Usage in Hebrew
For more details on this topic, see Hebrew spelling.Most commonly, yod י indicates i or e, while waw ו indicates o or u. Aleph א was not systematically developed as a mater lectionis in Hebrew (as it was in Aramaic and Arabic), but it is occasionally used to indicate an a vowel. (However, a silent aleph — indicating an original glottal stop consonant sound which has become silent in Hebrew pronunciation — can occur after almost any vowel.) At the end of a word, He ה can also be used to indicate that a vowel a should be pronounced.
Examples:
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Symbol Name Vowel formation Vowel quality Example Biblical Modern Hebrew Transliteration א Alef ê, ệ, ậ, â, ô mostly ā פארן Paran ה He ê, ệ, ậ, â, ô mostly ā or e לאה Leah משה Moshe ו Waw Vav ô, û ō or ū יואל Yo'el ברוך Baruch י Yod Yud î, ê, ệ ī, ē or ǣ דויד David
Read more about this topic: Mater Lectionis
Famous quotes containing the words usage and/or hebrew:
“I am using it [the word ‘perceive’] here in such a way that to say of an object that it is perceived does not entail saying that it exists in any sense at all. And this is a perfectly correct and familiar usage of the word.”
—A.J. (Alfred Jules)
“The fathers have eaten sour grapes, and the children’s teeth are set on edge.”
—Bible: Hebrew Ezekiel, 18:2.
Proverbial reproach by God, concerning the land of Israel. The same image is used in Jeremiah 31:29.