Heinrich Friedrich Wilhelm Gesenius (3 February 178623 October 1842) was a

German German(s) may refer to: * Germany (of or related to) **Germania (historical use) * Germans, citizens of Germany, people of German ancestry, or native speakers of the German language ** For citizens of Germany, see also German nationality law **Ge ...

orientalist, lexicographer, Christian Hebraist, Lutheran theologian,

Biblical scholar Biblical studies is the academic application of a set of diverse disciplines to the study of the Bible (the Old Testament and New Testament).''Introduction to Biblical Studies, Second Edition'' by Steve Moyise (Oct 27, 2004) pages 11–12 ...

and critic.

Biography

Gesenius was born at Nordhausen. In 1803 he became a student of

philosophy Philosophy (from , ) is the systematized study of general and fundamental questions, such as those about existence, reason, knowledge, values, mind, and language. Such questions are often posed as problems to be studied or resolved. ...

and

theology Theology is the systematic study of the nature of the divine and, more broadly, of religious belief. It is taught as an academic discipline, typically in universities and seminaries. It occupies itself with the unique content of analyzing th ...

at the

University of Helmstedt The University of Helmstedt (german: Universität Helmstedt; official Latin name: ''Academia Julia'', "Julius University"), was a university in Helmstedt in the Duchy of Brunswick-Wolfenbüttel that existed from 1576 until 1810. History Found ...

, where Heinrich Henke was his most influential teacher; but the latter part of his university course was taken at

Göttingen Göttingen (, , ; nds, Chöttingen) is a university city in Lower Saxony, central Germany, the capital of the eponymous district. The River Leine runs through it. At the end of 2019, the population was 118,911. General information The ori ...

, where

Johann Gottfried Eichhorn Johann Gottfried Eichhorn (16 October 1752, in Dörrenzimmern – 27 June 1827, in Göttingen) was a German Protestant theologian of the Enlightenment and an early orientalist. He was a member of the Göttingen School of History. Education and ...

and Thomas Christian Tychsen were then at the height of their popularity. In 1806, shortly after graduation, he became ''Repetent'' and '' Privatdozent'' (or ''Magister legens'') at Göttingen; and, as he was later proud to say, had August Neander for his first pupil in

Hebrew language Hebrew (; ; ) is a Northwest Semitic language of the Afroasiatic language family. Historically, it is one of the spoken languages of the Israelites and their longest-surviving descendants, the Jews and Samaritans. It was largely preserve ...

. On 8 February 1810 he became ''professor extraordinarius'' in theology, and on 16 June 1811 was promoted to ''ordinarius'', at the University of Halle, where, in spite of many offers of high preferment elsewhere, he spent the rest of his life. He taught with great regularity for over thirty years. He was a gifted lecturer whose lectures were so interesting that his lecture room was consistently filled; by 1810 his lectures were attended by more than 500 students - nearly half the entire student population of the university. The only interruptions occurred in 1813–1814, occasioned by the German War of Liberation ( War of the Sixth Coalition), during which the university was closed, and those occasioned by two prolonged literary tours, first in 1820 to

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and

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with his colleague Johann Karl Thilo (1794–1853) for the examination of rare oriental manuscripts, and in 1835 to England and the Netherlands in connection with his

Phoenicia Phoenicia () was an ancient thalassocratic civilization originating in the Levant region of the eastern Mediterranean, primarily located in modern Lebanon. The territory of the Phoenician city-states extended and shrank throughout their his ...

n studies. He became the most popular teacher of Hebrew and of Old Testament introduction and

exegesis Exegesis ( ; from the Greek , from , "to lead out") is a critical explanation or interpretation of a text. The term is traditionally applied to the interpretation of Biblical works. In modern usage, exegesis can involve critical interpretation ...

in Germany; during his later years his lectures were attended by nearly five hundred students. Among his pupils the most eminent were Peter von Bohlen, C. P. W. Gramberg, A. G. Hoffmann,

Hermann Hupfeld Hermann Hupfeld (31 March 1796 – 24 April 1866) was a Protestant German Orientalist and Biblical commentator. He is known for his historical-critical studies of the Old Testament.Emil Rödiger Emil Rödiger (13 October 1801, in Sangerhausen – 15 June 1874) was a German orientalist. He studied philosophy and theology at the University of Halle, where in 1830, he became an associate professor of Oriental languages, followed by a full p ...

