Results of a study of Semitic ROOTS

A JOURNEY INTO SEMITIC ROOTS

by G.K.Spain


CANTO THE FIRST

Okay, laddies n' lassies,
If you listen up, you will learn something.

Based on the initials
Of biblical Semitic roots,
One of the main meanings
Of Samekh and of Shin or Sin
Is to weave things together,
Consistent with both the willow,
Saille, and with Samekh's source,
The hieratic form of the hieroglyph
'Wick of twisted flax', showing
Strands twisted or woven
(As does the Northumbrian rune
Of its ogam-sound, Ing).

The thing that makes this thunderous
Is that where these letters alight
In the most ancient system
(Which is thus the most potent one)
Is at the center of the Throne world,
The world of man's surroundings
When meditating seated
(Or else heavy with child),
Its bottom half the seven-fold
Stops that divide time --
Called doubles -- its very top
M's subtle savoriness.

Shin's crown stands
For the strands of man's destiny --
The weaving of wide spells
By humankind's progeny.

The old moon-good, Sin,
Stands at the exact center
(Of the Throne world's cauldron's
Rim), while its twin, shin,
Is drawn down from tongue-tip
To counter with its calming "shush"
The sharp sound of Tzaddi's
Whistling, the second sign
Of world-egg Alef-the-tongue,
Meaning this circuit man is on.

And thus destiny springs forth
In weaving, the weaving done
In the head, not in paradise,
That sweetness which itself sits
High above the bubbling
Cauldron's arc of letters
Called doubles: say "mm"
And you transfer to the level
In need of no weaving,
Since grapes there are sweetness
Itself, even if unbeknownst
To Aesop's fox, but then, well,
What'd he know (meaning the fox,
Not Aesop, of course).

Indeed Nun is negation,
It turns out, in Hebrew,
Even though the grammatical sign
For negation is Lamedh.
Qof is the inward part,
The fruit, and its cutting.
Reysh is growled shakiness,
Cheyt a hollowing-out of space,
A blocking-off. And Samekh
Does represent uprightness,
Which is the very reason
The strands need be woven
In the first place (for stiffness).
And Ayin is increase
And drying (being spring).
And Kaf we already knew
As a hand that is bent
Around something. In short,
The language that is Hebrew
And knowledge that is bardic lore
Are thus close-woven
Together, to make a wick
Whose flame stands upright
And burning before us.

Cheyt the Fool (H-hawthorn-hedge-separation-space)

ChRSh: 1. plow, till 2. engrave . . . (4. be dumb, silent)
ChRTh: cut in, engrave
(ChShH be silent, still, quiet)
- ChShK 1. hold back, restrain . . .
(ChShK be/become obscure)
(ChShP 1. strip, make bare, uncover . . . )
- ChThK Chald. cut, divide
- ChThM 1. seal, seal up . . .
ChThR 1. dig, break through . . .
(ChBH hide, conceal, plus three more ChB-roots [ChBQ, ChBR, ChBSh] meaning embrace, be joined, and bind round, respectively)
- ChGH prob. i.q. ChQH cut, hew
(four more 'enclose' type roots: ChGR gird, ChDR enclose, besiege / chamber, ChVG draw circle, circumscribe, ChVQ i.q.ChAG surround)
ChVCh masc. 1. thorn, thorn-bush . . .
ChVR (masc. hole, cavern) prob. i.q. KVR dig, bore
ChZZ Arab. pierce through
(ChTA 1. miss 2. stumble 3. miss one's scope or aim)
- ChTB 1. cut or hew wood
ChLD Rabb. hide, cover, Syr. dig / a mole
ChLL 1. be pierced, wounded 2. Arab. to open or loose
- ChLTz 1. draw out 2. draw or pull off 3. disengage, withdraw
(ChMH Arab. ChMA guard, surround with a wall / ChVMH a wall [a wall is a hedge, hence the whole idea of 'enclose' to begin with?])
- ChMQ turn oneself, withdraw, depart [yielding ChMVQ whose plural means circuits, or else surrounding, clothings]

[to continue . . . ]

