The Rivia (, []) is a Hebrew cantillation, cantillation mark commonly found in the Torah, Haftarah, and other biblical texts. The Aram word ) has its Hebrew counter part Rivi'i, with other variant English spellings. Its meaning is 'the fourth'.
Rivia is considered to have medium strength. It is stronger than a
Pashta
Pashta (Hebrew: ) is a common Hebrew cantillation, cantillation mark found in the Torah, Haftarah, and other books of the Hebrew Bible. It is part of the Zakef katan, Katan group. Its mark symbol is identical to that of the Kadma (trope), Kadma.
W ...
or
Tevir
Tevir (Hebrew: , with variant English spellings including ''T'vir'' and ''Tebir'') is a cantillation mark commonly found in the Torah, Haftarah, and other Hebrew biblical books. It can be found independently or it can follow any number of other can ...
, but weaker than a
Zakef or
Tipcha
Tifcha ( he, טִפְחָ֖א, also spelled ''Tifkha'', ''Tipcha'' and other variant English spellings) is a cantillation mark commonly found in the Torah, Haftarah, and other books that are chanted. In Sephardic and Oriental traditions, it is cal ...
.
The Rivia can occur either by itself, or following one or two
Munach
The Munach (Hebrew: , also spelled ''Munah'' or ''Munakh''), translating to English as ''"to rest,"'' is a common cantillation sound. In Sephardi and Oriental traditions it is often called Shofar holekh. It is marked with a right angle below the co ...
s. When there are two Munachs prior to a Rivia, the first Munach has a long melody, and the second one is short. When there is one Munach, it is short.
Based on its translation with ''fourth'' in printouts it is represented by a diamond-shaped mark. However in manuscripts it's just a dot.
[The Art of Cantillation, Volume 2: A Step-By-Step Guide to Chanting Haftarot ... By Marshall Portnoy, Josée Wolff, page 43]
Total occurrences
Melody
The Rivia is read in a slow, downward tone, with a pause in the middle breaking upward.
References
Cantillation marks
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