Dagesh

The (also: the ) Dagesch, plural Degaschim, is a diacritical mark in vocalized Hebrew text. It is written as a dot which is placed inside of a consonant character to indicate a doubling of the consonant or a particular debate. Two other diacritical characters appear as dots in Hebrew characters and must not be confused with the Dagesch: Schuruq (also Schureq ) is a Waw with a dot in it, and referred to the vowel u in an open syllable; Mappiq is a point in a He at the end of a word, and means that this He is not a replacement for a vowel ( lectionis mater ), but normal consonant. Dagesch, Mappiq and the point in Schuruq have the common position U 05 BC in Unicode.

Strong Dagesch

Is the Dagesch in a consonant in the middle of a word after a short vowel, it indicates that this consonant is doubled. The changes in most consonants nothing in the debate, but is especially important for the division into syllables: the preceding syllable ends in a double consonant and the following begins there. Such Dagesch called strong Dagesch (Hebrew dagesch chasaq, lat dagesch forte). " Syllables " are not necessarily actual spoken syllables, but serve to set the Vokalisationszeichen and possibly the Dagesch properly.

The consonants Aleph, Hey, Chet, Ayin and Resch never wear a Dagesch. Often then the preceding vowel is stretched so that vowel length and consonant doubling fit together again, eg minnazrat ( " from Nazareth " ) with short i and strong Dagesch in now, but mechevron ( " Hebron " ) with a long e, because the Chet takes no Dagesch. The fact that the long vowels are usually still spoken today in short, is another matter.

Strong Dagesch is mainly

• In a consonant before another consonant, almost always a Well, is repealed,
• In a consonant, which is caused by contraction of two consecutive identical consonants,
• The first consonant after a few prefixes, especially the article ha -, and
• In the middle of the three consonants of a word root in some genera Verbi.

The consonants Bet, Gimmel, Dalet, Kaf, Pe and Taw ( briefly called Begadkefat ) doubling has the side effect that in any case one of the stops [ b], [ g ], [ d ], [ k ], [ p ] and [ t] and not the corresponding fricative [v ], [ γ ], [ ð ], [ x], [f ] and [ θ ] is pronounced. In today's Israeli debate this distinction is only made ​​at Bet / Vet, coffee / chaf and Pe / Fe, while Gimmel, Dalet and Tav are always spoken of as plosives. The pronunciation of a final -Tav as [s ] in Yiddish and German ( Shabbat Shabbos jidd. for Hebrew, Yiddish. / Dt. Stuss for Hebrew schtut ) comes from the Ashkenazi pronunciation of Hebrew, and shows that even Taw be a fricative can. In German in biblical name when you bet the fricative is not used (Abraham, not Avraham ), the Kaf and Pe but already (Micah, not Mika, Joseph, not Josep ).

Lightweight Dagesch

In cases where a non -doubled Begadkefat is pronounced as plosive and not as a fricative, it receives a Dagesch a sign of his pronunciation. Such Dagesch then called lightweight Dagesch (Hebrew dagesch qal, lat dagesch lene ). For the pronunciation of Bet / Vet, coffee / chaf and Pe / Fe it's not important to know what kind the Dagesch it is. Lightweight Dagesch optionally also set when the Gimmel, Dalet and Tav, although it does not indicate a difference in pronunciation of these letters.

A Begadkefat with light Dagesch never stands in the middle of a word after a vowel, but only word-initially or following a consonant following a short vowel. This rule is the same distinction is also the resting and moving schwa; one could also say that the light Dagesch is only word-initially or after a resting schwa words.

The coffee in the possessive endings - cha, -chem and surfaces never get a Dagesch. Otherwise, the light Dagesch is fairly regular in all positions in which it is possible according to the above rule. Only when two consonants after a short vowel a word root closer together, one of which is the rear one Begadkefat, the rules are unclear under which this Begadkefat gets a Dagesch. But mostly he gets one if he is the second Wurzelkonsonant other hand, often none, if he is the third, but with some exceptions in both directions. Examples of this change b / v, c / ch, p / f: Shaphat from the root ( judge ): jischpot ( He will judge ), lischpot ( to judge ), mishpat ( right ), but bischfot ( in judging ); from the root schachav ( are ): hischkiv ( lying down ), schichva ( layer ); from the root qarav ( approaching ): Qorban (victim); from the root Kelev (dog): kalvej ( the dogs ), kalvejchem ( your dogs ), but kalbi ( my dog ​​); calculated from the root ( bless ): bracha ( blessing), birchati (my blessing), but birkat ( the blessing of ).

The word itself has dagesch according to these rules a Dagesch in Dalet, which derived from the same root hadgascha (emphasis added ) of a Gimmel, are both easily. And the verb diggesch ( a Dagesch set ) even has two, one of each kind.

Dagesch by connective accent ( Bible texts)

After what has been said strong Dagesch is never in the initial consonant of a word, on the other hand always easy, if this consonant is a Begadkefat. Both is fully applicable to modern texts for the traditional vocalization of the Bible, but only if the preceding word has a separating accent. However Transmits the previous word accent and ends on a connecting vowel, then both words are considered together and there are a few deviations for the initial consonant of the second word:

• Lightweight Dagesch is not after a vowel, as it indeed is not within a word after a vowel.
• The word מה (which ) is not only vocalized as the article, but as this causes a strong Dagesch in the following consonant, if possible.
• Strong Dagesch is often the initial consonant of a word after the beginning stressed vowel-a ( Qamaz and He) or -e ( segol and He), especially when it is unstressed.