Samaritan vocalization explained

The Samaritan vocalization (or Samaritan pointing, Samaritan niqqud, Hebrew: ניקוד שומרוני) is a system of diacritics used with the Samaritan script to indicate vowel quality and gemination which reflects Samaritan Hebrew. It is used by the Samaritans to provide guidance on the pronunciation of the consonantal text of the Samaritan Pentateuch and Samaritan prayer books. The Samaritan vocalization is estimated to have been invented around the 10th centuryCE. Variation exists within the system between different manuscripts.

Description

Samaritan niqqud
Pronunciation[1] Niqqud with / Unicode character[2]
pronounced as //a~ɒ//
pronounced as //e//
pronounced as //i//
pronounced as //o// -
pronounced as //u//
(geminate consonant)
Pronunciation Niqqud with / Unicode character
(occlusion)
pronounced as //ʕa//
pronounced as //ʕa//

See also

Notes and References

  1. Web site: Universal Multiple-Octet Coded Character Set. unicode.org. 3 June 2023.
  2. Web site: Samaritan. unicode.org. 3 June 2023.