The Syntagma of kl ‘all’ with Indeterminate Plural Nouns in Imperial Aramaic and Western Middle Aramaic

Abstract

This article surveys all occurrences of the noun phrase kl ‘all’ with indeterminate plural nouns in Imperial and Western Middle Aramaic. Taking issue with the assumption that this is an archaic form of the similar determinate construction, the article exemplifies and contrasts their different nuances of meaning. It is suggested that the formal indetermination of the noun phrase marks it as non-specific. As against the construction of kl with indeterminate singular nouns it stresses plurality. The findings have implications for the origin of Imperial Aramaic and for the linguistic dating of Qumran Aramaic texts.