Dissertations and Theses

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  • Publication
  • Publication
    Hebrew and Aramaic Words in the Cuneiform Records
    (1917) Meighan, John
    The purpose of the present study is to furnish such a collection of the West Semitic proper names for the investigation of the pronunciation of Hebrew and Aramaic in an early period. In the introductory chapters the writer discusses the question whether the cuneiform scribes were careful to reproduce in the cuneiform renderings the exact pronunciation of the West Semitic names, and whether any of the cuneiform documents should not be included within the scope of that investigation; he further presents the history of West Semitic research in the last three decades, from Pognon to the present date, and discusses the opinions of the scholars who dealt with this problem; he finally investigates the cuneiform renderings of the West Semitic consonants in the Sargonic, Hammurabi, Amarna, Assyrian, and Neo-Babylonian periods. Concerning the vowels,the writer could not arrive at positive conclusions, and therefore preferred not to enter into an investigation of that problem. This view, however, is not shared by his teacher Doctor Hoschander, who believes that negative results are scientifically as important as positive results, and therefore will deal with this problem personally in an appendix to this work.
  • Publication
    Investigation of the Effect of the Temperature of Intake Air on the Economy and Torque of a Gasoline Engine
    (1922-06-01) Crisfield, Arthur W
    The object of this investigation is to make a study of the effect, on the economy and torque of a gasoline motor, of heating the air going to the carburetor. The knowledge gained from such an investigation is of considerable importance and might be used in determining the temperature at which to supply air to the carburetor of a motor in order to get the best results under its working conditions. General practice indicates that a motor will run more smoothly and first regularly when the temperature of the intake air is 150 degrees or more. The theory is that up to a certain point, the economy becomes better with increasing air temperatures. The brake horsepower, however, falls off as the temperature is raised. Assuming then that we have an unlimited heating source, it is our purpose to find the best temperature to use in order to obtain the highest economy without seriously reducing the torque. Also the effects at various loads and speeds will be considered. With the poor grade of gasoline now being supplied, this investigation should be of the utmost value.
  • Publication
    Israel ben Joseph: Halakist, Talmudist and Bible Exegete of the Thirteenth Century and his Sefer Mizwot Zemaniyot
    (1928-02-24) Levitsky, Joseph; Solomon Zeitlin
    The thirteenth and fourteenth centuries can not be termed a period productive in the originality of Jewish learning. Polemics of great consequence were written in this period, but the field of Jewish learning in which splendid results were achieved was that of the study of the Talmud and the codification of its laws.
  • Publication
    A Survey of 65 Kenicott Mss. of the Book of Joshua
    (1928-02-24) Handelman, Abraham; Solomon Zeitlin
    Since the end of the 18th century no attempt has been m ade to revise the work of collation, so as to incorporate evidence of any additional Mss. previously unknown. Only at the close of the 19th century Ch. David Ginsburg brought to light some 68 new Mss.3, on the basis of which he published his Bible edition.4 Of the new Mss. that came to light, some have been made accessible in Facsimile reproduction, and the evidence was made use of by S. Baer. But there is no complete collation of all existing Mss. of the Hebrew Bible available on any such scale as that of Kennicott and de Rossi. It is clear that some such work will have to be done. However, what may be expected from such a work, must be judged by what it is possible to get now from the collection so far attempted. The aim of this thesis is to establish such a survey for Kennicott in one book of the Bible, the Book of Joshua.
