The Historical Importance and the current State of the Syriac Language

By Yusuf Beğtaş

The Syriac language is one of the oldest languages in history. Even though it is known as a sister language of Hebrew and Arabic, it has deeply influenced these languages. Belonging to the Semitic language family, Syriac is an advanced continuation of the Aramaic language. Once it was a commonly used language in daily life and even served as a lingua franca in several empires. The Syriac alphabet was one of the eighteen alphabets and writing systems that the Turks used in history (1).

Because it was the language that Jesus Christ spoke, it had a reputable place in the Christian world. It has three similar typefaces or fonts: Estrangelo, East Syriac and West Syriac. A person who can read one of the typefaces, can also read the other typefaces easily. Dialectal differences that are seen in all languages also exist in the Syriac language. There are two spoken dialects: East and West. In colloquial speech the Eastern dialect or accent is known as “Chaldean or Ashuri”, the Western accent or dialect is called “Syriac”. If the pronunciation difference (such as the ending with “a” and “o”) is ignored, then there is no significant difference between the two dialects.

Besides being a literary language, the Syriac language also has a colloquial accent or dialect. Even though regional and local characteristics exist, this colloquial dialect or accent is also again divided into two utterances or local languages. Colloquial language that is spoken in Iran, Iraq and in Turkey in the region of Şırnak (and Hakkari in the past) is called “Ashuri or Suret”; and colloquial language that is spoken in the region of Mardin is called “Turoyo or Surayt”.

Today, the Syriac Orthodox Church, Syriac Catholic Church and Syriac Maronite Church use the West accent of Syriac – along with a local language – in their daily prayers and liturgies. The Assyrian Church of the East and the Chaldean Church use the East accent of the Syriac language. After the 7^th century, the Melkite orthodox and catholic Churches severed their organic bonds with the Syriac language entirely and turned to an Arabic language.

The Syriac language is a bearer and heritor of an organic culture developed in Bethnahrin (Mesopotamia). It is an ancient language that has played an important role in the development of civilization. It derived from the heart of the Oriental East and it is one of the ancient languages of the world. It is the language spoken by Jesus Christ. It is interwoven with the long history of the rivers Tigris and Euphrates and has been improved by the birth of the Syriac Church of Antioch. The cognitive depth of Syriac led the spread of Christianity. Even though there were other social factors, Church and rituals in Bethnahrin could not have advanced so much without the doctrinal concepts and intellectual efficiency of Syriac.

Through its major contributions to East-West thought, it is a language that has played a pioneering role in the spread of Christianity in development of thought and philosophy and in transmitting Greek civilization to the Arabic world and to Europe. Syriac and its aroma had many great contributions in the transmission of the knowledge of antiquity to the Islamic world. In history the initiative-oriented character of the Syriac language has made intellectual contributions to the socio-cultural life of the region, especially to the Arabic language and Islamic philosophy.

Because of its strong concepts in Christian theology, the Syriac language can also be characterized as one of the primary languages of Christianity. The main literary works written in this language are majorly directed to the Word of God and moral issues. Syriac writers and thinkers comprehended the truth that, “Human is a human when he treats the truth with righteousness and the creation with morality”, have served the development of a social thought and have left a rich legacy in positive sciences.

The thing that provides an organic unity to a language and to a culture, is the semantic-moral world of words and concepts. An extinction will be inevitable, when an attrition and a semantic loss start to arise in that world. Attrition and semantic loss are like a disease. They will cause the semantic identity of words to die. And this will affect social relationships negatively.

The semantic identity emphasizes the content and thus the spirit of concepts and words. It explains both the meaning and the value. Content, meaning and value have vital functions that determine actions and motivations of people. The semantic identity of concepts improves mindscapes and amplifies existing meanings. It even adds new meanings. And this positively affects the interpretation ability and the evaluation system of people. The languishment of the ability to interpret is the biggest calamity that could ever happen to a language and thus to a nation. This calamity triggers an inferiority complex, leads to depression, sets at odds, drags to annihilation. Conceptual development of a language strengthens vitality of that language and socio-cultural formation, political existence and understandings of people who speak that language.