, J. C. F. Tuch, J. K. W. Vatke and

Theodor Benfey :''This is about the German philologist. For Theodor Benfey (born 1925) who developed a spiral periodic table of the elements in 1964, see Otto Theodor Benfey.'' Theodor Benfey (; 28 January 1809, in Nörten near Göttingen26 June 1881, in Göttin ...

. His first Hebrew

lexicon A lexicon is the vocabulary of a language or branch of knowledge (such as nautical or medical). In linguistics, a lexicon is a language's inventory of lexemes. The word ''lexicon'' derives from Greek word (), neuter of () meaning 'of or fo ...

(with German text) was worked up during the winter of 1806–1807, and published a few years later by F. C. W. Vogel, whose printing house in

Leipzig Leipzig ( , ; Upper Saxon: ) is the most populous city in the German state of Saxony. Leipzig's population of 605,407 inhabitants (1.1 million in the larger urban zone) as of 2021 places the city as Germany's eighth most populous, as ...

thereafter published all the editions of his lexicons. This was followed by a somewhat abridged version (about half the bulk of the first lexicon but with significant improvements) in 1815, which went to four German editions (each substantially larger and improved than its previous editions) and one Latin edition (although intended merely as a translation of the German edition, this too was a reworked revisions). His large lexicon of Biblical Hebrew and Chaldee (Aramaic) was first published in 1829, and its revision and expansion, under the editorship of Rödiger, continued after Gesenius's death until 1858. His textbook on Hebrew grammar first appeared, as a small book of a mere 202 pages, in 1813, and went through 13 editions in Gesenius's lifetime and as many afterward. He also published some smaller works, in German, on the grammatical anomalies found in the Hebrew text of the Old Testament. He also wrote extensively on the Samaritans and their version of the Pentateuch, and on the Phoenicians and their language. In 1827, after declining an invitation to take Eichhorn's place at Göttingen, Gesenius was made a . In 1830 there were violent verbal attacks to which he, along with his friend and colleague

Julius Wegscheider Julius August Ludwig Wegscheider (27 September 177127 January 1849), was a German Protestant theologian. Life Wegscheider was born at Küblingen (now a part of Schöppenstedt, Lower Saxony). He studied theology at the University of Helmstedt, w ...

, were subjected by E. W. Hengstenberg and his party in the ''Evangelische Kirchenzeitung'', on account of his

rationalism In philosophy, rationalism is the epistemological view that "regards reason as the chief source and test of knowledge" or "any view appealing to reason as a source of knowledge or justification".Lacey, A.R. (1996), ''A Dictionary of Philosophy' ...

and his lecture comments treating lightly the Biblical accounts of miracles. He was thereafter troubled with personal stresses; in 1833 he nearly died of lung disease, in 1835 three of his children died, and subsequently he was tormented by various physical complaints. His death in 1842 came after prolonged misery from gall stones. Gesenius died at

Halle Halle may refer to: Places Germany * Halle (Saale), also called Halle an der Saale, a city in Saxony-Anhalt ** Halle (region), a former administrative region in Saxony-Anhalt ** Bezirk Halle, a former administrative division of East Germany ** Hal ...

and is buried near the university. According to tradition, theology students in Halle put stones on his grave as a token of respect every year before their examinations. Gesenius takes much of the credit for having freed Semitic

philology Philology () is the study of language in oral and written historical sources; it is the intersection of textual criticism, literary criticism, history, and linguistics (with especially strong ties to etymology). Philology is also defined as ...

