Column #104. Contents of this weekly column are (mostly) based on the sefer: EIM LAMIKRA HASHALEIM, by R' Nissan Sharoni, Ashdod, a guide to correct pronunciation of Hebrew, specifically in davening and Torah reading.

Following last week's lead, we'll look at some of the words in B'SHALACH, some of which appear nowhere else in Tanach.

Shmot 14:2 - The people camped at the Sea, directly opposite Baal Tz'fon. With the root NOCHACH, the word is NICH-CHI. Problem with Ashkenazi pronunciation is that we say CHET and CHAF the same way. If that were really so, the SH'VA NACH under the CHAF would have changed to a NA to make the word easier to say. Like the LAMEDs in the word HA-L'LU. The word "should be" HAL-LU, but that's hard to say without swallowing one of the LAMEDs. HA-L'LU flows better. So would NI-CH'CHO. But CHAF and CHET aren't really the same. So we are stuck with NICH, first syllable and CHO.

In 15:8 we meet an old friend, NE-er-mu, a highly rare double MIL'EIL word. Last year when we presented this, we received learned responses that showed how it really isn't a double NASOG ACHOR, because the AYIN really shouldn't have a SEGOL, but rather a CHATAF-SEGOL, making the word really a two-syllable word and only regular MIL'EIL courtesy of regular NASOG ACHOR. But look at the word. The way it's written and voweled, we are looking at a rare Hebrew word that is accented, not on the last syllable, not on the next-to-the-last syllable, but on the third syllable from the end. That happens a lot in English, but very rarely in Hebrew.

Now look at 15:10. Very long note on this word in EIM LAMASORET. Referring to the Egyptians, the Torah (and our davening, because we're in the SHIRA, as is the previous paragraph's NE-er-mu, and that makes this a davening example, not just a Torah reading one) tells us that they sank like lead in the water. TZA-L'LU KA-OFERET B'MAYIM... and then there is one more word - ADIRIM. Mighty. An adjective. What does it modify? An impressive list of sources say that it describes the water. MAYIM ADIRIM. Mighty water. And others say that ADIRIM is a noun and refers to the Egyptians. The problem then is where the greater pause goes in the phrase. The first opinion would have us read the phrase as TZA-L'LU KA-OFERET pause B'MAYIM ADIRIM. The second opinion would pause longer after B'MAYIM. TZA-L'LU KA-O- FERET B'MAYIM, pause ADIRIM. The TAAMIM don't really help resolve this dispute because the ZAKEIF-KATON on KA-OFERET and the TIPCHA under B'MAYIM are both second level (strong) pausers. R' Sharoni in Eim LaMasoret leans towards the first opinion because even though the ZAKEIF-KATON and the TIPCHA are in the same category of MAFSEIKIM, when pitted against each other, the ZAKEIF KATON is a stronger pauser. This puts MAYIM ADIRIM closer together. Still, he refuses to draw a conclusion for how to actually read it, because He "won't put his head between two great mountains" (translation of his words).

Next we look at 15:11 - MI CHAMOCHA... MI KAMOCHA... It is fairly well known (and practiced?) that the first KAMOCHA (like You) is without the DAGESH in the first CHAF (and none in the second one either), but the second KAMOCHA keeps its DAGESH. The fact is that the in first MI CHAMOCHA, the words are joined with a MAKAF (upper-dash), which makes the two words almost like one. And the DAGESH would definitely drop from the KAF in that case. In the second MI KAMOCHA, the words are not joined and each has a TROP mark. Still, the DAGESH should have dropped from the KAF because the MERCHA-TIPCHA combination usually does that, with a YUD in the first word of a two-word phrase and a KAF (or BET, GIMEL, DALET, PEI, TAV) leading the second word. But this DAGESH doesn't drop. R' Sharoni "explains" it as a MASORET, a Tradition. But in a telephone conversation, he gave various theories to explain the CHAMO- CHA / KAMOCHA difference. To give one example, since the second MI finds itself at the end of a line in a Sefer Torah, there is a natural pause as the Torah reader shifts his eyes to the beginning of the next line, and that MIGHT have put the DAGESH back into KAMOCHA. Okay, here's another theory. Sometimes when a word appears twice in the same pasuk, they might have been given slightly different accents or pronunciations to make the whole pasuk sound better. There were other ideas, too.

In the same pasuk (which also appears in several places in davening), there is an ALEF with a SH'VA NACH. NE?-DAR. Ashkenazim consider an ALEF with a SH'VA to be totally silent. But it can't really be silent because that's how we view an ALEF without any vowel. The SH'VA NACH under the ALEF is supposed to be heard/felt someway or other. (We did this a short while back and won't go into it again.)

Let's finish this week's column with another word from the introduction to the SHIRA, that we also say in davening, that is less subtle than the other words just presented. But this one is important, because of the different meanings of the word and its mispronunciation. VA-YI-R'U HAAM ET HASHEM... And the nation feared HaShem... Look at the syllables of the word. VA then YI (or maybe even YIY) and then R'U. It is very easy to mix this word up with VA-YIR-U, And they saw. The first word (feared) has two YUDs, the second one making the CHIRIK under the first YUD into a major vowel, and telling us that the REISH that follows has a SH'VA NA under it. Therefore, the REISH joins the following syllable, which becomes R'U. The second word (saw), has only one YUD, voweled with a CHIRIK which is a T'NU'A K'TANA, a minor vowel. The REISH that follows has a SH'VA NACH which closes off the previous syllable, VA-YIR, which leaves the ALEF-SHRUK in its own syllable. VA-YIR-U. Remember that the words have different meanings, so it is important to pronounce each of them correctly. There are many occurrences of each word in Tanach. Again, the one right before AZ YASHIR is VA-YI-R'U.
One more note on the previous words: Both have YUDs with DAGESH CHAZAK, so their first syllables are really VAY, with the YUD sound stretching into the second syllable. But this doesn't involve changing the meaning of the word, so the focus was on the REISH's SH'VA, what kind of SH'VA it is and to which syllable does it belong.
Think of how lovingly and patiently a really com- mitted stamp collector studies his stamps. This is what this column tries to develop for davening and Torah reading.

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