Hebrew vs. Aramaic Word Distribution in the OT

Build script: scripts/ot/lexicon/build_ot_hebrew_aramaic.py

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The Hebrew Bible contains two languages: Biblical Hebrew (the vast majority) and Biblical Aramaic (concentrated in Daniel and Ezra, with scattered loanwords elsewhere). The TAHOT morphology data tags each word with its language, enabling precise separation.

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Chart

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Data Table — Books with Aramaic Content

Book	Hebrew Words	Aramaic Words	Aramaic %
Daniel	3,992	1,928	32.6%
Ezra	2,969	786	20.9%
Haggai	577	23	3.8%
Ecclesiastes	2,898	90	3.0%
Nehemiah	5,175	144	2.7%
Numbers	16,036	377	2.3%
Proverbs	6,770	145	2.1%
Exodus	16,383	330	2.0%
Ezekiel	18,384	346	1.8%
Leviticus	11,742	208	1.7%
Genesis	20,276	338	1.6%
…	…	…	…

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The Aramaic Sections

Daniel (32.6% Aramaic — 1,928 words)

Daniel is the most bilingual OT book. The Aramaic section spans Dan 2:4b–7:28, covering the court narratives and apocalyptic visions addressed to the nations, while the Hebrew sections (chapters 1, 8–12) frame the book's introduction and Daniel's personal visions addressed to Israel.

Ezra (20.9% Aramaic — 786 words)

Ezra's Aramaic sections contain official Persian imperial correspondence: - Ezra 4:8–6:18 — letters between Persian officials and kings Artaxerxes and Darius - Ezra 7:12–26 — Artaxerxes' decree authorizing Ezra's mission

The use of Aramaic here is historically appropriate — Aramaic was the administrative language (lingua franca) of the Persian Empire.

Scattered Aramaic (1–4%)

Books like Haggai (3.8%), Ecclesiastes (3.0%), Nehemiah (2.7%), and most others show low Aramaic percentages reflecting Aramaisms — individual words borrowed from Aramaic into late Biblical Hebrew — not contiguous Aramaic prose sections. This is expected: Hebrew and Aramaic were closely related Semitic languages in ongoing contact, and late Biblical Hebrew (post-exilic books) absorbed more Aramaic loanwords.

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Querying by Language

The language field is available in query() and concordance():

from bible_grammar import query

# Only Hebrew words in Daniel
query(book='Dan', language='Hebrew')

# Only Aramaic words in Daniel
query(book='Dan', language='Aramaic')

# Aramaic verbs in Ezra
query(book='Ezr', language='Aramaic', part_of_speech='Verb')

# All Aramaic in the OT
query(testament='OT', language='Aramaic')

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Notes on the Data

• Language tagging comes from STEPBible's TAHOT morphology, which tags each word token individually as Hebrew or Aramaic.
• The Aramaic morphology codes (Haphel, Pael, Shaphel, etc.) correspond to Aramaic verbal stems and appear in the stem column for Aramaic words.
• Books with < 1% Aramaic contain only isolated loanwords, not Aramaic sections.

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Source: STEPBible TAHOT (CC BY).
Chart: output/charts/ot-hebrew-aramaic-by-book.png.