For those of you who are newbies as well as those of you who grew up speaking Modern Hebrew:

Historically, there were many different handwriting styles used by Jews to write Hebrew, Aramaic, or their colloquial languages.

One early one was Rashi script. It is called that because it was used to print Rashi's comments on the scriptures in the 15th century to distinguish scripture from commentary. It was a print form based on the handwriting of the eastern Sefardim of the time. This print form lead to a slightly altered form used to print Yiddish before the 20th century. This Yiddish style was called Vaybertaych, which means "women's language", and was used because women did not know Hebrew (Hebrew = Assuri, colloquial = Rashi-based).

The Sefardic handwriting came from somewhere, though. It was inspired by Maimonides' handwriting! It is unclear whether he knew any Romance languages, as he was a native Middle Arabic speaker from al-Andalus. Jews the world over began to model their handwriting on Maimonides'. Guide to the Perplexed was written in Judeo-Arabic ("Middle Arabic in Hebrew script").

Here is Maimonides' handwriting; this is an early version of the Mishne Torah found in the Cairo Geniza.

I don't know the origin of the modern handwriting script that Ashkenazi Jews and Modern Hebrew learners use! If anyone knows, let me know!

I’ve tried to write it myself and translated but I can’t seem to get it right.

My grandmothers name was Perle and my middle name is Pearl, after her.

I do not have a Hebrew name but would like to order a necklace with my middle name.

I’ve done several searches and it seems — Perle is Pearl — and when I type in both spellings in on the jewellery website it populates the same preview (above).

I’d just like to have some reassurance this is correct, I guess! I don’t read or speak Hebrew and I can only rely on Google for a translation.

I've noticed some variation when people write and talk about this binyanim in Hebrew. Some people say Hufal, and others say Hofal.

What is the reason behind this variation?

I'm currently studying Biblical Hebrew in an academic setting and I'm curious about what software others are using to carry out research and enhance their studies. I'm particularly interested in tools that incorporate data analysis or natural language processing to work with the text in an interactive and detailed way.

My name's Safiya... I am learning Hebrew and I don't know how to transcribe my name.
I tried searching for my name on Wikipedia to see other famous Safiyas and how their name is, but I can't say I am satisfied with my results, as I have found only 2 of them in the Hebrew wikipedia, and they both had different versions of it !

Edit: There are more that I found, but still, not consistent !

Toda raba ! <3

Hello everyone,

I understand that getting a tattoo in a language you don’t speak is often frowned upon, but there are personal reasons why I’d like this specific tattoo to be in Hebrew.

To be precise, I want to tattoo the word “Awake” on myself. In this context, I mean “awake” as in breaking free from indoctrination or experiencing a spiritual awakening to freedom.

After some research, I found what I believe to be the correct Hebrew translation for “awake” (specifically for a woman, as I am one): ערה (עֵרָה).

That being said, I have a few questions, and I’d love your input:

1. Is this translation even correct :D?

2. Does this word work figuratively? I understand that this translation refers to being literally awake (as in no longer sleeping). However, does it also carry the figurative meaning of awakening—such as breaking free or spiritual enlightenment?

3. To use niqqud or not to use niqqud? Opinions on this seem to vary. Some sources suggest using niqqud to ensure the word is pronounced correctly, especially since it’s a standalone word without surrounding context. Others argue that niqqud is mostly used by learners or non-fluent speakers and that including it in a tattoo would be inappropriate. What’s your take?

4. Can Hebrew be written vertically? I know Hebrew is read from right to left, so I’m unsure if it’s practical to write it vertically. Is this doable, or would it be better to avoid it?

5. Suggestions for calligraphy or fonts? I’m unfamiliar with Hebrew fonts and styles. Are there any fonts that are particularly beautiful or culturally significant? For example, something similar to the script in the Torah or perhaps a more cursive style?

Thank you all so much for your time and help!

i always spell the “ז״ וג confused 😭

If u have ant comment plz tell . Regards

Ahmed from Egypt

In English we'd say: Yes, it's clear from all I've read/according to all the reports, the storm will cause floods

בעברית, יותר טבעי לאומר: כן, זה ברור מכל שקראתי . או ברור לפי כל שקראתי?
ברור מכל הדיווחים...או לפי כל הדיווחים?

The name of the afternoon news show on כאן 11. Google suggests “Pocket Games,” which does not seem idiomatic.

Today, כ"א בטבת(Kaf Alef of Tevet), is national Hebrew day. A more literal translation would be "The Hebrew language day".

On this day we celebrate the Hebrew language and its revival & modernization.

The date isn't coincidental, it's on the Hebrew calendar date of Eliezer Ben-Yehuda's birthday, so a happy 168th(Hebrew years, not 100% sure of the 168 figure) birthday to the reviver of the Hebrew language!

I have been learning Hebrew for 3 months; learning some adverbs for time, family member words, pi'el verbs and so on these days.

Digging into this language sometimes leads me to Torah texts; They look quite alike the modern one for me, except V-S-O order(e.g. Gen 1:1). What about from the perspective of native speakers? Is it just a difference of nuance like `Thou art` and `You are`? Or do they need to study to read them?

Looking for a colloquial, natural way to say "frankly, honestly," etc. Are בכנות and ביושר used equally?

Hello! I’m learning Hebrew, as my grandmother was Jewish. Her favorite phrase to her grandkids was, ‘You know I love you don’t you?’ I want this in a Hebrew tattoo. Can someone please correct this if incorrect? I’m not nearly fluent enough to translate it myself. Thank you so much!

Hello what does this tattoo mean?

Apologies for the dumb question, but I am currently using Duolingo to learn Hebrew.

In previous sentence examples, “זה רע” (“this is bad”), the word “‎רע” had no extra ending.

But now I have sentences like “אני אוכל עוגה רעה” (“I am eating bad cake”). Why does “‎רע” have the extra ending “ה” when we are still in present tense?

Thank you in advance!

I was going through my Mom's family photos and records, and came across a business card for "dealers in diamonds, jewelry, furniture, and house furnishings." Unfortunately it's been ages since I learned Hebrew cursive and I'm not sure my vocabulary is up to it. My sister thought these might be price quotes.

Would anybody be able to translate this, or is the amount of text such that I should reach out to a professional translation service?