Palestinian Amoraic Hebrew—A Living Vernacular?

Abstract This paper scrutinizes Ivri J. Bunis' 2020 thesis, which highlights the Amoraic Hebrew phenomenon of waw conjoining modal verb pairs, aligning with Tannaitic Hebrew but diverging from Aramaic. Bunis posits this morpho-syntactic retention, devoid of Aramaic influence, as proof of Hebrew's vernacular status during the Amoraic period. This study argues that—to the contrary—the nature of language contact, and the Amoraim's probable Hebrew proficiency render such evidence inconclusive. The persistence of waw conjunctions in these verbal pairs in the post-Amoraic Tanhuma-Yelamdenu literature, further weakens the claim, as it indicates Hebrew usage beyond its likely spoken demise. Finally, methodological guidelines for future research on this topic are proposed.