Carthaginians speaks Hebrew?

[Cimon]

AFAIK Jews were [often] not allowed to possess any land; and this may have had something to do with it as well?

Yes, there were certainly restrictions against what Jews could and couldn't do/own, and the restriction against holding land would certainly be a contributing factor. Still, I think it is important to remember that those restrictions didn't hold in all places at all times. For example, we tend to think of the Spanish kingdom as one of the more restrictive states toward medieval Jews due to the expulsion in 1492. However, until roughly the 1300s, Jews were allowed to hold real estate in Castillian Spain, and many (some of whom were conversos) were individually very well-respected in their communities, even if the Jewish community as a whole was not.

One of the few things that did not change from place to place was the myth of the blood libel. The short (medieval) version is that Jews would kidnap a young Christian boy, and then commit human sacrifice, usually at night, as part of a religious ritual. This was such a fear, that the Venetian ghetto only had two bridges in or out of it, and these were raised from dark until dawn. The blood libel led to many pogroms against Jews throughout history, even into the 20th century in Eastern Europe and Russia, and the myth is still advanced in some parts of the world. (Interestingly, the first account of the theory comes from 1st century Alexandria, where a writer (whose name escapes me) claimed that Jews murdered young Greeks in the temple in Jerusalem.)

Circling back around, that is why I think the theory I mentioned above, while certainly not the whole story, has some merit. Yes, the prohibition against usury would contribute, and yes restrictions on land-holding would contribute as well (as would other factors), but the fear/persecution of Jews has a lot to do with the "career-choices" in my very humble opinion.

[Ibrahim]

I see no way that this blood libel is true; why would a religion explicitly and vehemently ban human sacrafice (a.k.a story of Abraham and his son (which one is dependant on religion), turn around and slaughter greeks/ christians/ palestinians or something? It simply makes no sense. that's like Islam banning Alcohol(true), then turning around and everyone is drinking like selim the sot.

then again, bigotry or hatred warrants no logic to it unfortunately.

[Leviathan DarklyCute]

I see no way that this blood libel is true; why would a religion explicitly and vehemently ban human sacrafice (a.k.a story of Abraham and his son (which one is dependant on religion), turn around and slaughter greeks/ christians/ palestinians or something? It simply makes no sense. that's like Islam banning Alcohol(true), then turning around and everyone is drinking like selim the sot.

then again, bigotry or hatred warrants no logic to it unfortunately.

Isn't it exactly the same way for christians and muslims? ;)

[AlexanderSextus]

The short (medieval) version is that Jews would kidnap a young Christian boy, and then commit human sacrifice, usually at night, as part of a religious ritual.

did anyone hear the joke Lewis Black made about this?

The christians used to think we'd kidnap their kids at night and kill them. thats bullshit. we'd kidnap them........and make them work for us, and thats totally different.

i LOL'ed @ that one.

[Rilder]

Bah at least Judism is recognized as a major religion... My Hellenistic Pagan beliefs are barely recognized anymore. :(

[Hooahguy]

i got the answer- biblical hebrew did indeed have parts derived from phoenician, and all the way until the 1st destruction of the temple. after that, when we were exiled to Ba'vel, we lost the phoenician and picked up babylonian. then we kept the babylonian and when we got back, we still kept it. thats until the greeks got there. we picked up some greek, then when the romans got there, we picked up some latin as well. the word "europe" in hebrew is "europa," fopr example.
BUT- mishnaic hebrew and talmudic hebrew is WAY DIFFERENT!!! mishnaic is biblical + babylonian, while talmudic is aramaic, a combo of biblical hebrew and arabic.
modern hebrew, even through all the changes, isnt much different than biblical, save for a few pronouciantios and words and such. but the amount derived from the phoenician language is small.
btw Arcani_Bar_Kochba, you are absolutly correct- citing one source isnt much....

[Foot]

I'm not citing anyone, this isn't an argument. I'm posting a comment from correspondence between one of our team members (Shigawire) who works explicitly with voicemods for EB and one Dr Charles Krahmalkov. Shigawire made the decision for the team, I was relaying that information on, which we took as a basis for our position. So don't put shame on me, and don't jump to conclusions about who I am or what I do. If you disagree with our position, fair enough, put forward your 10 sources. Until then, shame on you for jumping on the bandwagon in such a disgraceful manner.

As for Charles Krahmalkov, if you had read the link I gave you, you would know his academic history and that he is a current professor in this area (having written a number of books on the punic language). Now, I'm not defending him in the slightest, I no jackshit about this area, and I've never claimed otherwise. But even a quick Google search would have answered your question about whether he was writing in the 1800s or not.

So, perhaps a better way to christen yourself on these forums isn't to attack an EB team member on false charges with half your post, particularly as the charges are without basis. You are more than welcome to disagree with our position, but do so with a little more finesse and with a little less haste then your previous post, if you would.

I was just trying to be helpful for christ's sake. Next time I'll let someone else take the heat.

Foot

[Hooahguy]

I'm not citing anyone, this isn't an argument. I'm posting a comment from correspondence between one of our team members (Shigawire) who works explicitly with voicemods for EB and one Dr Charles Krahmalkov. Shigawire made the decision for the team, I was relaying that information on, which we took as a basis for our position. So don't put shame on me, and don't jump to conclusions about who I am or what I do. If you disagree with our position, fair enough, put forward your 10 sources. Until then, shame on you for jumping on the bandwagon in such a disgraceful manner.

As for Charles Krahmalkov, if you had read the link I gave you, you would know his academic history and that he is a current professor in this area (having written a number of books on the punic language). Now, I'm not defending him in the slightest, I no jackshit about this area, and I've never claimed otherwise. But even a quick Google search would have answered your question about whether he was writing in the 1800s or not.

So, perhaps a better way to christen yourself on these forums isn't to attack an EB team member on false charges with half your post, particularly as the charges are without basis. You are more than welcome to disagree with our position, but do so with a little more finesse and with a little less haste then your previous post, if you would.

I was just trying to be helpful for christ's sake. Next time I'll let someone else take the heat.

Foot

wre you talking to me or Bar_kochba?