ANGOLA: Difference between revisions

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|'''[[:Category:Nephite GN|Nephite GN]]'''
|'''[[:Category:Nephite GN|Nephite GN]]'''
|1.
|1.
|City, ca. 327–8 AD ([http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/morm/2.4?lang=eng#3 Mormon 2:4])
|[[NEPHITE(S)|N<small>EPHITE</small>]] city ([http://www.lds.org/scriptures/bofm/morm/2.4?lang=eng#3 Mormon 2:4])
|}
|}
'''This entry is not finished'''


'''Etymology'''
'''Etymology'''


If the root is Semitic, then possibly it may be derived from the common North-West Semitic ''ʾyn'', a particle meaning “there is/are not,” or ''ʿyn'' “spring, fountain,” and from glh, “to uncover, reveal,” or ''gll'', some kind of a stone object (DNWSI 224). Any combination of these, such as “open spring,” would yield a suitable GN. An [[EGYPTIAN(S)|E<small>GYPTIAN</small>]] etymology is also possible.
'''ANGOLA''' is the name of a [[NEPHITE(S)|N<small>EPHITE</small>]] city. If the name is from a Hebrew root, it may be a combination of words, since the Hebrew letter ''nun'' is contact with any other consonant within a word would make it subject to "progressive assimilation" or "regressive assimilation" (i.e., "<i>ng</i>" or "<i>gn</i>" becomes "<i>gg</i>"). Thus, the name may derive from the Hebrew word ''ʿayn'', "spring, well," and a word from the root GLH, "to uncover, reveal" or GLL, with the basic meaning of "to roll, roll away (a rock or stone)." A combination of ''ʿayn'' plus a form of either of the roots may generate the names "Open Spring" or "Rock Spring." An [[EGYPTIAN(S)|E<small>GYPTIAN</small>]] etymology is also possible, as is one from an indigenous language.
 
It is also possible that this name is not [[NEPHITE(S)|N<small>EPHITE</small>]], but rather is to be derived from another indigenous language group from (?)
 
Any connection of Book of Mormon '''ANGOLA''' with the African state of '''A<small>NGOLA</small>''' is highly unlikely. The name of this African state is hardly mentioned in English before the 19th C., and therefore it may be that Joseph Smith had never heard at the time of the Portuguese colony.
 
Any connection with the Turkish capitol Ankara, from Greek άγκυρα, and the famous cloth produced there, angora/'''A<small>NGOLA</small>''', is highly doubtful and could only have been from Hittite or Luwian sources in the Iron Age, if indeed the name existed in those days. ([[John A. Tvedtnes|JAT]])


It is doubtful that the ''-ng-'' in '''A<small>NGOLA</small>''' can be explained by an appeal to the transliteration conceits used by the Prophet Joseph Smith in producing the Book of Abraham. While it is true that he rendered the ayin of Hebrew words with ''gn'' and ''ng'', “Gnolaum” (''ʿwlm'') and “Raukeeyang” (''rqyʿ''), respectively ([http://scriptures.lds.org/en/abr/fac_1 Abraham Fac. 1 Fig. 12];[http://scriptures.lds.org/en/abr/fac_2 Fac. 2 Fig. 4]), this conceit is peculiar to Sephardic Hebrew pronunciation. The Prophet first learned Hebrew pronunciation from his Sephardic Jewish teacher, Seixas, while living in Kirtland, several years after he translated the Book of Mormon, and therefore he would not have used Sephardic transliteration conceits. In fact, in nearly all cases where the Hebrew Vorlage of the Book of Mormon transliteration can be surmised, the transliteration conceits follow the KJV scheme. For example, see the discussion under [[JERSHON|J<small>ERSHON</small>]].  
It also seems unlikely that the transliteration practices used by the prophet Joseph Smith for representing the ''ʿayin'' with ''gn'' or ''ng'' were used in representing the ''ng'' of '''A<small>NGOLA</small>'''. Joseph adopted the practice as a result of his study of Hebrew with his Sephardic Jewish teacher, Joshua Seixas, after his arrival of Kirtland, Ohio in the early 1830s, after the publication of the Book of Mormon.


Moreover, '''A<small>NGOLA</small>''' most likely cannot be derived from a root with initial aleph-ayin or ayin-ayin. Such patterns at the beginning of roots are contrary to Hebrew patterns, as Greenberg pointed out in his “The Patterning of Root Morphemes in the Semitic Languages.” If, therefore, Book of Mormon ''-ng-'' represents Hebrew ayin, then the initial a vowel of '''A<small>NGOLA</small>''' most likely could not belong to the root but would probably be a prosthetic aleph. ([[John A. Tvedtnes|JAT]])
It seems unlikely that the GN '''A<small>NGOLA</small>''' is connected with the name of the African state of Angola (a former Portuguese colony), whose name derives from the title ngola held by the kings of Ndongo, It is quite likely that Joseph Smith had never heard of the name Angola before translating the Book of Mormon.


See also [[Angola / Angolah Variant]]
See also [[Angola / Angolah Variant]]

Revision as of 13:11, 10 July 2013

Nephite GN 1. NEPHITE city (Mormon 2:4)

Etymology

ANGOLA is the name of a NEPHITE city. If the name is from a Hebrew root, it may be a combination of words, since the Hebrew letter nun is contact with any other consonant within a word would make it subject to "progressive assimilation" or "regressive assimilation" (i.e., "ng" or "gn" becomes "gg"). Thus, the name may derive from the Hebrew word ʿayn, "spring, well," and a word from the root GLH, "to uncover, reveal" or GLL, with the basic meaning of "to roll, roll away (a rock or stone)." A combination of ʿayn plus a form of either of the roots may generate the names "Open Spring" or "Rock Spring." An EGYPTIAN etymology is also possible, as is one from an indigenous language.

It also seems unlikely that the transliteration practices used by the prophet Joseph Smith for representing the ʿayin with gn or ng were used in representing the ng of ANGOLA. Joseph adopted the practice as a result of his study of Hebrew with his Sephardic Jewish teacher, Joshua Seixas, after his arrival of Kirtland, Ohio in the early 1830s, after the publication of the Book of Mormon.

It seems unlikely that the GN ANGOLA is connected with the name of the African state of Angola (a former Portuguese colony), whose name derives from the title ngola held by the kings of Ndongo, It is quite likely that Joseph Smith had never heard of the name Angola before translating the Book of Mormon.

See also Angola / Angolah Variant

Variants

Angolah, Angelah

Deseret Alphabet: 𐐈𐐤𐐘𐐄𐐢𐐂 (ænɡoʊlɑː)

Notes

Retrieved from "https://onoma.lib.byu.edu/index.php?title=ANGOLA&oldid=8542"