and what about the old use of "she's in her vapors"?
ymedad | Homepage | 03.13.06 - 2:33 pm | #

Couldn't really find much reference to that phrase...
Dave | Homepage | 03.13.06 - 3:21 pm | #

Congratulations for your new blog. Very interesting. Good work!
Shai | Homepage | 03.13.06 - 7:06 pm | #

David,

Your blog is wonderful. I am a budding student of Semitic languages, and will keep close tabs on your work. You have my e-mail as of this morning. I would be quite happy if you took at my blogs "Groping with the Language of Jesus:Aramaic/Hebrew," http://www.learningaramaic.blogspot.com, as well as "Psycho-Content-Analysis of Bible Languages," http://www.psycho-content- analys...le.blogspot.com. As I said, the first blog is concerned with reconstruction of the sociolinguistics of Aramaic, while the second is concerned with both psycholinguistics and content analysis of Bible language generally.

Shalom!
Vernon Lynn Stephens
7:21 p.m. -- Monday, March 13, 2006
Vernon Lynn Stephens | Homepage | 03.14.06 - 2:24 am | #

What about the other meaning of balmy - insane or foolish?

That's "barmy"; not normally spelled the same.

Incidentally, this blog looks pretty cool (from the three entries I've just read), but how did you know to email me about it? I'm not aware I know you (though apparently you know me :o)).
The Evil Doctor G | Homepage | 03.14.06 - 3:28 pm | #

Hey, thanks for letting me know about your blog. Coincidentally, I had found it just yesterday via Language Hat, and was already planning on writing a post about it, which I have now done.
הצלחה - אַ פֿרײלעכן פּורים
Ben | Homepage | 03.14.06 - 5:39 pm | #

For that meaning of "balmy", look at definition 2 here:

http://www2.merriam-webster.com/...dictsn? va=balmy

As to finding you - I just looked around for people with an interest in this topic, and found you. The same applies to some other recent visitors...
Dave | Homepage | 03.14.06 - 8:58 pm | #

What about the possibility of "stinking" drunk?
Tzvee | Homepage | 03.15.06 - 5:00 am | #

From here - http://www.etymonline.com/index.....php? term=stink - I see that "stinking drunk" first appeared in 1887.
Dave | Homepage | 03.15.06 - 8:06 am | #

As to the alternative spellings בשם and בסם, I would assume that that with the sin is more ancient, or is at least the one from which we derive, via Greek, our "balsam", by understanding that ש is pronounced as a lateral fricative (between [l] and [s])...
Joel | 03.15.06 - 1:59 pm | #

Well בשם appears in the Tanach, whereas בסם doesn't - so I think that's also a sign that בשם is earlier.
Dave | Homepage | 03.16.06 - 1:20 am | #

A Note on Esther 8:17 – What did the Gentiles Do?
see http://www.adath-shalom.ca/esther.htm
David Steinberg | Homepage | 03.16.06 - 8:01 pm | #