---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: The Samaritans were conservative in the…"
description: "\"“The Samaritans were conservative in the matter of script, preserving the Phoenician type after Judaea and Galilee had accepted the Aramaic character.”..."
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/james-john-courtenay-6996_hebrew_the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the_81675.jpg"
---

#  The Samaritans were conservative in the matter of script…

![“The Samaritans were conservative in the matter of script, preserving the Phoenician type after Judaea and Galilee had accepted the Aramaic character.” quote by James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/james-john-courtenay-6996_hebrew_the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the_81675.jpg)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/james-john-courtenay-6996_hebrew_the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the_81675.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/james-john-courtenay-6996_hebrew_the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the_81675.jpg)

> ““The Samaritans were conservative in the matter of script, preserving the Phoenician type after Judaea and Galilee had accepted the Aramaic character.””

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

The Samaritans deliberately kept the older Phoenician script while neighboring Jewish communities switched to Aramaic, reflecting cultural conservatism in writing systems.

**In simple terms:** Cultural script conservatism

Key Takeaway

Preserving identity through script

Themes

cultural identity language evolution historical linguistics religious tradition script adoption

Mood

reflective scholarly

Type

historical observation cultural commentary

When to use this quote

- historical studies of Samaritan community
- comparative analysis of ancient scripts
- educational curricula on Near Eastern history

Key Concepts

script preservation cultural conservatism regional linguistic divergence

Practical Applications

- archaeological interpretation of inscriptions
- design of culturally informed language preservation programs

Questions to Reflect On

- Why might a community resist adopting a dominant script?
- How does script choice affect cultural continuity?

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Hebrew](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hebrew/)

## Related quotes

> [“The Arabic language has had a great history, and in many respects is more remarkable than any other Semitic speech.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-arabic-language-has-had-a-great-history-and-in-many-respects-is/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“Nabataean (i.e., Syro-Arabian) people had a dialect differing somewhat from both Syriac and Arabic. Remains of this language are found in inscriptions in the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/nabataean-i-e-syro-arabian-people-had-a-dialect-differing-somewhat/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The Palmyrene dialect was a modification of the early Hebrew, and its alphabet was among the first to diverge from the more ancient letter-forms…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-palmyrene-dialect-was-a-modification-of-the-early-hebrew-and-its/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The Phoenician extends from the v cent B.C. to i cent. B.C ... The Aramaic extends from the viii cent. B.C. to the iii…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-phoenician-extends-from-the-v-cent-b-c-to-i-cent-b-c-the-aramaic/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“Aramaic did not come into Palestine until after the Babylonian-Assyrian conquest of the country.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/aramaic-did-not-come-into-palestine-until-after-the-babylonian/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The Cyprus inscription "Ba'al Lebanon" dates from the viii cent. B.C. and is the oldest specimen of Phoenician writing down.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-cyprus-inscription-ba-al-lebanon-dates-from-the-viii-cent-b-c-and/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“In any Semitic study, Arabic is a most useful adjunct, inasmuch as it often indicates the true significance of words where the Hebrew, Syriac…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/in-any-semitic-study-arabic-is-a-most-useful-adjunct-inasmuch-as-it/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“But where Moabite differed from Hebrew the difference pointed to Phoenician on the one side and to Arabic on the other, rather than Aramaic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/but-where-moabite-differed-from-hebrew-the-difference-pointed-to/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The use of 'ל' with imperfect ... the earliest occurrence of this construction found in Aramaean ... 'ל' has clearly a jussive force, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-use-of-with-imperfect-the-earliest-occurrence-of-this/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The Galilean Aramaic pronunciation of שׁ was שׂ, or rather ס as the Ephraimite or Samaritan.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-galilean-aramaic-pronunciation-of-was-or-rather-as-the-ephraimite/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“Mandaean ... letter-forms resemble the older Syriac ... Estrangelo character ... considerably coloured by Arabic ... likeness to Nabataean and the Babylonian Talmud.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/mandaean-letter-forms-resemble-the-older-syriac-estrangelo-character/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“When Aramaeans became Christians, their name was often confounded with 'heathen', hence they called their land by the Greek name 'Syria', themselves by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/when-aramaeans-became-christians-their-name-was-often-confounded-with/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“In its classical form Arabic is of later date than Hebrew, but in its ancient form akin to Hebrew and Aramaic, certainly as old,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/in-its-classical-form-arabic-is-of-later-date-than-hebrew-but-in-its/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“There is some evidence that the Canaanites lived together with the Babylonians for a longer period than did the Aramaeans ... It is found…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/there-is-some-evidence-that-the-canaanites-lived-together-with-the/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“In its ruggedness Hebrew seems an older language than Arabic, but some Arabic forms are certainly older than the corresponding Hebrew.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/in-its-ruggedness-hebrew-seems-an-older-language-than-arabic-but-some/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

