List Of Hebrew Dictionaries
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

Notable
dictionaries A dictionary is a listing of lexemes from the lexicon of one or more specific languages, often arranged Alphabetical order, alphabetically (or by Semitic root, consonantal root for Semitic languages or radical-and-stroke sorting, radical an ...
of the
Hebrew language Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and remained in regular use as a first language unti ...
include:


Hebrew dictionaries for Hebrew speakers


Medieval dictionaries

* The first Hebrew dictionary that we know of is ''Mahberet Menahem'' by Menahem ben Saruq. It was written in Spain in the years 960-950. It contains all the words and roots in the
Hebrew Bible The Hebrew Bible or Tanakh (;"Tanach"
. '' Hai Gaon Hai ben Sherira (), better known as Hai Gaon (), was a medieval Jewish theologian, rabbi and scholar who served as Gaon of the Talmudic academy of Pumbedita during the early 11th century. He was born in 939 and died on March 28, 1038. He receiv ...
compiled dictionary of especially difficult words in the Bible,
Targum A targum (, ''interpretation'', ''translation'', ''version''; plural: targumim) was an originally spoken translation of the Hebrew Bible (also called the ) that a professional translator ( ''mǝṯurgǝmān'') would give in the common language o ...
, and
Talmud The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of Haskalah#Effects, modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the cen ...
, in the 10th or 11th century. The Arabic title of the book was ''Kitab al-Hawi''. * In the first half of the 11th century,
Jonah ibn Janah Jonah ibn Janah () or Abū al-Walīd Marwān ibn Janāḥ (), (), was a Jewish rabbi, physician and Hebrew grammarian active in al-Andalus (Muslim-ruled Spain). Born in Córdoba, ibn Janah was mentored there by Isaac ibn Gikatilla and Isaac ibn ...
compiled the ''Book of Roots'' ( ''Kitab al-Usul''), which is a complete dictionary of the Hebrew
roots A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients. Root or roots may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusin ...
in the Bible. * In the 11th century, Nathan ben Jehiel of Rome wrote ''The Arukh'' - a dictionary that deals with difficult and foreign words written in Hebrew letters in the Talmud and Midrash. The explanations for the words rely mainly on the literature of the
Geonim ''Geonim'' (; ; also Romanization of Hebrew, transliterated Gaonim, singular Gaon) were the presidents of the two great Talmudic Academies in Babylonia, Babylonian Talmudic Academies of Sura Academy , Sura and Pumbedita Academy , Pumbedita, in t ...
and the author's interpretation. Each of the dictionary entries has a broad explanation in Hebrew, which sometimes also includes reference to other matters related to the subject. * In 1161, Solomon ben Abraham ibn Parhon completed his ''Mahberet HaArukh'' Hebrew dictionary of the Biblical Hebrew, in the city of
Salerno Salerno (, ; ; ) is an ancient city and ''comune'' (municipality) in Campania, southwestern Italy, and is the capital of the namesake province, being the second largest city in the region by number of inhabitants, after Naples. It is located ...
, Italy. It was influenced by the ''Mahberet'' of Menahem ben Saruq and the ''Arukh'' of Nathan of Rome. It also took material from Jonah ibn Janah's ''Book of Roots'' and
Judah ben David Hayyuj Judah ben David Hayyuj (, ) was a Maghrebi Jew of Al-Andalus born in North Africa. He was a linguist and is regarded as the father of Hebrew scientific grammar. Judah was born in Fez, then part of the Fatimid Caliphate, about 945. At an early ...
's ''Book of Extracts''. * Rabbi
David Kimhi ''Cervera Bible'', David Kimhi's Grammar Treatise David Kimhi (, also Kimchi or Qimḥi) (1160–1235), also known by the Hebrew acronym as the RaDaK () (Rabbi David Kimhi), was a medieval rabbi, biblical commentator, philosopher, and grammarian ...
compiled an Hebrew dictionary of the Hebrew language called ''Sefer HaShorashim'' (''The Book of Roots)'', in the 12th or 13th century. It draws heavily from the previous works mentioned here.


