It is that city that in ancient times developed precisely in the Asian region called Aram, more precisely in the center of present-day Syria. It is an area that is highly named in the Bible and that is why it has assumed fantastic historical and religious importance for so many years.
One of the many meanings attributed to the denomination in the original language is that of the highlands.
It is precisely in this sacred book that the name would have its origin in Aram, who was one of Shem's sons and grandson in addition to the popular character Noah.
Meanwhile, Aramaic is one of several branches that have the so-called Semitic languages and also one of the oldest because they are assigned about three thousand years of presence on the planet. It shares this origin with other notable languages that are spoken in the area of origin since they are Arabic and Hebrew.
The link between Aramaic and religion is undoubtedly one of its main characteristics, since in addition to being a denomination that appears repeatedly in the Bible, the Aramaic language has been one of many in which the sections of the Books that appear in this holy book.
Thus, the Book of Daniel and the Book of Esdras, both corresponding to the Old Testament, are written in this language.
Strictly speaking, Aramaic is not a single homogeneous language but a group of well-differentiated but related languages. Modern varieties are fragmentations resulting from the long history of Aramaic (reflected in its extensive literature and in its use by different communities, forming separate communities of different religions). The diversity of the Aramaic languages is such that there are varieties that are unintelligible to each other, while others have a certain degree of mutual intelligibility. Some are even known under a different name, such as Syriac, a dialect of Aramaic spoken by Eastern Christian communities.
Aramaic dialects are classified both historically and geographically. Historical periods distinguish between modern Aramaic languages, also known as Neo-Aramaic, those that are limited to literary use and those that are extinct. With a few exceptions, this logic distinguishes between the old, medium, and modern categories.
As for modern dialects, the distinction is geographical, so modern dialects are classified into Eastern Aramaic and Western Aramaic, whose limit can be roughly delimited on both sides of the Euphrates River, or slightly west of it.
A traditional scheme of contemporary Aramaic is as follows:
- Eastern Neo-Aramaic.
- Neoaremean northeast.
- Turoyo.
- Western Neo-Aramaic.
