A Study on the Dual Form of Mayim, Water
2012; Volume: 40; Issue: 3 Linguagem: Inglês
ISSN
0792-3910
Autores Tópico(s)Biblical Studies and Interpretation
ResumoIn biblical Hebrew, a pair of an object is spelled with the distinctive dual form, taking a particular ending (-ayim). For example, a pair of eyes is spelled einayim and a pair of hands yadayim. On the other hand, there are some words spelled in the dual form that are hard to understand as a pair, such as mayim (water), shamayim (sky, heaven), Yerushalayim (Jerusalem), and Mitzrayim (Egypt). In general, books on grammar do not explain that these words mean an actual pair or have their origin as a pair. However, I would now like to suggest that the spelling of mayim (water), in particular, is closely associated with its original meaning as a pair. To support this argument, the Creation story in the Bible together with that in Enuma Elish will be examined. Not every word in the dual form has the meaning of a pair. For example, many place names take the dual form, although they do not have a dual meaning. The best examples are Yerushalayim (Jerusalem) and Mitzrayim (Egypt). When we note that Yerushalam in the Masoretic text is read as Yerushalayim (e.g., I Kgs. 12:18), that Samaria is spelled Shamrayin in Aramaic but called Shomron in Hebrew, and that Mitzrayim is Mtzrm in Phoenician, we may conclude that these place names do not actually denote a pair: they are simply transliterations from foreign languages. (1) By and large, mayim and shamayim are explained in a similar way, although they are never used as place names and are always presented with a distinctive clarification. Another popular explanation has it that mayim and shamayim are examples of the so-called extension with a masculine plural ending. This plural is specifically employed to indicate abundance, plurality or locality of a singular noun (e.g., meromim in Isa. 33:16). Based on this, mayim and shamayim mean water and sky abundantly extended in a certain place. Gesenius's grammar offers good examples of such usage, but as an explanation for mayim and shamayim it is dubious. (2) The examples of local extension plurals given by Gesenius are all standard nouns with regular plural endings, such as the masculine -im and the feminine -ot ending. However, it should be noted that mayim and shamayim do not occur in the singular, as there is no evidence whatsoever of mai and shamai singular forms. (3) One rarely finds it claimed that the dual form of mayim has something to do with that word possessing an indigenous dual meaning. (4) Given that the two words have clear dual-sounding pronunciations and dual-form spellings, they may well have been received as dual in their actual linguistic practices. The established form of words does not occur regardless of their practical use in real communications, verbal or written. These dual forms were what ancient people used in their daily life when referring to water and the sky. They understood water or sky to be a duality. THE DUALITY OF WATER IMPLIED IN THE CREATION STORY OF GENESIS Tehom in the creation story of Genesis 1 is generally taken to be the watery deep: (5) Now the earth was unformed and void, and darkness was upon the face of the deep (tehom); and the spirit (or a wind) of God hovered over the face of the waters (Gen. 1:2). In the design of chaos-order, widely attested in many creation stories of ancient Western Asia, (6) the above passage duly portrays a state of chaos. Chaos is thus expected to be followed by order, which is realized in as narrated in Genesis 1. The chaos is very much associated with water, and it represents the fear and anarchy featured in the region's many myths. The subsequent passage (verses 3-5) tells how light and darkness were made on the first day of creation, while verse 6 mentions water once again: And God said: 'Let there be a firmament in the midst of the waters.' Thereafter, in verses 7-8, the waters were split into the waters above and below the expanse (raki'a); later, on the second day, the expanse separating the waters came to be called shamayim (sky). …
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