Dictionaries published in 1500-1900

* In 1561,
Elia Levita Elia Levita (13 February 146928 January 1549) (), also known as Elijah Levita, Elias Levita, Élie Lévita, Elia Levita Ashkenazi, Eliahu Levita, Eliyahu haBahur ("Elijah the Bachelor"), Elye Bokher, was a Renaissance Hebrew grammarian, schol ...
published the ''Tishbi'', an Hebrew dictionary of the Hebrew language of the Talmud and the Middle Ages, focusing on words that didn't appear in the ''Arukh''. * Solomon de Oliveyra published in the second half of the 17th century several Hebrew dictionaries: ''Sharshot gablut''. Amsterdam. 1665. Rhyming dictionary; ''Zayit raanan''. Amsterdam. 1683. A collection of Talmudic and scientific Hebrew terms with some Hebrew riddles; ''Darkhey noam''. Amsterdam. 1688. A dictionary of rabbinical terms, published with ''Darkhey haShem'' (1689). * In 1808 Judah Leib Ben-Ze'ev published in
Vienna Vienna ( ; ; ) is the capital city, capital, List of largest cities in Austria, most populous city, and one of Federal states of Austria, nine federal states of Austria. It is Austria's primate city, with just over two million inhabitants. ...
the dictionary ''Otzar haShorashim'', a lexicon of Hebrew roots and Hebrew-German dictionary, inspired by the work of David Kimhi. * Samuel Joseph Fuenn published in 1884 the first volume of an Hebrew dictionary called ''HaOtzar''. It was completed by 1912 by others after his death in 1894.


Dictionaries published in 1900-Present

* Ben-Yehuda Dictionary, the first modern Hebrew dictionary, compiled by
Eliezer Ben-Yehuda Eliezer Ben‑Yehuda (born Eliezer Yitzhak Perlman; 7 January 1858 – 16 December 1922) was a Russian–Jewish linguist, lexicographer, and journalist who immigrated to Jerusalem in 1881, when the Ottoman Empire ruled it. He is renowned as the ...
, whose first volumes were published in 1908. * Even-Shoshan Dictionary, compiled by Avraham Even-Shoshan, originally published in 1948–1953 as (Hebrew for "New Dictionary"). * , compiled by two members of the
Academy of the Hebrew Language The Academy of the Hebrew Language (, ''ha-akademyah la-lashon ha-ivrit'') was established by the Israeli government in 1953 as the "supreme institution for scholarship on the Hebrew language in the Hebrew University of Jerusalem of Givat Ram cam ...
, edited in the present tense method, published in 1995, and reprinted in 2007. * * , originally developed by the Israeli Center for Educational Technology, first published in 1997, including both a printed version and an electronic one. Currently maintained by Melingo.


Historical Hebrew dictionaries

*
Historical Dictionary Project of the Hebrew Language History is the systematic study of the past, focusing primarily on the human past. As an academic discipline, it analyses and interprets evidence to construct narratives about what happened and explain why it happened. Some theorists categ ...
, a research project of the Academy of the Hebrew Language.


Translation dictionaries


Historical and scholarly Hebrew translation dictionaries


Medieval dictionaries

* Agron, a 10th century lexicographical reference book by
Saadia Gaon Saʿadia ben Yosef Gaon (892–942) was a prominent rabbi, Geonim, gaon, Jews, Jewish philosopher, and exegesis, exegete who was active in the Abbasid Caliphate. Saadia is the first important rabbinic figure to write extensively in Judeo-Arabic ...
, including
Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...
word translations. * ''Kitāb Jāmiʿ al-Alfāẓ'' ("The Book of Collected Meanings"), a 10th century Hebrew-Aramaic-Arabic dictionary by David ben Abraham al-Fasi