  • Publication
    The Secondary School Population in Some of its Social and Economic Relationships: A Study of the Secondary School Population Enrolled in the Public Secondary Schools of Cheltenham Township, Pennsylvania
    (1930) Wessel, Herman M
    Educators have for a long time felt the need for knowing something about the immediate social and economic environment of the pupils in our schools. In his study published in 1916, Holley pointed out in much detail certain facts showing the relationships between the persistency of children in school and their home conditions. The study by Counts published in 1922, showed that in four American cities, the secondary school population was of a highly selective nature. This investigation is an attempt along the lines of the above studies, yet more intensively, to survey the social, economic, and educational characteristics of a single secondary school population,-that of Cheltenham Township Public School System. More specifically this study is concerned with questions such as these: What is the distribution of the secondary school group among the grades in the school system? How is it distributed among the curricula which the senior high school offers? What is the home background of the pupils in terms of parental occupations, ethnic origins, parental education, and so forth? What community contacts of a recreational and educational nature do the children have? Of what clubs are they members? What hold does the Church have on them? The Sunday School? The theatre? The movies? Of what library facilities do they avail themselves? What is their intelligence? What are their hopes for future education? For life occupations? How prevalent are physical defects among them? How successful are they in their school work? And finally, are there any significant relationships between any of these characteristics? Answers to questions of this sort should paint a more intimate picture of the secondary school population. It's believed that some of the facts obtained may be of use m evaluating the school curriculum and the program of guidance, and in indicating desirable modifications of them. The value of such information for the purpose of curriculum making is now generally assumed in order that the schools may adapt themselves to local needs.
  • Publication
    Solomon Luria's Responsa: Digested and Edited from the Hebrew and Provided with Notes and an Introduction
    (1930) Hurwitz, Simon
    The purpose of digesting rabbinical responsa into English is to afford the English reader an opportunity to learn Jewish life through first hand information. In the following pages I have endeavored to present a digest of Solomon Luria's responsa in the hope that many other responsa will be give similar treatment. This work is not designed to form a biography of one of the great rabbis who wrote responsa, but to show the value of responsa proper as a source for Jewish history and law.
  • Publication
    Negro Welfare Work in Philadelphia, Especially as Illustrated by the Career of William Still, 1775-1930
    (1931-02-01) Norwood, Alberta S
    Chapter I: Origin and Early History pf Pennsylvania Society for Promoting the Abolition of Slavery Chapter II: Increase of Slavery and Corresponding Extension of Work of the Abolition Society Chapter III: Employment of William Still as Clerk in Office of the Pennsylvania Abolition Society - 1847 Chapter IV: Ramifications of Work of the Abolition Society Chapter V: John Brown Raid 1859 Chapter VI: War Preparations in Philadelphia Chapter VII: William Still's Interests Chapter VIII: William Still - Author Chapter IX: Still's Political Attitude Chapter X: Changes in Program of Abolition Society
  • Publication
    Syriac-Hebrew and Hebrew Syriac Index to the Book of Job
    (1935-05-20) Zimmerman, Frank; Joseph Reider
    It is remarkable and surprising how little has been done for the Version which is second in importance only to the Septuagint. For the purposes of recovering readings of the pre-masoretic text, undoubtedly the Peshitta plays an important role in the critics apparatus. Nevertheless, that which Septuagint study has boasted for centuries, namely and index which has for each Greek word the Hebrew or Aramaic equivalent, has not yet found a place in the critical apparatus of Peshitta study. A full Syriac-Hebrew index for the Old Testament remains as yet a desideratum...The present dissertation continues the work for the Book of Job.
  • Publication
    Samuel Usque: A Consolation for the Tribulations of Israel, Third Dialogue
    (1936-04-09) Gelbart, Gershon
    The closing decade of the fifteenth century, which opened up new continents and new horizons for humanity in general, produced in the narrower circle of the Jewish world a series of cataclysmic upheavals which convulsed the entire body of Israel with the agony of imminent extinction. This trumpet call of fate, though crushing the body, aroused the spirit from the lethargy of wretched smugness, veering it violently from the rut of a present, that led nowhere, into the unfamiliar road linking the past with the future. There arose the desire to examine into the forgotten nooks of the past while the eye seeking the future lost itself in the mystic vapors of a yet unborn sunrise. Thus historical interest and national mysticism came to the forefront of the Jewish consciousness.