(ChNQ strangle oneself, ChPH cover, veil / overlay [as w/ gold])
- ChSL crop off, devour
- ChSM stop, bind up, muzzle
ChSR 1. want, lack . . .
ChPN only in ChPNYM hollow hands (the fists)
ChPR 1. dig [pit, well] 2. search out, explore . . .
[ChPSh search out, explore]
ChTzB 1. cut, hew, hew out / be engraven
- ChTzD divide
(ChTzR Arab. enclose . . . )
ChQH [i.q. ChQQ] / 1. engraven, carved . . .
ChQQ 1. engrave, inscribe . . .
[ChQR search out, explore]
[ChRGL locust (to go with its rune, 'hail'?)]
ChRT Syr. to engrave / 1. graving tool . . .
(ChRK (perh. i.q. KRK wrap around) enclose, catch in a net)
[/ ChRVL nettle]
- ChRM Arab. cut, tear off, shut up, prohibit
ChRTz 1. cut in, wound, laerate / ChRVTz 1. ditch, trench . . .

Nun or XIII (N-ash-[axe]handle-[tree]negation, as per Aesop's fable (negation being also renewal, of course)

NATz deride, despise, contemn, reject
NBL wither, fade, fall off / lightly esteem, despise, contemn / 1. foolish 2. wicked, impious, ungodly / corpse, carcass
NGO 1. touch, meddle with . . . / 1. reach 2. touch with force and violence, strike, smite
NGP 1. strike, smite . . . 3. thrust [w/ ash spear, perhaps?], push
NGF 1. infliction of disease, plague . . .
NGSh 1. to impel [N's rune is 'need'] 2. to exact 3. to oppress
NDCh 1. impel 2. expel
NDN sheath of sword (which it 'negates']
NDF 1. scatter 2. rout
NDR Arab. to cut off
NHG . . . 3. to take away
NHH wail, lament
NHM . . . 3. groan, moan [in distress]
NVA / HNYA 1. refuse, decline 2. hinder, restrain, prohibit 3. dissuade, discourage 4. frustrate
(NVB 1. put forth shoots . . . )
NVD 1. move, be shaken 2. be driven about 3 remove, depart, flee
NVT move, be shaken
NVL to dirty or soil
(NVN sprout, propagate)
NVS 1. flee 2. ride swiftly [ash being Odin's steed]
NVSh to be sick
NZR . . . 2. restrict oneself 3. obstain from . . .
NTSh 1. leave, forsake, abandon . . .
NKH be smitten, beaten down
NKCh 1. opposite, over against
NKL fraudulently to withhold
NKR 1. to estrange, alienate . . .
[NLH complete, accomplish (from NAL Arab. to complete) . . . the Phoenician N shows an arm raised to wave goodbye, since the ash month encloses pisces, the last sign]
NSG recede, depart
NSCh yields YSCh pluck, tear away
NSK cover
NSS pine, waste away
NSO 1. pull or pluck out [tent pins] 2. break up [camp] 3. remove, depart . . .
NOR 1. shake, shake out 2. shake off
NOR 1. male infant / childhood
NPL fall, terminate . . .
NPTz 1. break, dash in piecess 2. disperse, scatter . . .
NPQ go forth
NPSh respire, take breath, refresh oneself
NTzB handle, haft
NTzH 1. fly 2. be laid waste
NTzCh Arab. be pure, innocent . . .
NTzL 1. strip off, take away 2. snatch away . . .
NTzR . . . 3. shut up, conceal, hide . . .
NQB . . . 3. execrate, curse, blaspheme
NQH be pure, innocent
NQT be weary of, loathe
NQM 1. avenge 2. take revenge on
NQO be removed, alienated
NQP 1. cut down 2. destroy
NQR 1. dig or put out [e.g. an eye] 2. pick out [as a bird]
NQSh lay snares, ensnare
NShA err, go astray
NShB yields 1. cause to blow 2. drive away, frighten away
NShH 1. forget 2. neglect
NShK 1. bite 2. vex, oppress . . .
NShL 1. fall or drop off 2. draw or put off [e.g. shoe] 3. cast or drive out [e.g. a nation]
(NShMH . . . 4. anger)
NShTh 1. dry up, be parched 2. fail, waste away
NThCh divide, cut in pieces
NThS tear up, destroy
NThTz 1. tear or break down, destroy 2. break out [teeth]
NThQ 1. pluck, draw off or away . . . / 1. be torn, broken 2. be plucked or drawn away, withdrawn / 1. pull up, uproot 2. tear or break / draw away or out
NThSh 1. tear, pluck up 2. tear down, destroy

Samekh or VIII Justice: this corresponds to Ng-reed but sits atop the round, at the tongue-tip, where pagans put F-alder (because it sprouts out beyond same), and its hieroglyph was 'wick of twisted flax', showing two strands woven.

