn't work like any other language on Earth.

Every letter of the Hebrew alphabet has a unique meaning, and this allows speakers to piece together words in a way that resembles the chemical language, where symbols directly represent substances. In this video, we explore the fascinating world of Hebrew letter meanings and how they can help us understand the essence of words.

For example, the letter bet means a house, and this can be seen in words like "bayit" (house) and "beit knesset" (synagogue, literally "house of assembly"). Similarly, the letter nun means a seed, and this can be seen in words like "netzer" (shoot, sprout) and "gan" (garden).

This unique feature of the Hebrew alphabet has fascinated scholars and speakers for centuries, and it continues to be a rich source of exploration and discovery.

Sometimes I forget that the concept of the alphabet was invented by the Canaanite people. Most other written language forms were pictographic at the time (i.e. to represent a man, you draw a stick figure of a man). But when the Canaanites developed the alphabet, they created a more abstract system that used individual letters to represent sounds. However, because the Hebrew language evolved from this more visual form of communication, it maintained some aspects of the pictographic writing system. This means that the Hebrew letters not only represent sounds, but also carry deeper meanings and symbolisms. In contrast, when the Greeks and Romans later adopted the technology of the alphabet, they removed many of these dimensions, reducing it to a simple system of arbitrary symbols that represent arbitrary sounds.

Whether you're a language lover, a student of Hebrew, or just curious about the world around you, this video is sure to spark your imagination and leave you with a deeper appreciation for the beauty and complexity of language. I will say, I don't think that every single word in modern Hebrew can be broken down and analyzed using these techniques, but this concept does at least exist as a poetic ideal of the language; that you should be able to look at the symbols of word and understand the substance.

"The Hebrew Language the DNA of Creation"

00:00 - Nylon: How English Names Work
01:10 - The Premise of Hebrew
01:28 - Aleph
02:10 - Bet
04:04 - The Chemical Language
05:08 - Genesis 1
06:09 - Examples
07:23 - Obsessed with Names

[trcmf]

I bought a book about 20 years ago that taught how to read and write and understand the ancient Hebrew alphabet. I wanted to learn this so I could better understand the OT. I’ve never used it but it still sits on my book shelf. I’ve made sure I brought it with me and I knew where it was every time I’ve moved. As a matter of fact, it’s no more than 10 feet away from where I sit now.
This video has inspired me to finally pick that book up and use it.

[LanceAbrams]

Linguistically, the reason "את" doesn't have a direct translation is because it's a direct object marker, a linguistic feature we don't have in English. It would be like trying to translate our indefinite articles "a" and "an" into Hebrew; it's a grammatical feature they don't have, so it wouldn't have a direct translation.

[chalabread]

As a native Hebrew speaker I believe Hebrew is so fascinating, it’s the only language to die then get practically resurrected

[averageperson]

As a Hebrew speaker even I didn’t know that!

[tTtMtTt]

Let me explain as a native Hebrew speaker, "את" is a preposition with no direct English translation. In the Bible it is mainly used as a Definiteness, so the closest translation is the word "the", in modern Hebrew it can still be used for that, but it usually appears together with " ה"א הידיעה " (He of Definiteness).
Today the word "את" usually appears as an inflection and its meaning is "with"

[לבריאותיאחמוד]

Well the word את (et) is actually a very common word in the Hebrew language, the reason why it's not translated in the bible because it is a function word that had no English parallel, what it basically means is quite hard to explain to a non Hebrew speaker but basically if you want to say that you're doing a certain action to someone then for example if I say that I love a specific person called Max
Then in English I would simply say "I love max" but in Hebrew you'd say "Ani ohev et Max)
Translating that sentence word for word
To English it would be
Ani = I ohev=love et=? Max
So you can't just say
Ani ohev max
You must add that word et

So in the example we have in the bible
When it says that "god created the heavens and the earth then in Hebrew you have to add that word את in order to make that accurate grammatically speaking

[shirakrause]

As a native Hebrew speaker (it is my first language), I am always fascinated by how the language is views from outsider point of views. I have to say, the video was quite well done! Despite some pronounciation differences (which is understandable), you have a lot of grasp on the language. Despite being a Hebrew speaker, I am still a modern speaker and am not fluent in the biblical language. Even though we read and learn it, biblical Hebrew and modern Hebrew are quite different in how they are wrriten, and even more so in how they are spoken. So although my knowledge isn't the best in this field, as I am not a religious person, I still have some small corrections:

The word for 'thing', 'davar' (דבר), and the word for 'word' aren't the same word. The word for 'word' is actually 'Mila' (מילה). The actual connection is between the word 'thing' and the word 'speaking/speak', which has a root of D.V.R (ד.ב.ר). A root, or 'shoresh' (שורש) in hebrew, is the base letter structure for different verbs. There are ways to use those letters and put vows before, after and between them to create new words with a collective meaning, like for example, the difference between passive and active un English. The connection is still interesting, for god spoke and thus created.