  • Publication
    The Arabic Commentary of Yefet Ben Ali the Karaite oon the Book of Hosea, Edited from Eight Manuscripts and Provided with Critical Ntes and an Introduction
    (1942) Birnbaum, Philip
    This work is intended as an illustration of the ramified influence of Yefet ben ‘Ali as Bible translator and exegete. By means of parallel passages an effort is made in the pages which follow to elucidate the extent to which Yefet borrowed ideas from his older contemporary Sa’adyah Gaon, on the one hand, and the overwhelming influence which he in turn exerted on his successors, including Abraham Ibn Ezra and David Kimhi, on the other. Indeed, one is almost tempted to believe that there would be little left of Ibn Ezra and Kimhi if we were to discard from their respective commentaries what was earlier uttered by their eminent forerunner, the now relatively obscure and forgotten Yefet. Through tracing the sources employed by Yefet it is likely made evident that, though a Karaite, he frequently resorted to the Talmud and the midrashic literature, in addition to his steady dependence on the Targum as a primary source. Emphasis has been placed upon various abridgments in Hebrew, notably that by Jacob ben Reuben. These have been shown to be derived from Yefet’s comprehensive biblical commentary. Surprisingly enough they penetrated Rabbanite circles in many lands, owing perhaps to the prevailing ignorance of their Karaite authorship. Another important factor contributing to the popularity of Yefet’s exegesis is to be seen in the fact that already in the 11th century there existed a word for word Hebrew translation of his writings. This made it possible for large numbers of Jews in non-Arabic speaking countries to make free us of Yefet’s biblical interpretation. On the basis of a close analysis of the present edition of Yefet’s Commentary on Hosea, the writer believes to have proved conclusively that the Anonymous Arabic Translation of the Latter Prophets I on the whole extracted out of Yefet’s Commentary.
  • Publication
    Joseph Hacohen: The Annals of the Kings of France and the Kings of the House of Othman, the Turk; Text, Translation, Notes, and Introduction based on the British Museum Ms. Or. 3656
    (1943-04-01) Gross, David A
    Joseph Hacohen, the important Jewish chronicler of the sixteenth century, was born in Avignon on December 20,1 1496. The frequent allusions to his private affairs, scattered throughout Joseph Hacohen's works, and the mass of highly interesting personal details available to us solely in his collected letters,2 make it possible to bring together the known facts of his life and that of his family
  • Publication
    Biblical Criticism to the End of the Second Christian Century
    (1943-05-14) Young, Edward J; Joseph Reider; Solomon Zeitlin; Solomon L. Skoss
    The phenomenon which today is popularly referred to as "higher criticism", in so far as it applies to the Old Testament, probably first manifested itself with the publication in 1753 of Jean Astruc's work on Genesis.3 It is a phenomenon which bears more or less of a scientific character, and for the most part is being carried out by men of culture and education. The roots of this modern phenomenon, however, go far back beyond the time of Astruc. Indeed, what is spoken of today as higher criticism is in reality merely the modern phase or manifestation of an attitude or process which goes back to days of antiquity. Criticism of the Bible probably appeared as soon as the Bible became known. It is the purpose of this thesis to trace the history of such criticism, as it refers to the Old Testament, from the beginning of this era down to the end of the second Christian century.
  • Publication
    Naphtali Herz Wessely: A Study of the Education and Poet
    (1944-04-26) Ozer, Charles L; Joseph Reider; Solomon L Skoss
    In order to achieve a proper perspective of the life and activities of Naphtali Herz Wessely, we need as a background the ideals and influences of the German or Berlin Haskalah. To describe, however, this German or Berlin Haskalah, which is the first period of the general Haskalah Movement, and to evaluate its activities and influences are not within the scope of this dissertation, for that is a subject which contains material for many dissertations. Nevertheless, some brief sketch of the period and its antecedents may prove of value here.
