SLTG5028 - Classical Syriac Beginner I 2023/24 Fall

Shlomo Beginners!

Classical Syriac Beginner I

ܣܕܪܐ ܕܫܪ̈ܘܝܐ

ܐ ܒ ܓ ܕ ܗ ܘ ܙ ܚ ܛ ܝ  ܟ ܠ ܡ ܢ

ܣ ܥ ܦ ܨ  ܩ ܪ ܫ ܬ

Fall Term,

Language course, 2 credits

Unit: SLTG

Instructor: Ephrem A. Ishac

General Description of the Course:

Syriac, which was the Aramaic dialect of Edessa since the 4^th Century and served as the lingua franca in Oriental Christianity, especially in its golden age until the 9^th century, was gradually substituted by Arabic; however, it continues as a living language until today in the Syriac Churches especially in the Middle East, in addition to India (where a large community is following the Syriac liturgical tradition) and in the Western diaspora. That is why this course will lay stress on speaking Classical Syriac (kthobonoyo) in the class as much as possible, so that students may grasp the taste of communicating in Syriac! The first goal of this course is to introduce students to the Syriac heritage and literature (especially in poetry and historiography) while learning the language through communicative methodology and reading some basic texts in Syriac. Moreover, students will learn the basic grammar, to be able to understand and write some short texts at the end of the course. 

Assessment

The course will be given once every week in the Fall semester. Students are expected to show a commitment through active participation. Each week, students will do a short quiz to revise what they have learned in the previous seminars. To assess the knowledge and the learned materials there will be also a midterm exam, and the end of the term a final exam will conclude the course.

Student performance will be assessed through

1.       Attendance, commitment and active participation in the course

2.       Weekly quizzes

3.       Midterm exam to assess the obtained knowledge

4.       Final exam at the end of the course

General Format:

Students who approve their participation, will be given few pages to prepare themselves for the course. Therefore, students are requested to read on their own Chapters 1-3 from George Kiraz’s Syriac Primer (main course book). So, they are supposed to be familiar with the Syriac alphabets and some general ideas about the language. During the class, we will read Chapters 1-3 of the Primer together, but fast. This will save some time to reach good results.

By the end of the semester, students are expected to master the Syriac texts of Chapter 6 of Kiraz’s Syriac Primer, in addition to be able to read short stories from the Qarabashi series (see the required bibliography).

Bibliography:

George Anton Kiraz, The New Syriac Primer: An Introduction to The Syriac Language, Gorgias Press: Piscataway 2007.

Abd al-Masih Naaman Qarabashi, Hergē d-qeryono Reading Lessons for different levels], Mar Yuhanun Kilisesi: Hengelo 1985.

(can be accessed online at the Syrian Orthodox Patriarchate - Syriac Studies Department):

http://dss-syriacpatriarchate.org/syriac-language/teaching-syriac/?lang=en

Dictionaries:

Payne Smith, Jessie, A Compendious Syriac Dictionary. Oxford: Clarendon Press, 1903.

Online access:  https://archive.org/details/ACompendiousSyriacDictionary/page/n11

Costaz, Louis, Dictionnaire syriaque-français. Syriac-English dictionary. Beyrouth: Imprimerie catholique, 1963.

Online access:  https://archive.org/details/Syriac-French-English-Arabic-Dictionary

Other Helpful books and films:

Brock, Sebastian P., A Brief Outline of Syriac Literature. Mōrān ’Eth’ō 9. Baker Hill, Kottayam: St. Ephrem Ecumenical Research Institute, 1997

https://archive.org/details/ABriefOutlineOfSyriacLiterature_267/page/n1