CALAP

Information on the Computer Assisted Linguistic Analysis of the Peshitta (CALAP)

• Purpose
• Methodology
• Staff

CALAP (“Computer Assisted Linguistic Analysis of the Peshitta”) was a joint research project of the Peshitta Institute Leiden (PIL) and the Werkgroep Informatica of the Vrije Universiteit (WIVU) in Amsterdam. It was supported by the Netherlands Organisation for Scientific Research (NWO).

CALAP included two project constituents: the analysis of the Peshitta of the book of Kings (1999-2004) and the analysis of the Syriac Ben Sira (2000-2005). In both cases the development and implementation of computer programs played an important role. 

In 2005 CALAP was succeeded by the Turgama Project, in which the CALAP model of computational textual analysis and the computer programs required for it are further developed, applied to other parts of the Peshitta and extended towards the Targum and a corpus of original (non-translated) Syriac. The products of the CALAP-project are mentioned on the combined CALAP/Turgama bibliography on the Turgama website.
 

Purpose

The aim of the project was fourfold:  

1. A description of the linguistic characteristics of the Peshitta on morphological, syntactical and lexical levels.
2. A detailed description of the translation technique of the Peshitta by comparing this translation with the Masoretic Text
3. A contribution to the study of the syntax and lexicology of classical Syriac.
4. A contribution to the textual analysis and exegesis of the Old Testament
   

Methodology

A computer-assisted analysis makes it possible to give a consistent description of the language of the Peshitta and to make a systematic comparison with the Masoretic Text. In CALAP a model has been developed for the computer-assisted analysis of texts, especially the Hebrew Bible and the Peshitta. The analysis starts with a bottom-up linguistic analysis of Hebrew and Syriac texts, followed by a comparative analysis. It involves the following levels:

1. Words: segmentation into morphemes; functional deductions from the morphological analysis.
2. Phrases: combination of words into phrases; lexicographical analysis (determination of lexical class); morpho-syntactic analysis (systematic adaptation of word classes in certain environments).
3. Clauses: combination of phrases into clauses; parsing of clauses.
4. Text: relationships between clauses; proposals for discourse analysis.
5. Synoptic analysis: comparison of Syriac and Hebrew data in a formal parallel analysis.

1. Programs that recognize the patterns of formal elements which combine to form words, phrases, clauses and textual units.
2. Language-specific help files like a lexicon and a description of the morphology.
3. Data sets, built up gradually, so that all patterns registered in previous analyses are included.
4. Programs that use the data sets and the help files to make proposals in the interactive analysis.

Staff

Project Team
Dr. Konrad D. Jenner (supervisor)
Dr. Eep Talstra (supervisor)
Dr. Janet W. Dyk (analysis of the Peshitta of Kings)
Dr. Percy S.F. van Keulen (analysis of the Peshitta of Kings)
Mr. Constantijn J. Sikkel (computer technology)
Mr. Hendrik Jan Bosman (computer technology)
Dr. Wido van Peursen (analysis of the Peshitta of Ben Sira)

Executive Committee
Dr. Konrad D. Jenner (Leiden)
Prof. Dr. E. Talstra (Amsterdam)
Prof. Dr. Pier G. Borbone (Pisa)
Dr. D.M. Walter (Elkins, WV) 

Advisory Board
Prof. Dr. Jan Joosten (Strasbourgh)
Prof. Dr. A. van der Kooij (Leiden)
Prof. Dr. Takamitsu Muraoka (Leiden)
Dr. Geoffrey Khan (Cambridge)