SVP 1. sea-weed, sedge 2. reed, rush, bulrush YM-SVP sea of weed, Red Sea
SBK interweave, entwine, fold together
SKK, ShKK 1. cover . . . 4. interweave, weave
SLA be weighed
SLH lift up
SLD Arab. to leap, Chald. to burn
SLH prop. lift up, raise 1. bear, carry away 2. be weighed
SLL 1. raise, cast up (into a heap) 2. Arab. connect, knit, link together
SLQ go/come up
SMK 3. uphold, support
SOD 1. support, uphold
SPH . . . heap up, accumulate
SPCh . . . be joined, gathered together
SPN 1. cover
SRN 1. axles [S is aries, where the axle of the wheel of the Throne world is] 2. princes, lords [who are on top and at the center, just like samekh]
SRP i.q. ShRP to burn
SThH Arab. ShThA to winter / (Heb.) SThV winter (noun) [samekh-aries being the end thereof]

Tzaddi or XX LeJugement (Ss-blackthorn-strife, 'mother of the wood' [forest vanguard in reclaiming formerly cultivated land]): tzaddi in Phoenician is a banner waving in battle.

TzBA 1. go forth to or carry on war / army, host
TzDD Arab. turn away (Talm. to turn one's side to someone)
TzDH to lie in wait for / be destroyed, desolated
TzVD hunt, lay snares / ensnare, beguile
(TzPTzPH a willow: interesting, as Ss is doubled S-willow)
I. TzVQ 1. to straiten [not straighten], distress 2. press, urge
TzVR . . . 2. press, besiege 3. press upon, beset, assail 4. press or thrust forward, cause to advance (as troops against a city, Is. 29.3)
(TzChQ 1. play, sport, jest 2. laugh or mock at, insult / laughter, ridicule [Ss-blackthorn represents the antagonism that brings down the hero or waxing year, poetically through satire, the poet's weapon, associated with the underside of the wheel, the waning year, which seeks to take over from the waxing])
TzAR writhe with pain
TzLCh . . . 2. descend upon 3. advance, flourish
TzLL [yields] TzL . . . [metaphorically] protection, defence [exact meaning of its rune name ALGIZ in old Teutonic]
TzMTh cut off, destroy
TzNN [yields] TzNYNYM thorns and TzNH 1. thorn . . .

[to be continued]

(Tzaddi cont.)

TzOD 1. step, walk, advance (poetic for 'shoot') . . . / cause to march, to chase
TzOH 1. step, stride 2. wander, emigrate
TzON wander, remove
TzOQ cry out (esp. for help) / call together, convoke
TzOR be small [like blackthorn?], metaphorically 'be brought low'
I. TzPH 1. look about, keep watch . . . / TzPTh watch-tower
II. TzPH cover, overlay (as w/ wood!)
TzPCh Arab. be spread out
TzPN . . . 4. lie hid, lurk (in ambush)
TzPO (Arab. DPO emit, thrust out) / TzPYOH shoots
TzPR turn, return
TzRCh cry aloud / shout / TzRYCh tower, watch-tower
TzRR . . . 3. be hostile 4. be straitened, distressed

Qof or XVIII LaLune (Q-apple-fruit-offspring-womb and the cutting of both cord and stem, the stem on the fruit in early Hebrew qof, or our Q, and in bardic lore apple is the refuge of the hind)

(QBOTh cup, goblet)
QBTz 1. collect, gather
QVH 1. wait for, hope in / a cord
QTN 1. be little, small . . . / 1. little, small 2. young, younger
QTP to pluck off!
(QYQYVN a gourd)
QLT (Arab. QLTz to contract) / QLVT contracted, dwarfish / MQLT refuge, asylum
QNH 1. form, create
QNN nest, build a nest
QSS cut off
QTzTz 1. cut off or asunder . . .
QPA congeal, become condensed
QPD Chald. to cut off
QPTz contract, close, shut / be contracted
QTzB 1. cut off or down 2. shear / 1. form, shape . . .
QTzR cut down, reap / impatience / QTzYR 1. fruits cut cown, harvest; time of harvest 2. branch, bough
QRB . . . / QRBN offering [an apple for the teacher?]
QRB 1. inward part . . .
QRO 1. tear, rend 2. tear away . . .
QRSh Arab. to cut
QShA cucumber, melon

