Mandaic , or more specifically Classical Mandaic , is the liturgical language of Mandaeism and a South Eastern Aramaic variety in use by the Mandaean community, traditionally based in southern parts of Iraq and southwest Iran , for their religious books. Mandaic, or Classical Mandaic, is still used by Mandaean priests in liturgical rites. The modern descendant of Mandaic or Classical Mandaic, known as Neo-Mandaic or Modern Mandaic , is spoken by a small group of Mandaeans around Ahvaz and Khorramshahr in the southern Iranian Khuzestan province .
20-403: Mandaic may refer to: Mandaic language Mandaic alphabet Mandaic (Unicode block) See also [ edit ] Mandean (disambiguation) Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title Mandaic . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change
40-719: A spirit of brotherhood." Incantation bowls Incantation bowls are a form of protective magic found in what is now Iraq and Iran . Produced in the Middle East during late antiquity from the sixth to eighth centuries, particularly in Upper Mesopotamia and Syria , the bowls were usually inscribed in a spiral, beginning from the rim and moving toward the center. Most are inscribed in Jewish Babylonian Aramaic . The bowls were buried face down and were meant to capture demons . They were commonly placed under
60-568: A unique manifestation of the blending of Christian and folk religious practices in the ancient Middle East. Further research may delve into specific examples, deciphering the content of the inscriptions and exploring the cultural significance of these Christian incantation bowls within their historical context. There are also many incantation bowls written in Mandaic . Mandaic incantation bowls have been found in various archaeological sites in southern Mesopotamia, including bowls from Nippur that date to
80-572: Is found in Iran (particularly the southern portions of the country), in Baghdad , Iraq and in the diaspora (particularly in the United States , Sweden , Australia and Germany ). It is an Eastern Aramaic language notable for its abundant use of vowel letters ( mater lectionis with aleph , he only in final position, ‘ayin , waw , yud ) in writing, so-called plene spelling ( Mandaic alphabet ) and
100-554: Is the only written material documenting Jewish language and religion recovered from the period around the writing of the Babylonian Talmud . Scholars say that the use of rabbinic texts demonstrates that they were considered to have supernatural power comparable to that of biblical quotes. The bowls often refer to themselves as "amulets" and the Talmud discusses the use of amulets and magic to drive away demons. In Christianity , during
120-689: The Drower Collection , Bodleian Library (Oxford), the Bibliothèque Nationale (Paris), the British Library (London), and in the households of various Mandaeans as religious texts . More specific written objects and of linguistic importance on account of their early transmission (5th–7th centuries CE) are the earthenware incantation bowls and Mandaic lead rolls ( amulets ) (3rd–7th centuries CE), including silver and gold specimens that were often unearthed in archaeological excavations in
140-567: The Mandaic language and then Syriac . A handful of bowls have been discovered that were written in Arabic or Persian. An estimated 10% of incantation bowls were not written in any real language but pseudo-script . They are thought to be forgeries by illiterate “scribes” and sold to illiterate clients. The bowls are thought to have been regularly commissioned across religious lines. To date only around 2000 incantation bowls have been registered as archaeological finds, but since they are widely dug up in
160-520: The Universal Declaration of Human Rights . Mandaic: ". ࡊࡅࡋ ࡀࡍࡀࡔࡀ ࡌࡀࡅࡃࡀࡋࡇ ࡀࡎࡐࡀࡎࡉࡅࡕࡀ ࡅࡁࡊࡅࡔࡈࡂࡉࡀࡕࡀ ࡊࡅࡉ ࡄࡃࡀࡃࡉࡀ. ࡄࡀࡁ ࡌࡅࡄࡀ ࡅࡕࡉࡓࡀࡕࡀ ࡏࡃࡋࡀ ࡏࡉࡕ ࡓࡄࡅࡌ ࡅࡆࡁࡓ ࡁࡄࡃࡀࡃࡉࡀ " Transliteration: "kul ānāʃā māudālẖ āspāsiutā ubkuʃᵵgiātā kui hdādiā. hāb muhā utirātā ʿdlā ʿit rhum uzbr bhdādiā." English original: "All human beings are born free and equal in dignity and rights. They are endowed with reason and conscience and should act towards one another in
180-604: The Aramaic dialects attested in Late Antiquity, probably Mandaic. Neo-Mandaic preserves a Semitic "suffix" conjugation (or perfect) that is lost in other dialects. The phonology of Neo-Mandaic is divergent from other Eastern Neo-Aramaic dialects. Three dialects of Neo-Mandaic were native to Shushtar , Shah Vali , and Dezful in northern Khuzestan Province , Iran before the 1880s. During that time, Mandeans moved to Ahvaz and Khorramshahr to escape persecution. Khorramshahr had
200-575: The Middle East, there may be tens of thousands in the hands of private collectors and traders. Aramaic incantation bowls from Sasanian Mesopotamia are an important source for studying the everyday beliefs of Jews, Christians, Mandaeans, Manichaeans, Zoroastrians, and pagans on the eve of the early Muslim conquests . A subcategory of incantation bowls are those used in Jewish and Christian magical practice. Aramaic incantation bowls are an important source of knowledge about Jewish magical practices, particularly