from the trammels of theological and religious prepossession, and for inaugurating the strictly scientific (and comparative) method which has since been so fruitful. As an exegete he exercised a powerful influence on theological investigation. He may also be considered as a founder of

n studies. Gesenius was keenly aware of previous efforts at dictionaries of Biblical Hebrew (he provided an extensive survey of Hebrew lexicography in the 1823 edition of his Hebrew lexicon for schools), and, compared to previous lexicons which had simply translated Hebrew expressions as whatever other versions (primarily the

Septuagint The Greek Old Testament, or Septuagint (, ; from the la, septuaginta, lit=seventy; often abbreviated ''70''; in Roman numerals, LXX), is the earliest extant Greek translation of books from the Hebrew Bible. It includes several books beyond t ...

and the Vulgate) had in the same verses, his own contribution to that field was the inclusion of insights obtained from the study of other languages, ancient and non-semitic. From his extensive body of work, the products most familiar to modern English-speaking readers are his Hebrew Grammar, best represented by an English translation of the 28th German edition, published by

Oxford University Press Oxford University Press (OUP) is the university press of the University of Oxford. It is the largest university press in the world, and its printing history dates back to the 1480s. Having been officially granted the legal right to print book ...

in 1910, and his dictionary of Biblical Hebrew and Aramaic, known through a number of English translations, including the ''Gesenius' Hebrew and Chaldee Lexicon to the Old Testament Scriptures'', a 1853 edition revised by

Samuel Prideaux Tregelles Samuel Prideaux Tregelles (30 January 1813 – 24 April 1875) was an English biblical scholar, lexicographer, Christian Hebraist, textual critic, and theologian. Life Tregelles was born at Wodehouse Place, Falmouth, of Quaker parents, bu ...

and the ''

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 1907 edition revised by Francis Brown, Samuel Rolles Driver and Charles A. Briggs. As indicated by the title pages, the German editions of these works were carried forward by several revised editions, after Gesenius's death, by other scholars, most conspicuously

Emil Rödiger Emil Rödiger (13 October 1801, in Sangerhausen – 15 June 1874) was a German orientalist. He studied philosophy and theology at the University of Halle, where in 1830, he became an associate professor of Oriental languages, followed by a full p ...

, into the 20th century. Edward Robinson, an acquaintance of Gesenius, and his principal English translator and biographer, said of him, " So clear were his own conception, that he never uttered a sentence, no scarcely ever wrote one, which even the dullest intellect did not at once comprehend. In this respect, he may be said to stand out almost alone among modern German scholars. ... In all that fell within the proper sphere of his own researches, he never rested upon the authority of others, but investigated for himself, with all the minute accuracy and closeness of detail and unwearied industry for which German learning is celebrated. His one great object was philological truth. He had no preconceived theories, to the support of which he was at all hazards committed, and in connection with which only he sought for truth. These traits, combined with his extensive learning, inspired a confidence in his researches and opinions on topics connected with Hebrew philology, such as has been bestowed on few scholars."

Works

* ''Versuch über die maltesische Sprache'' (1810). * ''Hebräisches Lesebuch'' (1814). * ''De Pentateuchi Samaritani origine, indole et auctoriate'' (1815). * ''Geschichte der hebräischen Sprache und Schrift'' (1815). * ''Hebräisch-deutsches Handwörterbuch'', 2 vols. (1810–12). English translation by Leo (1825–1828). ** ''Hebräisches und chaldäisches Handwörterbuch über das Alte Testament'' (1815; 16th ed. 1915). After the tenth edition ''chaldäisches'' was changed into ''aramäisches''. Various editions of this work have been translated into English by Gibbs (1824, 1827, 1832), Robinson (1836, 1854), and Tregelles (1859). ***

(2nd ed. 1907; corrected impression 1963) is based on Gesenius' work. * ''Hebräische Grammatik'' (1813, 29th ed. 1929 by