The death of a language means the extinction of the people who speak that language and the death of a heritage created by that language because language is not only a tool for people to talk to each other. The knowledge inherent in a language is a tool that helps knowledge and wisdom to be passed on to future generations and hence improves the relationship between the past and the future.

All languages and cultures communicate the secrets of humanity. But as the saying goes, those who do not revert to write is bound to be annihilated. No society can live long with a mentality that doesn’t belong to itself, that didn’t come out from within its own culture. Social integration and intellectual development will find meaning when every society will be able to improve a thought that came out from within its own culture, but also connected with a universal one.

This way of thinking should be developed as establishing its own dominance and a way of communication that does not destroy others, but serves social justice, righteousness, interconverting and existence. Because everything in the universe is useful as long as it supports to understand and to improve the meaning of life.

The current state of the Syriac language is connected to the current state and structure of its speakers. Subalternate, unjust treatment and being dispersed affected the Syriac language and its conceptual development negatively. Indeed, the current condition of Syriac is a continuation of old ages and historical events at different degrees.

Despite all the favorable roles it played in history, Syriac is an acrid language today. Although it continues its existence in church and literature, its socio-cultural concepts that have spiritual profundity have faded away, its meaning and value have been eroded.

Today, changes in the way we travel and communicate have also unsettled the Syriac language. New ways of meetings, new ways of contact, innovations, different dangers, new perception manners have occurred. Revival of doctrinal, philosophical, political, spiritual-cultural concepts of the Syriac language in a manner of thought -with a sociological view- will create a resistance against extinction and breaking the mold. This is essential for not extinction and elimination of an ancient spirit. This will be a vital effort in the period of intertwinement of pursuit of conversion with crises.

In Syriac culture there is a saying, “a productive human is compared to a pregnant woman. If she lives, she will live not just for herself. If she dies, she will die not just herself.” Social adaption and peace depend on the emergence of human abilities and individuality and putting them in the service of life. All abilities come from God. They are a divine covenant, a consignation. If they will not act with a motive to enrich life, then the covenant will be repealed. And abilities will be taken away.

Therefore, Syriac language is an ancient soul, an ancient culture. Different approaches and different efforts are required in order to keep alive this spirit. The main purpose should be to water a drying tree. The main point is to keep alive this ancient soul and culture and bring it together with a universal one.

Because an intellectual fund is like electricity: it can’t be seen but it illuminates and leads the way. At new dimensions that knowledge and wisdom gained, an intellectual fund has transformed a world into a gateless and a wall-less market.

Protection and improvement of the Syriac language that has been existing in the history of Mardin and that contributed greatly to humanity and Christianity, is not a responsibility of only those who love and know this language. It is an issue that everyone who bears responsibility towards Christianity, humanity and universal culture, should be sensitive to.

Therefore, trying to keep alive an ancient soul such as the Syriac language and encouraging those who make an endeavor for this issue, will be a significant and meaningful contribution to future generations.

“Awareness is the mother of an orphan knowledge.” In literature, a knowledge that exists but is not discerned yet is called an orphan knowledge. When we discern and start to use any knowledge, then that knowledge becomes no longer an orphan knowledge for us. So, the main point is not to know, but to discern. Because, if a person doesn’t discern what he knows, then that knowledge has no earthly use.

Yusuf Beğtaş is teacher of Syriac and writer. He lives in Mardin, Turkey.

(1) Dr. Nidai Sulhi Atmaca, Journal of Bütün Dünya, Ankara, June 2000, Number: 200006, p. 32, An Article About Yesterday, Today, Tomorrow of the Turkish Language.

Original publication: http://www.karyohliso.com/articles/article/2155