Aramaic on a stamp from Syria of all places

 So, it's been a while since I posted last. I discovered, through my specific interest of Maps on Stamps, that Syria has more maps of Israel depicted on their stamps, than any other country in the world, including Israel!!!

So, a friend from the UAE sent me stamps from Syria from 2019 & 2023, showing the Map of Israel, and in addition, what a surprise!, was a stamp that celebrates UNESCO International Year of Indigenous Languages. Syria decided that their language will be Aramaic, since there are small groups/communities who still speak Aramaic as their daily language. Even I, and thousands of others who study the Daf Yomi (a blot of Talmud a day) – can't speak Aramaic as a colloquial language!!!

As far as I know, Syria is the only country that has a stamp showing the Aramaic language.

In a very tense time for the people in Judea, Ravshake (or Rabshakeh), acting as a messenger (or emissary) from the King of Aram, the original country where Aramaic was founded as a language, talks to the officials of King Hezekiah, while the soldiers on the walls defending Jerusalem are listening, and saying very scary stuff (II Kings 18:19-25). Elyakim, as the top official of King Hezekiah, asks Ravshakeh to: "please talk to us in Aramaic, because we will hear and understand, but don't speak to us in Jewish (no clue what this is? Hebrew, maybe? definitely not Yiddish...😆) so that the soldiers will not understand!

The entire episode is repeated word for word in Isaiah (36:3-11). And, so, I placed the Minisheet of the issue in II Kings, and the stamp in Isaiah, in my Stamp Bible! Enjoy the pictures!






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