Aramaic is a Semitic language with a 3,000-year history. It has been
the language of administration of empires and the language of divine
worship. It is the original language of a large section of the
biblical books of Daniel and Ezra. It was probably the language of
Jesus, it is the main language of the Talmud, and it is still spoken
today as a first language by numerous small communities. Aramaic
belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family. Within this diverse
family, Aramaic belongs to the Semitic subfamily. Aramaic is a part of
the Northwest Semitic group of languages, which also includes the
Canaanite languages (including Hebrew).
Read the rest of this article:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aramaic_language
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Today's selected anniversaries:
1025:
Boleslaus the Brave was crowned in Gniezno and became the first King
of Poland.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Boleslaus_I_of_Poland)
1906:
A major earthquake and subsequent fires devastated San Francisco,
California.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/1906_San_Francisco_earthquake)
1942:
World War II: Sixteen B-25 Mitchell bombers from the aircraft carrier
USS Hornet carried out the Doolittle Raid on Tokyo.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doolittle_Raid)
1980:
Rhodesia became the Republic of Zimbabwe, with Canaan Banana as the
country's first President.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zimbabwe)
1992:
General Abdul Rashid Dostum revolted against the Democratic Republic
of Afghanistan and allied with Ahmed Shah Massoud to capture the
Afghan capital of Kabul.
(
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Democratic_Republic_of_Afghanistan)
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Wikiquote of the day:
"Music can be all things to all persons. It is like a great dynamic
sun in the center of a solar system which sends out its rays and
inspiration in every direction.... Music makes us feel that the
heavens open and a divine voice calls. Something in our souls responds
and understands." -- Leopold Stokowski
(
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Leopold_Stokowski)