Another small thing, the Beten (בטן) is reffering to the stomach, more them to the womb. There is a different word for womb in hebrew, which is Rechem (רחם).

And when it comes to 'Et'... It is hard to explain to a non hebrew speaker because it's meaning and use is so unconscious at this point for me. It's a word that connects an act to it's reciever, I think would be the best way to explain it. In English, you might translate it to an 'a' or a 'the' before a word, like 'god created the sky'.

All in all, this was a very interesting, very well explained video! I hope my explanations are ok, I am still a teen and so lack some knowledge in the grammar area's of Hebrew, so bare that in mind and feel free to correct me😊

[benw]

One point: In the video, he says English nouns (or words generally) are random. That's no more or less true for Hebrew (or Greek, Latin, Sanskrit, any other language). All languages are simultaneously somewhat random sets of sounds for each word, yet also they have root meanings behind them which are carried over from earlier times, their ancestry in languages. House, in the example, goes back to a Germanic root word for a house, a building. Beth in Hebrew meaning a house or building also goes back to a Semitic language root. Take these further back, and some words are innovations at some point, and then develop meanings along the way, while others go very far back but may change meanings slightly or drastically over time. So In one sense, sure, they're random groups of sounds for a word, but in another, they typically go back for hundreds or even thousands of years. Occasionally, a new word becomes more popular for a given concept, so it takes over, or words may change meanings, split, or become rare and die out.

[eyalklino]

As a Hebrew speaker, I must say that the word את (et) is a utalitarian word - it denotes the object of the sentence (a few other words can do this depending on the verb, but it is the most neutral one, as it does not have any meaning outside of that, unlike the others). It is untranslated because it is not necessary in nost languages, as the object is understood through the order of the words in the sentence or by changing the pronounciation of the word. All that is not to say it is impossible that it does represent more, I'm not a biblical scholar, but the word את is so common (and necessary for the sentence to make sense: בראשית ברא אלוהים השמיים והארץ is a nonsensical sentence) I don't believe it has a deeper meaning in this occurrence.

[nights_the_nightingale]

3:44 "This language sometimes, man-"
Truer words were never spoken

Thank you for making this, this really is such a beautiful video and language. I debated with trying to learn Hebrew for a long while (since I'm an American with NO ties to Judaism or Hebrew), but I'm finally taking the plunge. After all, life is short and learning is fun, might as well make the most of our time here <3

[noamjacob]

i’m a jew and i’m disappointed i never knew, hilarious watching you mispronounce our words tho, keep up the good work 👍

[abmrose]

Naming something carries the meaning of having authority (dominion) over it. So by speaking it into being, this shows God’s dominion over all of creation ❤

I really like this introduction to the Hebrew language! Thank you, it’s inspired me to learn more.

[isaachaskell]

Im so happy you all see the beauty of the holy language! As an Orthodox Jew, it really pleases me to find so many of you interested in these special letters

[CosmicRideMusic]

Please make a million more videos. Absolutely astounded by both the information and the delivery. You are fantastic at this. I'll be watching.

[jeopardy]

The word for "sex" is "min, " spelled "mem, yud, nun sofit." That means "Water, work/deed, seed." You do the work/deed to get your seed in the water. That really fits!

[whatno]

et is the direct object marker, which exists in many languages such as japanese (wo). In a sense it is translated every single time; its just that instead of translating it into a word, its translated into syntax.

[danielbugay]

as a native speaker I find this video interesting and educating, thank you (:

[keeziajensen]

This is going to help me remember Hebrew letters so quickly!!

[arimaor]

During the video, i remembered how my teachers taught us the alphabet using these meanings. but, i forgot about them quickly, and never thought about them again.
But you helped these memories resurface, and, with your explanation about words, which i haven't heard previously, helped me appreciate my native language in ways i didn't think about before.
Thank you! I love your work!

[danpavelko]

Best new channel I've come across