Dictionaries published in 1500-1900

* '' De Rudimentis Hebraicis'', ("The fundamentals of Hebrew"), first published in 1506 by
Johann Reuchlin Johann Reuchlin (; 29 January 1455 – 30 June 1522), sometimes called Johannes, was a German Catholic humanist and a scholar of Greek and Hebrew, whose work also took him to modern-day Austria, Switzerland, Italy, and France. Most of Reuchlin's c ...
, on the Hebrew grammar, including a Hebrew-Latin lexicon * ''אוֹצַר לְשׁוֹן הַקֹּדֶשׁ, Thesaurus Linguae Sanctae, sive Lexicon Hebraicum'' ("Treasury of the sacred language, or Hebrew lexicon"), first published in 1529 by Santes Pagnino, a Hebrew Latin dictionary. * Shemot Devarim, a
Yiddish Yiddish, historically Judeo-German, is a West Germanic language historically spoken by Ashkenazi Jews. It originated in 9th-century Central Europe, and provided the nascent Ashkenazi community with a vernacular based on High German fused with ...
-Hebrew-
Latin Latin ( or ) is a classical language belonging to the Italic languages, Italic branch of the Indo-European languages. Latin was originally spoken by the Latins (Italic tribe), Latins in Latium (now known as Lazio), the lower Tiber area aroun ...
-
German German(s) may refer to: * Germany, the country of the Germans and German things **Germania (Roman era) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizenship in Germany, see also Ge ...
dictionary written by
Elia Levita Elia Levita (13 February 146928 January 1549) (), also known as Elijah Levita, Elias Levita, Élie Lévita, Elia Levita Ashkenazi, Eliahu Levita, Eliyahu haBahur ("Elijah the Bachelor"), Elye Bokher, was a Renaissance Hebrew grammarian, schol ...
and published by
Paul Fagius Paul Fagius (1504 – 13 November 1549) was a Renaissance scholar of Biblical Hebrew and Protestant reformer. Life Fagius was born at Rheinzabern in 1504. His father was a teacher and council clerk. In 1515 he went to study at the University o ...
in 1542 in Isny * ''Hebräisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch über die Schriften des Alten Testaments mit Einschluß der geographischen Nahmen und der chaldäischen Wörter beym Daniel und Esra'' (Hebrew-German Hand Dictionary on the Old Testament Scriptures including Geographical Names and Chaldean Words, with Daniel and
Ezra Ezra ( fl. fifth or fourth century BCE) is the main character of the Book of Ezra. According to the Hebrew Bible, he was an important Jewish scribe (''sofer'') and priest (''kohen'') in the early Second Temple period. In the Greek Septuagint, t ...
), by
Wilhelm Gesenius Heinrich Friedrich Wilhelm Gesenius (3 February 178623 October 1842) was a German orientalist, lexicographer, Christian Hebraist, Lutheran theologian, Biblical scholar and critic. Biography Gesenius was born at Nordhausen. In 1803 he bec ...
, published in 1810/1812 * ''A Hebrew, Latin and English Dictionary; containing all the Hebrew and Chaldee Words used in the Old Testament'', by Joseph Samuel Christian Frederick Frey, published 1815 by Gale and Fenner, Paternoster-Row * ''Lexicon Hebraicum et Chaldaicum cum brevi Lexico Rabbinico Philosophico'', a Hebrew and Chaldean lexicon by
Johannes Buxtorf Johannes Buxtorf () (December 25, 1564September 13, 1629) was a celebrated Hebraist, member of a family of Orientalists; professor of Hebrew for thirty-nine years at Basel and was known by the title, "Master of the Rabbis". His massive tome, '' ...
, published in 1607, reprinted in Glasgow, 1824. * Steinberg O.N. (Father to the soviet composer of classical music Maximilian Osseyevich Steinberg): ''Jewish and Chaldean etymological dictionary to Old Testament books''. T. 1-3. Vilna: Type. L. L. Matza, 1878–1881. (A Biblical hebrew dictionary in the Russian language) Штейнберг О. Н. Еврейский и халдейский этимологический словарь к книгам Ветхого Завета. Т. 1–3. Вильна: тип. Л. Л. Маца, 1878– 1881. * ''Neues Hebräisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch über das Alte Testament mit Einschluß des biblischen Chaldaismus'' ("New Hebrew-German hand dictionary on the Old Testament including Chaldean words"), by Wilhelm Gesenius, originally published in Leipzig in 1815. Also available as a digitized version of the 16th edition, 1915 and 18th edition reprint, from Springer Verlag, Berlin 2008, *
Strong's Concordance ''The Exhaustive Concordance of the Bible'', generally known as Strong's Concordance, is a Bible concordance, an index of every word in the King James Version (KJV), constructed under the direction of American theologian James Strong. Strong fi ...
, a
Bible concordance A Bible concordance is a Concordance (publishing), concordance, or verbal index, to the Bible. A simple form lists Biblical words alphabetically, with indications to enable the inquirer to find the passages of the Bible where the words occur. Con ...
first published in 1890, that indexes every word in the
King James Version The King James Version (KJV), also the King James Bible (KJB) and the Authorized Version (AV), is an Early Modern English Bible translations, Early Modern English translation of the Christianity, Christian Bible for the Church of England, wh ...
, including the 8674
Biblical Hebrew Biblical Hebrew ( or ), also called Classical Hebrew, is an archaic form of the Hebrew language, a language in the Canaanite languages, Canaanitic branch of the Semitic languages spoken by the Israelites in the area known as the Land of Isra ...
root words used in the
Old Testament The Old Testament (OT) is the first division of the Christian biblical canon, which is based primarily upon the 24 books of the Hebrew Bible, or Tanakh, a collection of ancient religious Hebrew and occasionally Aramaic writings by the Isr ...
, and includes a Hebrew English dictionary.