Gotthelf Bergsträsser Gotthelf Bergsträsser (5 April 1886, in Oberlosa, Plauen – 16 August 1933, near Berchtesgaden) was a German linguist specializing in Semitic studies, generally considered to be one of the greatest of the twentieth century. Bergsträsser was ...

ncomplete. English translation by Arthur E. Cowley (2nd ed. 1910). * ''Ausführliches grammatisch-kritisches Lehrgebäude der hebräischen Sprache mit Vergleichung der verwandten Dialekte'' (1817). * ''De Samaritanorum theologia ex fontibus ineditis commentatio'' (1822). * ''Paläographische Studien über Phönizische und Punische Schrift'' (1835). * ''Scripturae linguaeque phoeniciae monumenta quotquot supersunt edita et inedita'' (1837). * ''Programma. Commentatio de Samaritanorum theologia'' (1824). * ''Carmina samaritana e Codicibus Londinensibus et Gothanis'' (1824). * ''Programma. De inscriptione phoenicio-graeca in Cyrenaica'' (1825). * ''Genesis, Hebraice ad optima exemplaria accuratissime expressa'' (1828). * ''Der Prophet Jesaia'', 3 vols. (1820–21, 2nd ed. 1829). * ''Liber Job ad optima exemplaria accuratissime expressus'' (1829). * ''Thesaurus philologicus criticus linguae Hebraeae et Chaldaeae veteris testamenti'', 3 vols. (started in 1829, completed posthumously by

in 1858). Contains references to

talmud The Talmud (; he, , Talmūḏ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law ('' halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the ce ...

ic works and Jewish Bible commentators such as

Rashi Shlomo Yitzchaki ( he, רבי שלמה יצחקי; la, Salomon Isaacides; french: Salomon de Troyes, 22 February 1040 – 13 July 1105), today generally known by the acronym Rashi (see below), was a medieval French rabbi and author of a compre ...

, Abraham ibn Ezra,

David Kimhi ''Cervera Bible'', David Qimhi's Grammar Treatise David Kimhi ( he, ר׳ דָּוִד קִמְחִי, also Kimchi or Qimḥi) (1160–1235), also known by the Hebrew acronym as the RaDaK () (Rabbi David Kimhi), was a medieval rabbi, biblical comm ...

. * ''Disputatio de inscriptione punico-libyca'' (1835). * ''De Bar Alio et Bar Bahlulo'', 2 vols. (1834–39). * ''Über die Himjaritische Sprache und Schrift'' (1841). Gesenius also contributed extensively to Ersch and Gruber's ''Encyclopädie'', and enriched the German translation of Johann Ludwig Burckhardt's ''Travels in Syria and the Holy Land'' with valuable geographical notes. For many years he also edited the ''Halle Allgemeine Litteraturzeitung''. A sketch of his life was published by

Rudolf Haym Rudolf Haym (5 October 1821 – 27 August 1901) was a German philosopher. He was born in Grünberg in Prussia (now Zielona Góra, Poland), and died in St. Anton (Arlberg). He studied philosophy and theology at Halle and Berlin. He was a ...

in 1843 (''Gesenius: eine Erinnerung für seine Freunde''), and another by Hermann Gesenius, ''Wilhelm Gesenius, ein Erinnerungsblatt an den hundertjährigen Geburtstag am 3. Februar 1886'', in 1886.

Notes

References

* * * * Edward Frederick Miller, ''The Influence of Gesenius on Hebrew Lexicography'' (Contributions to Oriental History and Literatures, number 11)(1927, NYC, Columbia Univ. Press) 105 pages. *

External links

* - written by Wilhelm Gesenius; 1910 edition, edited and enlarged by

Emil Kautzsch Emil Friedrich Kautzsch (4 September 1841 – 7 May 1910) was a German Hebrew scholar and biblical critic, born at Plauen, Saxony. Biography He was educated at Leipzig, in whose theological faculty he was appointed privatdozent (1869) and ...