Reysh or XV LeDiable (R-elder-deathly/medicinal-hellhound/growling, a repeated stop that vibrates or shakes -- an earthquake, judging by its 'result', the trump following)

RBL Arab. be muck, fertile, abundant [I believe R is the double whose proper pair of opposites in the Sefer Yetzirah should be fruitfulness-and-sterility (seed-and-desolation), and R's proper place (in Hebrew, where it is guttural) is at the bottom of the tongue or round].
I. RBO lie with, copulate
(II. RBO 4-sided [like pedestal?])
RBTz lie down
RGB a clod
RGZ 1. shake, tremble 2. be moved, agitated / rage, rave against
RGL 1. foot [being at the bottom?] / go about slandering, backbiting
(RGM stone to death [related to devil/sin?] / a crowd)
RGN murmur, rebel
RGO (cognate w/ RGZ, RGSh, ROO, ROSh) 1. be in a commotion, make noise 2. tremble / a moment, a twinkling [straight down being the here-and-now]
(RGO rest, be quiet)
RGSh rage, make noise, tumult
RDD prostrate, subdue
RDM 1. lie in deep sleep 2. sink down supified, senseless
RHB 1. act insolently . . . / embolden, overcome / insolent, proud / 1. insolence, pride 2. Rahab, poetic name for Egypt [all the letters in Egypt's own names for itself are found at or next to this bottom sign, libra, whose geodetic position was undoubtedly Giza, the world's fulcrum: M, R, K, and T]
(RVD 1. wander, rove [no-doubt linked to feet, above])
RVH be/become satiated with drink / to satiate
RVCh 1. smell, scent, perceive 2. delight in [sensual delights] / . . . 8. anger, wrath
RVN Arab. conquer
RVO make loud noise, cry aloud, shout; sound alarm
I. RVP be agitated, shaken
II. RVP cogn. Arab. RPTh bruise, pound (Eng. rub)
(RVTz run [no-doubt linked to feet, above])
RZCh Arab. raise the voice
(RZN Arab. be weighty [being straight down])
(RCh or RChH -- only dual, RChYM hand-mill (pair of millstones, which sure evokes those two chained creatures, does it not?))
RChP shake, tremble / flutter, hover, brood
(RChTz 1. wash 2. wash away [sin?])
RChSh boil up, throw up (as a fountain)
RTT trembling, fear
(RTPSh grow moist or fresh, revive [medicinal?])
RTSh 1. dash in pieces (on a rock) 2. strike to the ground (with arrows)
RKB to ride [this is its runic name: *raidha, 'ride, raid' or perhaps 'wain', R's Tifinag/Libyan form being a circle or wheel, from Low German hrodh I think it was, cogn. Latin rota]
RKSh a species of swift horse / Syr. RKShA horse, esp. stallion
RMH . . . / to deceive (prop. 'make fall') / Chald. . . . 2. set, place 3. impose (tribute)
RMK mare
RVM Arab. to rot, hence deriv. RMH collect worms
(RMS tread upon, trample [no-doubt linked to feet, above])
RMSh 1. creep (reptiles) . . . / reptile . . .
RNH to rattle
RNN . . . 3. cry out for help
RSN Arab. RShN to bind, hence 1. bridle, halter 2. inner part of mouth (where guttural R is)
(RSS 1. moisten, sprinkle [see RTPSh, above] 2. break in pieces / RSYSYM 1. dew-drops 2. fractures)
ROB . . . 3. hunger after [lust for?]
ROD tremble, quake / awe
ROL be shaken, tremble

(to be continued)

R (cont.)

ROM 1. rage, roar 2. quake
ROO 1. break up 2. make loud noise 3. be evil, hurtful, envious
(ROP drop, distil [medicinal?])
ROSh be moved, shake
(RPA 1. heal, cure [participle = 'physician'])
(RPD . . . / stay, refresh [medicinal?])
RPS, RPSh tread, trample upon [being straight down]
RQB rot, decay [sin?]
RQCh compound or prepare ointment [medicinal]
RQO 1. stamp with feet, 2. tread down . . .
RShO 1. be wicked, act unjustly, impiously 2. be guilty
RShP 1. flame, burning coal [fire and brimstone?] . . . 3. burning disease [medicinal term?]
(RThCh make boil [medicinal?])
RThM bind, yoke, harness [chained creatures]

The interesting thing is that most of the roots beginning with R are here!