Dictionaries published in 1900-Present

*
Brown–Driver–Briggs ''A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament'', more commonly known as ''Brown–Driver–Briggs'' or ''BDB'' (from the name of its three authors) is a standard reference for Biblical Hebrew and Biblical Aramaic, first published in 1906. ...
, A Hebrew and English Lexicon of the Old Testament, first published in 1906. * ''Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti libros'', a scholarly translation dictionary, consisting of "Ludwig Koehler - Dictionary of the Hebrew Old Testament in English and German", and "Walter Baumgartner - A Dictionary of the Aramaic parts of the Old Testament in English and German", published in 1953. *
Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament The ''Hebrew and Aramaic Lexicon of the Old Testament'' ("HALOT") is a scholarly dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and Aramaic, which has partially supplanted ''Brown–Driver–Briggs''. It is a translation and updating of the German-language Koehle ...
, an English-only version, with updates, of the ''Lexicon in Veteris Testamenti libros'', published 1994-2000.


Modern Hebrew translation dictionaries

* ("Arabic-Hebrew Dictionary of Modern Arabic"), compiled by David Ayalon, Pessach Shinar and Moshe Brill, published by the
Hebrew University The Hebrew University of Jerusalem (HUJI; ) is an Israeli public research university based in Jerusalem. Co-founded by Albert Einstein and Chaim Weizmann in July 1918, the public university officially opened on 1 April 1925. It is the second-ol ...
, 1978 *
Babylon Babylon ( ) was an ancient city located on the lower Euphrates river in southern Mesopotamia, within modern-day Hillah, Iraq, about south of modern-day Baghdad. Babylon functioned as the main cultural and political centre of the Akkadian-s ...
, a computer dictionary and translation program. * , an online Hebrew English dictionary by Melingo. * ''New Hebrew-German Dictionary: with grammatical notes and list of abbreviations'', compiled by Wiesen, Moses A., published by Rubin Mass, Jerusalem, in 1936 * The modern
Greek Greek may refer to: Anything of, from, or related to Greece, a country in Southern Europe: *Greeks, an ethnic group *Greek language, a branch of the Indo-European language family **Proto-Greek language, the assumed last common ancestor of all kno ...
-Hebrew, Hebrew-Greek dictionary, compiled by Despina Liozidou Shermister, first published in 2018 * The Oxford English Hebrew dictionary, published in 1998 by the Oxford University Press.


References

{{Reflist Hebrew dictionaries
Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...