Translation or Divination? Sacred Languages and Bilingualism in Judaism and Lucumí Traditions
I compare the status of a sacred language in two very different religious traditions. In Judaism, the Hebrew language is the language of liturgy, prayer, and the Written Law. The traditional way of reading Torah passages involved translating them into Aramaic, the everyday language of communication...
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| Format: | Article |
| Language: | English |
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MDPI AG
2022-01-01
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| Series: | Religions |
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| Online Access: | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/1/57 |
| _version_ | 1797490716349300736 |
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| author | Michael Nosonovsky |
| author_facet | Michael Nosonovsky |
| author_sort | Michael Nosonovsky |
| collection | DOAJ |
| description | I compare the status of a sacred language in two very different religious traditions. In Judaism, the Hebrew language is the language of liturgy, prayer, and the Written Law. The traditional way of reading Torah passages involved translating them into Aramaic, the everyday language of communication in the Middle East in the first half of the first millennium CE. Later, other Jewish languages, such as Yiddish, played a role similar to that of Aramaic in the Talmudic period, constituting a system referred to as the “Traditional Jewish Bilingualism”. Hebrew lexemes had denotations related to the realm of Biblical texts, while Aramaic/Yiddish lexemes had everyday references. Therefore, the act of translation connected the two realms or domains. The <i>Lucumí</i> (Santería) Afro-Cuban religion is a syncretic tradition combining Roman Catholicism with the <i>Ifá</i> tradition, which does not have a corpus of written sacred texts, however, it has its sacred language, the Lucumí (Anagó) language related to the Yoruba language of West Africa. While the Spanish-Lucumí bilingualism plays an important role in Santería rituals, the mechanisms of reference are very different from those of the Hebrew-Yiddish bilingualism in Judaism. In Santería, divinations about the meaning of Lucumí words play a role similar to the translations from Hebrew in Judaism. I further discuss the role of ritual dances in Santería for the transition from the sacred to the secular domain and a function of Hebrew epitaphs to connect the ideal world of Hebrew sacred texts to the everyday life of a Jewish community. |
| first_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:37:01Z |
| format | Article |
| id | doaj.art-12ef372dc6ff4ec99beb9d8a4f5691fb |
| institution | Directory Open Access Journal |
| issn | 2077-1444 |
| language | English |
| last_indexed | 2024-03-10T00:37:01Z |
| publishDate | 2022-01-01 |
| publisher | MDPI AG |
| record_format | Article |
| series | Religions |
| spelling | doaj.art-12ef372dc6ff4ec99beb9d8a4f5691fb2023-11-23T15:13:55ZengMDPI AGReligions2077-14442022-01-011315710.3390/rel13010057Translation or Divination? Sacred Languages and Bilingualism in Judaism and Lucumí TraditionsMichael Nosonovsky0College of Engineering and Applied Science, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, Milwaukee, WI 53211, USAI compare the status of a sacred language in two very different religious traditions. In Judaism, the Hebrew language is the language of liturgy, prayer, and the Written Law. The traditional way of reading Torah passages involved translating them into Aramaic, the everyday language of communication in the Middle East in the first half of the first millennium CE. Later, other Jewish languages, such as Yiddish, played a role similar to that of Aramaic in the Talmudic period, constituting a system referred to as the “Traditional Jewish Bilingualism”. Hebrew lexemes had denotations related to the realm of Biblical texts, while Aramaic/Yiddish lexemes had everyday references. Therefore, the act of translation connected the two realms or domains. The <i>Lucumí</i> (Santería) Afro-Cuban religion is a syncretic tradition combining Roman Catholicism with the <i>Ifá</i> tradition, which does not have a corpus of written sacred texts, however, it has its sacred language, the Lucumí (Anagó) language related to the Yoruba language of West Africa. While the Spanish-Lucumí bilingualism plays an important role in Santería rituals, the mechanisms of reference are very different from those of the Hebrew-Yiddish bilingualism in Judaism. In Santería, divinations about the meaning of Lucumí words play a role similar to the translations from Hebrew in Judaism. I further discuss the role of ritual dances in Santería for the transition from the sacred to the secular domain and a function of Hebrew epitaphs to connect the ideal world of Hebrew sacred texts to the everyday life of a Jewish community.https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/1/57HebrewYiddishSanteriaLucumiAnagoYoruba |
| spellingShingle | Michael Nosonovsky Translation or Divination? Sacred Languages and Bilingualism in Judaism and Lucumí Traditions Religions Hebrew Yiddish Santeria Lucumi Anago Yoruba |
| title | Translation or Divination? Sacred Languages and Bilingualism in Judaism and Lucumí Traditions |
| title_full | Translation or Divination? Sacred Languages and Bilingualism in Judaism and Lucumí Traditions |
| title_fullStr | Translation or Divination? Sacred Languages and Bilingualism in Judaism and Lucumí Traditions |
| title_full_unstemmed | Translation or Divination? Sacred Languages and Bilingualism in Judaism and Lucumí Traditions |
| title_short | Translation or Divination? Sacred Languages and Bilingualism in Judaism and Lucumí Traditions |
| title_sort | translation or divination sacred languages and bilingualism in judaism and lucumi traditions |
| topic | Hebrew Yiddish Santeria Lucumi Anago Yoruba |
| url | https://www.mdpi.com/2077-1444/13/1/57 |
| work_keys_str_mv | AT michaelnosonovsky translationordivinationsacredlanguagesandbilingualisminjudaismandlucumitraditions |