From The Hebrew Alphabet...

The Hebrew Alphabet Letter Aleph

Aleph originally represented a type of consonant sound that is used in many spoken languages.

In the modern Israeli Hebrew language, the letter Aleph represents either a glottal stop, or else it has no pronunciation other than that of the vowel to which it is attached. The pronunciation will vary from group to group.

In gematria, or Rabbinic Hebrew which is the numerology of Hebrew, aleph has come to represent the number 1. When it is used at the beginning of Hebrew years, aleph means 1000.

The aleph cannot receive a dagesh. A dagesh is a diacrtic mark that is used in the Hebrew alphabet. It is actually a dot that is placed inside of a Hebrew letter and modifies the sounds in either of two ways.

The aleph is sometimes also used as a mater lectionis which will denote a vowel, usually /a/. The mater lectionis is often used for certain Hebrew consonants which can sometimes fill the positions of vowels.

Aleph is the first letter of emet, a Hebrew word, which means truth. Aleph also comes at the beginning of the three words that compose God’s mystical name in I AM That I Am and Exodus. Aleph also plays an important part of mystical formulas and amulets.

The letter aleph, in the Sefer Yetzirah, is King over Breath, Temperate in the Year, Formed Air in the universe as well as the Chest in the soul.

Hebrew Sayings with Aleph

As the saying in Hebrew goes, from Aleph to Tav, this describes something from the beginning to the end. It is the Hebrew equivalent of the English meaning From A to Z.

If someone does not know how to make an Aleph, it means that the person is illiterate.

No with a capital Aleph! means absolutely not!

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