## More by James John Courtenay

> [“The Arabic language has had a great history, and in many respects is more remarkable than any other Semitic speech.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-arabic-language-has-had-a-great-history-and-in-many-respects-is/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“There was probably a larger admixture of Greek in Galilee than in any other Palestinian province.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/there-was-probably-a-larger-admixture-of-greek-in-galilee-than-in-any/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“There is some evidence that the Canaanites lived together with the Babylonians for a longer period than did the Aramaeans ... It is found…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/there-is-some-evidence-that-the-canaanites-lived-together-with-the/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“In its classical form Arabic is of later date than Hebrew, but in its ancient form akin to Hebrew and Aramaic, certainly as old,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/in-its-classical-form-arabic-is-of-later-date-than-hebrew-but-in-its/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The descendants of Joktan dwelt from Mesha to Sephar.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-descendants-of-joktan-dwelt-from-mesha-to-sephar/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“It is doubtful whether the vernacular of Palestine admitted any Greek element prior to the Christian era. Even in the Greek form of the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/it-is-doubtful-whether-the-vernacular-of-palestine-admitted-any-greek/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“When Aramaeans became Christians, their name was often confounded with 'heathen', hence they called their land by the Greek name 'Syria', themselves by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/when-aramaeans-became-christians-their-name-was-often-confounded-with/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The books of the Old Testament, as we know them, do not represent the language of Palestine as spoken at any one time or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-books-of-the-old-testament-as-we-know-them-do-not-represent-the/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“Mandaean ... letter-forms resemble the older Syriac ... Estrangelo character ... considerably coloured by Arabic ... likeness to Nabataean and the Babylonian Talmud.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/mandaean-letter-forms-resemble-the-older-syriac-estrangelo-character/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The Galilean Aramaic pronunciation of שׁ was שׂ, or rather ס as the Ephraimite or Samaritan.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-galilean-aramaic-pronunciation-of-was-or-rather-as-the-ephraimite/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“With the progress of the Greek arms cam the decline of the Greek language.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/with-the-progress-of-the-greek-arms-cam-the-decline-of-the-greek/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The use of 'ל' with imperfect ... the earliest occurrence of this construction found in Aramaean ... 'ל' has clearly a jussive force, and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-use-of-with-imperfect-the-earliest-occurrence-of-this/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“For the character of Aramaic between the Exile and the Christian era we are indebted more to inscriptions than other writings.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/for-the-character-of-aramaic-between-the-exile-and-the-christian-era/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“The post-Biblical literature contains many Greek loan-words. On the Hasmonaean coins, Greek is found along with Hebrew legends, while on the Herodian coins the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-post-biblical-literature-contains-many-greek-loan-words-on-the/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [“But where Moabite differed from Hebrew the difference pointed to Phoenician on the one side and to Arabic on the other, rather than Aramaic.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/but-where-moabite-differed-from-hebrew-the-difference-pointed-to/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

[Explore all 96 James John Courtenay quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

## More Hebrew quotes

> [“There have been various attempts to reconstruct the vocalization and pronunciation of classical biblical Hebrew, which certainly differs considerably from that established by the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angel-s-enz-badillos/there-have-been-various-attempts-to-reconstruct-the-vocalization-and/)

[Angel Sáenz-Badillos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angel-s-enz-badillos/)

> [You should do what we do, stack chips like Hebrews.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/puff-daddy/you-should-do-what-we-do-stack-chips-like-hebrews/)

[Puff Daddy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/puff-daddy/)

> [When members unite with the church, they should not only make a profession of faith in Christ (that is essential), but in light of…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jay-adams/when-members-unite-with-the-church-they-should-not-only-make-a/)

