The Scribe of 1QS, 1QSa, 1QSb, 4Q53 (4QSamc), 4Q175 and Three Features of Orthography and Phonology

Abstract That a single scribe copied 1QS, 1QSa, 1QSb, 4Q53 (4QSamc), 4Q175 is commonly recognized. However, what has not been emphasized previously is that certain orthographic / phonological idiosyncrasies appear prominently, if not exclusively, in only one of these texts, 1QS, even though these idiosyncrasies would seem to be involuntary and, for this reason, should appear evenly distributed throughout the texts. Instead, one finds the greatest correspondence in type and concentration in 1QIsaa, though this was copied by different scribes. The three idiosyncratic features studied are the Aramaic והי- suffix on plural nouns, the he in the prefix of hiphil yiqṭol verbs, and the interchange of gutturals.