3.1 Hebrew Syllables

Figure 3.2: Open and Closed Syllables

There are two basic concepts when it comes to Hebrew Syllables:

1. Every syllable begins with one consonant and has only one vowel
2. There are only open or closed syllables

We see the two basic concepts at play in this simple word (pronounced “da-var” and means word, matter, thing):

• The two syllables each begin with a consonant and have one vowel
  • דָּ starts with the consonant Dalet and has one vowel, Qamets
    • This is also an example of an “open” syllable - open syllables end with a vowel, not a consonant
  • בָר starts with the consonant Bet and has one vowel, also a Qamets
    • This is an example of a “closed” syllable - closed syllables end with a consonant, not a vowel
• If you need to know how many syllables are in a Hebrew word, count the vowels
  • Remember that vowel letters, such as the Hiriq-Yod, and Diphthongs we will see later in this lesson, count as a single vowel unit