[Jay Adams](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jay-adams/)

> [“... before the tenth century Hebrew writing, like Phoenician, was purely consonantal, and it was halfway though the ninth century BCE, under the influence…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angel-s-enz-badillos/before-the-tenth-century-hebrew-writing-like-phoenician-was-purely/)

[Angel Sáenz-Badillos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angel-s-enz-badillos/)

> [“The Arabic language has had a great history, and in many respects is more remarkable than any other Semitic speech.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-arabic-language-has-had-a-great-history-and-in-many-respects-is/)

[James John Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/)

> [The assets of the Jewish National Home must be created exclusively through our own work, for only the product of the Hebrew labor can…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/david-ben-gurion/the-assets-of-the-jewish-national-home-must-be-created-exclusively/)

[David Ben-Gurion](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/david-ben-gurion/)

> [All the various component parts of the Hebrew worship subserve this great purpose, the bringing of man into communication with God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samson-raphael-hirsch/all-the-various-component-parts-of-the-hebrew-worship-subserve-this/)

[Samson Raphael Hirsch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samson-raphael-hirsch/)

> [“The number of vowel phonemes varies according to the different Masoretic traditions.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/angel-s-enz-badillos/the-number-of-vowel-phonemes-varies-according-to-the-different/)

[Angel Sáenz-Badillos](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/angel-s-enz-badillos/)

> [The Nazis played the same games against Jews that today’s left plays against 'Eurocentrism,' 'whiteness,' and 'logocentrism.' When you hear a campus radical denounce…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/the-nazis-played-the-same-games-against-jews-that-today-s-left-plays/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

> [I'm a Persian Jew, and we don't speak Hebrew.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zubin-mehta/i-m-a-persian-jew-and-we-don-t-speak-hebrew/)

[Zubin Mehta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zubin-mehta/)

> [Rest in the Lord; wait patiently for Him. In Hebrew, "Be silent in God, and let Him mould thee." Keep still, and He will…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/martin-luther/rest-in-the-lord-wait-patiently-for-him-in-hebrew-be-silent-in-god/)

[Martin Luther](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/martin-luther/)

> [In my prayers every day, which are a combination of Hebrew prayers and Shakespeare and Sondheim lyrics and things people have said to me…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mandy-patinkin/in-my-prayers-every-day-which-are-a-combination-of-hebrew-prayers-and/)

[Mandy Patinkin](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mandy-patinkin/)

> [While the business of education in Europe consists in lectures upon the ruins of Palmyra and the antiquities of Herculaneum , or in disputes…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/benjamin-rush/while-the-business-of-education-in-europe-consists-in-lectures-upon/)

[Benjamin Rush](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/benjamin-rush/)

> [The Hebrew scriptures say it's okay to enslave anybody except your fellow Jews. It says you should enslave only your neighbors. I say to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-shelby-spong/the-hebrew-scriptures-say-it-s-okay-to-enslave-anybody-except-your/)

[John Shelby Spong](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-shelby-spong/)

> [The market economy is deeply congruent with the values set out in the Hebrew Bible. Material prosperity is a divine blessing. Poverty crushes the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jonathan-sacks/the-market-economy-is-deeply-congruent-with-the-values-set-out-in-the/)

[Jonathan Sacks](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jonathan-sacks/)

[Browse all 407 Hebrew quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hebrew/)

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "“The Samaritans were conservative in the matter of script, preserving the Phoenician type after Judaea and Galilee had accepted the Aramaic character.”",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "James John Courtenay"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the-matter-of-script-preserving/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Hebrew"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the-matter-of-script-preserving/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/james-john-courtenay-6996_hebrew_the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the_81675.jpg",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/james-john-courtenay-6996_hebrew_the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the_81675.jpg",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/fc1/james-john-courtenay-6996_hebrew_the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the_81675.jpg",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“The Samaritans were conservative in the matter of script, preserving the Phoenician type after Judaea and…” — James John Courtenay",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "James John Courtenay",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/james-john-courtenay/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "“The Samaritans were conservative in the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the-matter-of-script-preserving/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/james-john-courtenay/the-samaritans-were-conservative-in-the-matter-of-script-preserving/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
