![Byzantinischer Maler um 1020 003](https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/97/Byzantinischer_Maler_um_1020_003.jpg)
Ekphonetic notation consists of symbols added to certain sacred texts, especially
lectionary
A lectionary ( la, lectionarium) is a book or listing that contains a collection of scripture readings appointed for Christianity, Christian or Judaic worship on a given day or occasion. There are sub-types such as a "gospel lectionary" or evang ...
readings of Biblical texts, as a
mnemonic
A mnemonic ( ) device, or memory device, is any learning technique that aids information retention or retrieval (remembering) in the human memory for better understanding.
Mnemonics make use of elaborative encoding, retrieval cues, and imag ...
device to assist in their
cantillation
Cantillation is the ritual chanting of prayers and responses. It often specifically refers to Jewish Hebrew cantillation. Cantillation sometimes refers to diacritics used in texts that are to be chanted in liturgy.
Cantillation includes:
* Chant
...
. Ekphonetic notation can take a number of forms, and has been used in several
Jewish
Jews ( he, יְהוּדִים, , ) or Jewish people are an ethnoreligious group and nation originating from the Israelites Israelite origins and kingdom: "The first act in the long drama of Jewish history is the age of the Israelites""The ...
and
Christian
Christians () are people who follow or adhere to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. The words ''Christ'' and ''Christian'' derive from the Koine Greek title ''Christós'' (Χρι ...
plainchant
Plainsong or plainchant (calque from the French ''plain-chant''; la, cantus planus) is a body of chants used in the liturgies of the Western Church. When referring to the term plainsong, it is those sacred pieces that are composed in Latin text. ...
traditions, but is most commonly associated with
Byzantine chant. In many cases, the original meaning of ekphonetic
neume
A neume (; sometimes spelled neum) is the basic element of Western and Eastern systems of musical notation prior to the invention of five-line staff notation.
The earliest neumes were inflective marks that indicated the general shape but not ne ...
s is obscure, and must be reconstructed by comparison with later notation.
Joseph Huzaya
Joseph (Yawsep) Hūzāyā (fl. c. 530) was a Nestorian teacher and author. His name indicates that he hailed from Khuzestan.
Joseph was a disciple of Narsai. He was the ''maqryānā'' (reader) of the School of Nisibis at the end of the 5th and in ...
introduced ekphonetic notation into
Syriac Syriac may refer to:
*Syriac language, an ancient dialect of Middle Aramaic
*Sureth, one of the modern dialects of Syriac spoken in the Nineveh Plains region
* Syriac alphabet
** Syriac (Unicode block)
** Syriac Supplement
* Neo-Aramaic languages a ...
in the early 6th century.
See also
*
Hebrew cantillation
Hebrew cantillation is the manner of chanting ritual readings from the Hebrew Bible in synagogue services. The chants are written and notated in accordance with the special signs or marks printed in the Masoretic Text of the Bible, to comple ...
{{Musical notation, state=collapsed
Musical notation