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On October 13th, 1881, the linguist and grammarian Eliezer Ben-Yehuda held what is thought to have been the first modern conversation in Hebrew with two friends at a Paris caf\xe9.\nThe conversation would have had some serious stumbling blocks, given that the language was still missing numerous modern words including bicycle, towel, and \u2013 crucially for being in a cafe \u2013 a word for coffee.\nIn this episode, Arion, Rebecca and Olly discuss the connection between Hebrew's revival and growing Jewish nationalism; look at the personal lengths Ben-Yehuda was willing to go to make the language take off, including speaking to his son exclusively in Hebrew; and explain why, in the early days, conversing in an ancient language must have been like speaking exclusively in David Bowie song lyrics\u2026\nFurther Reading:\n\u2022\xa0\u2018Revival of the Hebrew language\u2019 (The Jerusalem Post, 2010): https://www.jpost.com/jewish-world/jewish-news/this-week-in-history-revival-of-the-hebrew-language\xa0\n\u2022 \u2018How to revive an ancient language, according to 19th-century Hebrew and Persian revivalists\u2019 (University of Washington, 2018): https://jewishstudies.washington.edu/israel-hebrew/reviving-hebrew-persian-ancient-languages-eliezer-ben-yehuda-manekji-limji-hataria/\xa0\n\u2022 \u2018Hebrew wasn\u2019t spoken for 2,000 years. Here\u2019s how it was revived\u2019 (National Geographic, 2023): https://www.nationalgeographic.com/history/article/hebrew-wasnt-spoken-for-2000-years-heres-how-it-was-revived\xa0\n\u2022 \u2018The History & Revival of the Hebrew Language\u2019 (Unpacked, 2019): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HBiiad9fO-g\xa0\nWe'll be back on Monday - unless you join \U0001f334CLUB RETROSPECTORS\U0001f334, where we give you ad-free listening AND a full-length Sunday episode every week!\nPlus, weekly bonus content, unlock over 70 bonus bits, and support our independent podcast.\nJoin now via Apple Podcasts or Patreon. Thanks!\nThe Retrospectors are Olly Mann, Rebecca Messina & Arion McNicoll, with Matt Hill.\nTheme Music: Pass The Peas. Announcer: Bob Ravelli. Graphic Design: Terry Saunders. Edit Producer: Sophie King.\nCopyright: Rethink Audio / Olly Mann 2023.\n\n\n Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.\nLearn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices