lethargic_man: (linguistics geekery)
Lethargic Man (anag.) ([personal profile] lethargic_man) wrote in [personal profile] my_torah 2024-04-05 09:07 am (UTC)

Mostly right, but a few points to pick you on.

The word for rabbi as a noun was always רָב even in Hebrew, and you can tell from Pirkei Avos' עשה לך רב. The form רבי was an honorific, so meant "my rabbi".

The second vowel in רַבָּן would have been pronounced at the time like the A in English "father". In Ashkenazi pronunciation it's like the O in "hot"; I've never come across "oy" being used in Ashkenazi pronuciation for kamatz rather than cholam.

The vowels in רִבּוֹנוֹ are different; it's a different word.

Lastly, it's generally accepted that the Gospels were not recorded contemporaneously to their events, but written down decades later, which explains the anachronism of Jesus being addressed as "rabbi"; clearly the writers had forgotten that in his time (and their youth) this title was not yet used.

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