Book of Homonyms

Judah Ibn Bal‘am

Kitāb al-tajnīs (Book of Homonyms), Introduction, Body (selections)

Mid-11th Century

Introduction

With the help of the One who teaches man knowledge. [ . . . ]

May God be praised and thanked for all His graces and benefactions! We say that one of those students who deem the quest for knowledge . . . and its benefit to be above all things that can be obtained has asked me to [compose for him] the nouns that are similar in pronunciation but different in meaning found in Hebrew texts, since he knows that it is useful to know them. Unquestionably, these constitute the finest style with respect to purity when they are employed in poetry or in [prose] discourse. [ . . . ]

Aḥ, aḥ, aḥ

The first [use of the word] is the actual noun meaning “brother” [aḥ], or something similar, and it pertains to those words whose [third] letter is not sounded, as can be seen from the forms brother [aḥi] of Eshkol, and brother [aḥi] of Aner (Genesis 14:13). The root of aḥ follows the pattern of the words koaḥ and ruaḥ.

The second [use] is and the brazier [ha-aḥ] was burning before him (Jeremiah 36:22): the name of a fire vessel.

The third is and cry, “Aha [aḥ]!” (Ezekiel 6:11); this is a word you say for sighing and mourning. It can be found with the addition of a heh on [the occasion of] vengeance: Aha [aḥ]! We have seen it (Psalms 35:21).

And [the fourth] is aḥ [deriving] from aḥu [reed]. [ . . . ]

Meri

The first [use of the word] is [for they are a rebellious [meri] house] (Ezekiel 2:5).

The second is oxen, fatlings [meriya’], and sheep (1 Kings 1:19); it is a name of an animal.

It is worthwhile to mention to you here what I have found written by two great experts from among the people, R. Se‘adya Ga’on and R. Hayya Ga’on. R. Se‘adya Ga’on said: “Buffalos are fit to be sacrificed, but their fat is prohibited”; he mentioned as a prooftext the following: I am sated with burnt-offerings of rams, and suet of fatlings [ḥelev meri’im] (Isaiah 1:11). And Hayya Ga’on said: “They are unfit to be sacrificed, but their fat is permitted, and it is a kind of wild cattle,” and he explained meri’im as fattened, according to verse: Else she would soar on high [ka-‘et ba-marom tamri’] (Job 39:18), and from the following passage of the Mishnah: “One may [not] force-feed calves [mamrin et ha-‘agalim]” [m. Shabbat 24:3]. It is difficult for us to decide which explanation is more probable. I follow in this respect the chapter that [Yūḥannāh] Ibn Māsawayh referred to in the Book of Chapters: “If Aristotle and Galen agree, then that [has to be followed], but when they disagree, it is difficult for the mind to solve.” [ . . . ]

Ḥerem, ḥerem

The first [use of the word] is: traps in his net [ḥerem] (Micah 7:2), and from this it is said: the man whom I doomed [ḥermi] (1 Kings 20:42); that is, who was seized by my net. And it is possible that its meaning is like who has been devoted [ḥerem] (Leviticus 27:29), that is, that he deserves extermination and destruction.

The second is a legal term, which has two categories. It may refer to extermination, like no man who has been devoted can be ransomed (Leviticus 27:29), as I have said; or it may refer to what is dedicated to the holy, and this is of two kinds: an unspecified ḥerem, when the name of God is not mentioned in connection with it; and a ḥerem to which the name of God is joined, as is said: ḥerem to God. The unspecified ḥerem is for the repair of the Temple; and that with which the name of God was mentioned is for the priests, in accordance with the saying of the ancestors. R. Judah said: Things proscribed without specification fall to the fund for Temple repairs, as it was said: Every devoted thing is totally consecrated to the Lord (Leviticus 27:28). But the sages say: Things devoted without specification go to the priests, as it is said: The field shall be holy to the Lord, as a devoted field; the possession thereof shall be the priest’s (Leviticus 27:21). And according to the Talmud, Rav said: The law follows the opinion of R. Judah ben Betera. And I have seen that R. Samuel Kohen Ga’on disagreed and decided contra the sages. As for R. Ḥefets, he accepted Rav’s view.

Translated by Dora Zsom.

Published in: The Posen Library of Jewish Culture and Civilization, vol. 3: Encountering Christianity and Islam.

Engage with this Source

In this text, Book of Homonyms (Kitāb al-tajnīs), which collects and analyzes Hebrew homonyms, Ibn Bal‘am generally argues that such words have different meanings, despite their identical (or sometimes near-identical) roots. After an introduction, excerpted here, the author launches into an alphabetically arranged, thorough review of homonyms. This work likely served functions in both exegesis and poetics. The use of homonyms in poetry was highly regarded, and Ibn Bal‘am’s work could have been useful for authors who sought to adorn their writings with such features. Unbracketed ellipses indicate lacunae in the manuscript.

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Creator Bio

Judah Ibn Bal‘am

d. ca. 1070

Judah ben Samuel Ibn Bal‘am, who also went by the Arabic name Abū Zakariyyā Yaḥyā, is primarily known for his linguistic and exegetical writings in Judeo-Arabic. Judah was born in Toledo and settled in Seville in the late eleventh century. His grammatical works and scriptural commentaries critically evaluate earlier views and preserve many positions that would otherwise have been lost. Although some viewed Judah as merely a follower of Ibn Janāḥ, his independence of mind has become increasingly clear as his works have been published in recent decades. One report has him studying halakhah later in life, and there is some evidence that he composed polemics against Karaites. He influenced all later Andalusis who worked in his field.

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