A fascinating history of the Hebrew language from its origins to its demise as a vernacular language following the Bar Kokhba Revolt (only to be revived as a vernacular language in the 20th century). Schniedewind’s approach is a sociolinguistic one, which analyzes “the relationship between language and society” (15). As a result, even though this is a history of a language, it is just as much the history of a people (ancient Judeans/Israelites) and a place (ancient Israel/Canaan).

This was my first time interacting with Schniedewind’s work and with the field of sociolinguistics, and I am now officially hooked. I especially loved his chapter on the “democratization” of the Hebrew language in the 7th and early 6th centuries. Anyone interested in Hebrew and especially those with a few semesters of Hebrew under their belts should read this book.