In Ukraine, a textbook “Ancient Hebrew Language” (“Ancient Hebrew Language”) has appeared—an edition dedicated to the language of the Tanakh and designed for serious, systematic study of the ancient Hebrew text. For the Jewish audience in Israel, this is important news not only from the academic sphere. It is about a book that shows: the language of the Hebrew original remains a subject of respectful and deep study beyond Israel, specifically in the Ukrainian language – the national language of another country. The author of the textbook is Dmitry Tsolin, Doctor of Philological Sciences, a specialist in biblical studies, ancient Hebrew and Aramaic languages, a researcher of the Semitic language tradition.
“Ancient Hebrew Language” is a textbook that combines the features of a grammar and syntax reference for the ancient Hebrew language of the Tanakh with practical tasks. In addition to theoretical material, the book contains exercises for mastering grammatical material, an ancient Hebrew-Ukrainian glossary for convenient word search, as well as information on the history of the language and a list of foreign borrowings. Moreover, one of the most complex aspects of reading the biblical ancient Hebrew text—the system of accent marks—is considered. The textbook will interest both students studying ancient Hebrew and teachers,” – this is how the presentation of the textbook describes it.
The textbook was published in early April 2026, and on March 31, 2026, its presentation took place.
The textbook is already available on the website https://siyach.com.ua/product/davnoyevrejska-mova-pidruchnyk/
This is especially noticeable now, when in many societies the conversation about Jews is increasingly simplified to political clichés, aggression, or superficial stereotypes. Against this backdrop, the release of a full-fledged textbook on the ancient Hebrew language in Ukrainian does not appear as a formality, but as a cultural gesture of a completely different level.
What is this book and why does it deserve attention
“Ancient Hebrew Language” is a textbook that combines the properties of a grammar and syntax reference for the ancient Hebrew language of the Tanakh with practical tasks. The book contains theoretical material, exercises for consolidating grammar, an ancient Hebrew-Ukrainian glossary for convenient word search, information on the history of the language, a list of foreign borrowings, and an analysis of one of the most complex topics—the system of accent marks in the biblical text.
So, we are not looking at an overview brochure or a symbolic project for the sake of appearances. This is a working tool for students, teachers, and anyone who wants to read the text not through retelling, but closer to its original linguistic form.
For the Israeli reader, the approach itself is important here. When it comes to the Tanakh, the question of language is not a trifle or a technical detail. Much in the Jewish textual tradition is based on the root of the word, on the internal connection of concepts, on the nuance of form, on what cannot be fully transferred to another language without loss. Therefore, any serious course on ancient Hebrew is always a conversation not only about grammar but also about access to the source itself.
Dmitry Tsolin
The author of the textbook is Dmitry Tsolin – https://www.facebook.com/dmytro.tsolin/, Doctor of Philological Sciences, a researcher in the field of Semitic philology, biblical studies, ancient Hebrew and Aramaic languages.
His academic biography shows that we are dealing with a specialist with serious international and university training: in 1995 he graduated from the Faculty of Philology of Kherson State Pedagogical University, in 2002 he received an MA in Religion from Andrews University in the USA, in 2009 he defended his candidate’s dissertation at the Faculty of Oriental Studies of St. Petersburg State University, in 2012–2013 he completed a post-doctoral fellowship at the Hebrew University of Jerusalem, and in 2016 he defended his doctoral dissertation at the Institute of Philology of Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv.
Equally important is his teaching experience. From 2005 to 2007, Dmitry Tsolin taught at the Department of Judaic Studies at the International Solomon University in Kyiv, then from 2007 to 2017 he worked at the National University “Ostroh Academy”, and from 2013 to 2017 he was a visiting lecturer in the master’s program in Judaic Studies at the National University “Kyiv-Mohyla Academy”. Such a path is especially significant for the Israeli reader: we are not dealing with a general profile philologist, but with a person who has been professionally working in the field of Jewish text, language, and tradition of its study for many years.
His range of interests speaks for itself. Among them are Semitic philology, the Aramaic language, biblical studies, Targums, that is, Aramaic translations of the Bible from the I–VII centuries, discourse linguistics, and translation theory. In other words, the author is engaged not only in grammar as a set of rules but also in how the ancient text lives in translation, interpretation, and historical context.
His language competencies also deserve special attention. Dmitry Tsolin is fluent in modern Hebrew, professionally works with ancient Hebrew and Western Aramaic dialects, reads classical Syriac and ancient Greek Koine. For a book about the language of the Tanakh, this is fundamentally important because such a textbook requires an author who understands not only the form of the word but also the entire cultural, historical, and textual layer around it.
That is why the textbook “Ancient Hebrew Language” does not appear as an accidental project, but as the result of many years of academic and teaching work by a specialist deeply immersed in the Jewish language and textual tradition.
Why this is important for Jews in Israel
Israel lives in a unique reality where Hebrew is simultaneously the state language, everyday speech, the language of the army, media, family, debate, prayer, and cultural memory. But precisely because of this, in Israel, they especially understand the difference between modern Hebrew and the ancient Hebrew language of the Tanakh.
When a serious textbook on the ancient Hebrew language appears in another country and specifically in the national language of that country, it means that the Jewish textual tradition is perceived there as something worthy of independent study, not as secondary material for quotes, retellings, and ideological interpretations.
Against the backdrop of rising anti-Semitism in the world, this has additional meaning. Where some reduce the conversation about Jews to hatred, conspiracy theories, or political irritation, others invest efforts in studying the language of the Tanakh, in reading the original source, in trying to understand Jewish civilization through its own textual foundation. NAnews — Israel News | Nikk.Agency believes that such signs are especially important today: they show that respect for Jewish heritage can be expressed not in declarations, but in serious work with language and culture.
Why it is crucial that the book was published specifically in Ukrainian
There is a separate and very strong semantic layer here. English, German, or French academic works on biblical Hebrew have long existed and do not surprise anyone. But when such a textbook is published specifically in Ukrainian, it means that the ancient Hebrew language enters the intellectual space of Ukraine not through a foreign intermediary language, but directly through its own national cultural framework.
This is an important sign of maturity.
In essence, it is about recognizing that the language of the Tanakh is part of the world’s cultural foundation, which is worth studying at the modern Ukrainian academic level. For the Jewish audience in Israel, this sounds understandable and respectful: not as an attempt at appropriation, but as recognition of the value of the source.
In which countries this is also possible—and what it says about Ukraine
Such a textbook could organically appear in countries with a strong tradition of Hebraic studies, Judaic studies, and textological research. For example, in Germany, Poland, France, the United Kingdom, the USA. There exist university schools, research centers, and a stable academic culture of studying the ancient Hebrew language and Jewish sources.
But the Ukrainian case stands out for another reason.
Such an edition appears not in a calm and prosperous reality, but in a country that lives under the pressure of war, exhaustion, and constant instability. And yet it is there that a fundamental textbook on the language of the Tanakh is published in Ukrainian. This is no longer just scientific news. It is an indicator that even in difficult times there is room for serious humanitarian work, for respect for the text, and for intellectual interest in the Jewish tradition.
For Jews in Israel, there is an understandable and important signal in this. The language of the Tanakh continues to arouse interest not only as part of the past but as part of the living civilizational core, to which they turn again and again. And when such interest takes the form of a full-fledged textbook, it should be perceived not as a minor academic episode, but as a marker of the times.
Because in an era of noise, ideology, and growing hostility, the very attempt to calmly, consistently, and professionally study the ancient Hebrew language already says a lot.