220-479: The amount of Iranian and Akkadian language influence on its lexicon, especially in the area of religious and mystical terminology. Mandaic is influenced by Jewish Palestinian Aramaic , Samaritan Aramaic , Hebrew , Greek , Latin , in addition to Akkadian and Parthian . Classical Mandaic belongs to the Southeastern group of Aramaic and is closely related to the Jewish Babylonian Aramaic dialect in
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#1732852441752240-672: The last being a ligature. Its origin and development is still under debate. Graphemes appearing on incantation bowls and metal amulet rolls differ slightly from the late manuscript signs. Lexicographers of the Mandaic language include Theodor Nöldeke , Mark Lidzbarski , Ethel S. Drower , Rudolf Macúch , and Matthew Morgenstern . Neo-Mandaic represents the latest stage of the phonological and morphological development of Mandaic. Having developed in isolation from one another, most Neo-Aramaic dialects are mutually unintelligible and should therefore be considered separate languages. Determining
260-463: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Mandaic&oldid=1225506688 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages Language and nationality disambiguation pages Mandaic language Liturgical use of Mandaic or Classical Mandaic
280-591: The major portions of the Babylonian Talmud , but less to the various dialects of Aramaic appearing in the incantation texts on unglazed ceramic bowls ( incantation bowls ) found mostly in central and south Iraq as well as the Khuzestan province of Iran . It is considered a sister language to the northeastern Aramaic dialect of Suret . This southeastern Aramaic dialect is transmitted through religious, liturgical, and esoteric texts, most of them stored today in
300-561: The most Neo-Mandaic speakers until the Iran–Iraq War caused many people to leave Iran. Ahvaz is the only community with a sizeable portion of Neo-Mandaic speakers in Iran as of 1993. The following table compares a few words in Old Mandaic with three Neo-Mandaic dialects. The Iraq dialect, documented by E. S. Drower , is now extinct. The following is a sample text in Mandaic of Article 1 of
320-675: The nearly eighty surviving Jewish incantation bowls from Babylon during the rule by the Sasanian Empire (226-636), primarily from the Jewish diaspora settlement in Nippur . These bowls were used in magic to protect against evil influences such as the evil eye , Lilith , and Bagdana . These bowls could be used by any member of the community, and almost every house excavated in the Jewish settlement in Nippur had such bowls buried in them. The inscriptions often include scriptural quotes and quotes from rabbinic texts . The text on incantation bowls
340-470: The regions of their historical living sites between Wasiṭ and Baṣra , and frequently in central Iraq , for example ( Bismaya , Kish , Khouabir, Kutha , Uruk , Nippur ), north and south of the confluences of the Euphrates and Tigris (Abu Shudhr, al-Qurnah ), and the adjacent province of Khuzistan ( Hamadan ). Mandaic is written in the Mandaic alphabet . It consists of 23 graphemes, with
360-534: The relationship between Neo-Aramaic dialects is difficult because of poor knowledge of the dialects themselves and their history. Although no direct descendants of Jewish Babylonian Aramaic survive today, most of the Neo-Aramaic dialects spoken today belong to the Eastern sub-family of Jewish Babylonian Aramaic and Mandaic, among them Neo-Mandaic that can be described with any certainty as the direct descendant of one of
380-533: The same period and in the same region where traditional incantation bowls were prevalent, Christian incantation bowls emerged. These artifacts , often inscribed in Syriac , a dialect of the Aramaic language, demonstrate a syncretism of Christian and local magical beliefs. The inscriptions on these bowls typically include prayers , psalms , or invocations for protection against evil forces. Scholars interpret them as
400-739: The threshold, courtyards, in the corner of the homes of the recently deceased and in cemeteries . The majority of Mesopotamia 's population were either Christian , Manichaean , Mandaean , Jewish , or adherents of the ancient Babylonian religion , all of whom spoke Aramaic dialects. Zoroastrians who spoke Persian also lived here. Mandaeans and Jews each used their own Aramaic variety, although very closely related. A subcategory of incantation bowls are those used in Jewish and Christian magical practice (see Jewish magical papyri for context). The majority of recovered incantation bowls were written in Jewish Aramaic. These are followed in frequency by
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