[Mesorah] Nikud on YKVK

[D&E-H Bannett]

Because I was so tired and falling asleep I stopped my essay 
on the pronunciation of the sh'va na' and chatafim with a 
short laila tov.  I stated that ba'alei mesora from ancient 
to modern agree but should have brought some source to back 
it up.

Aharon ben Asher in his Dikduk Hat'amim, siman 14, lists a 
group of 15 words that some sofrim vocalize with a chataf 
Kamatz (yesh sofrim, davar emet morim, v'nuschei (naschei?) 
yesharim, bimkomot rabim kamatz chataf kor'im, k'gon 
niftocha......to...Mordokhai). He follows this with a second 
list of the same words without the chataf as written by 
other sofrim, also nuschei yesharim. He then says it is 
optional (v'ein l'davar zeh shoresh ki im birtzon hasofrim). 
In other words, both are correct notations it doesn't change 
the pronunciation.

>From ancient authority to modern: This past Shabbat, Ekev, I 
noticed a comment of a "modern"  ba'al mesora.  RVHeidenheim 
in his comment on the 'Ein Hakoreh on the word k'shi (el 
k'shi ha'am hazeh, 9:27) says the following:  On this word 
the ancient (early, kadmonim) sefarim and sofrim differ. 
Some put a sh'va alone under the kuf, and anyway (mimeila) 
it is pronounced with a chataf patach as is the rule with 
every sh'va na' that is not followed by a yud or by alef he 
chet 'ayin and whose pronunciation tends (noteh) to a patach 
as explained in the Mikhlol (Radak) in Sha'ar Hash'va and in 
ben Bil'am's Ta'amei Hamikra and as so stated (k"k) by Ibn 
Ezra at the beginning of Sefer Tzachut that the 
pronunciation of the sh'va na' is with a chataf-patach.  And 
some vocalize the kuf with a chataf patach because they were 
afraid that the reader would err and pronounce the kuf with 
a chataf kamatz as 'oNI, choLI and roMI (all mil'ra') listed 
by the Radak  in the Mikhlol as po'I words although he lists 
k'shi with a shva alone in his Sefer Hashorashim. The 
Hizkuni also testifies to this. Therefore, the pronunciation 
tends to a patach and there is no need to add the patach 
next to it. ...

And can anyone give me a good reason why the words k'shi and 
g'di are listed in Dikduk Hat'amim, Siman 15, as noteh 
l'fatach (by R' Pinhas Rosh Yeshiva) while the others are 
noteh l'kamatz?  Doesn't k'shi come from KOshi? Or could it 
be from kasheh?

Well, RVH has helped me give a list of sources to satisfy 
those list members who value proofs from the ancients.

To those interested in the academic world, Professor Morag, 
z"l, explains the various sh'va pronunciations in the 
Encyclopedia Judaica.


k"t,

David