  • Publication
    The Foundation of Reverence by Abraham Ibn Ezra: Edited, Translated and Annotated
    (1944-04-26) Magil, Reuben J; J. Efros; Joseph Reider
  • Publication
    The Peshitta to Nehemiah, A Textual-Critical Analysis
    (1947-04-23) Harris, R. Laird; Joseph Reider
    It is agreed by those who have worked on the subject, that the study of the old Syriac translation of the Bible known as the Peshitta has not by any means been exhausted. Numbers of studies of great value have naturally appeared, especially in the years from 1890 to 1910, but two large gaps in Peshitta studies remain to be filled. The first lacuna felt by all who deal with this version is the lack of a critical text. Indeed a text of any kind can not easily be secured.1 Some steps have been taken by different scholars toward filling this long-felt need.2 The first effort at collation of various texts was by Herbert Thorndike in Vol. VI of the London Polyglot of 1657. He cites only three authorities for Nehemiah, and his collations, though helpful, are in no sence an answer to the need. Many more manuscripts are available to us than Thorndike had at hand and the principles for their use are far better understood
  • Publication
    The World Outlook of Don Isaac Abravanel and His Historical, Political, and Messianic Works
    (1947-04-30) Netanyahu, Ben-Zion; Joseph Reider; Solomon Zeitlin
    The times of Don Isaac Abravanel, whose life and thought we shall attempt here to pursue, were pregnant with far-reaching and decisive changes, including perhaps the most fundamental changes that the history of mankind had ever known. Two major events, which respectively occured in the first and last years of Abravanel's life, may help illustrate the nature of the period. The one was the invention, in 1438, of printing by Gutenberg; the other - the formation, in 1508, of the anti-Venetian League of Cambrai. Both the invention of printing and the decline of Venice as a world power - which the creation and action of the League signified - were among the most portentous signs of the profound cultural and political changes which characterized the end of the Middle Ages.
  • Publication
    An Anonymous Karaite Commentary of the Fourteenth Century on the Book of Deuteronomy: Comments on Chapter Thirty-Two Edited from a Manuscript in the Sulzberger Collection of the Jewish Theological Seminary Library with Translation and Introduction
    (1948-05-06) Tichenor, Alan; Solomon L. Skoss; Joseph Reider; Solomon Zeitlin
    The advent of the First Crusade (1099)1 conveniently marks the exhaustion of the stream of Karaite literary effort which had flowed forth for a considerable period. The flourishing age of the tenth and eleventh centuries had witnessed a brilliant succession of grammarians, lexicographers, exegetes, legal authorities and apologists,2 who had graced the Karaite camp in the drawn battle with Rabbinism. Especially influential in this verbal warfare was the school at Jerusalem associated with the name of Abu Ya'qub Joseph ben Nuh3 and carried on by his students, Abu'l-Faraj Harun, the famous "grammarian of Jerusalem", and Abu Ya'qub al-Basir, the philosophical genius of the Karaites. The pupil of al-Basir, Abu'l-Faraj Furqan Ibn Assd (Jeshua ben Judah), succeeded his teacher as the attraction of this intellectual center and influenced Jewish thought as far away as Spain.4
  • Publication
    Semitic Phonemes with Special Reference to the Ugaritic and in the Light of the Egyptian Evidence
    (1949-05-11) LaSor, William S; Cyrus H. Gordon; Joseph Reider; Solomon L. Skoss
    Our task is to study the phonemes of the Semitic language, including, so far as is reasonably certain, the Egyptian language, and paying particular attention to new evidence made available by the discovery of Ugaritic. This task will require dealing with descriptive phonemics, which is the analysis of the phonetic nature of each phoneme in each stage of development in the several languages.
  • Publication
    A Grammar of the Dialects of the Aramaic Incantation Texts
    (1949-05-11) Rossell, William H; Cyrus H. Gordon; Joseph Reider; Solomon L. Skoss
    It is the purpose of this thesis to fill a long felt need for a grammatical study of the Jewish Babylonian Aramaic texts. A sufficient number of the texts have now been published to provide a corpus for this undertaking. In making available the essential data on this dialect to the scholars who will some day write a comparative grammar of the Aramaic dialects, it is hoped that Semitic Studies in general and Talmudic Studies in particular may be served.