by AramaicDesigns » Sat Oct 31, 2009 2:59 am
Krystal,
I'm afraid that knowledge of 1st Century Galilean Aramaic is extremely rare. It is not common among the primary modern Aramaic students (members of the Christian Syriac traditions such as the Syriac Orthodox Church, Jewish Aramaic scholars or native Neo-Aramaic speakers), but primarily among academics of a select few fields. These scholars don't tend to offer translations since their focus is historical. As of now, there is only one known professional translator of ancient and rare dialects of Aramaic, and he receives forwarded translation requests through some of the foremost researchers in the field.
If you are set on 1st Century Galilean Aramaic, keep in mind that given the nature of the information on the topic (solely available, at this time, in books written on the topic for people who already know several ancient dialects of Aramaic), that no one out there who actually knows 1st Century Galilean Aramaic knows just that dialect. Furthermore, not everyone who "knows the language Jesus spoke" even realizes that there are 1) many dialects of Aramaic and 2) there can be huge differences between them. Nine times out of ten, if the individual does know Aramaic at all and claims to know the language of Jesus, then they are actually Classical Syriac speaking, a language which developed about 200 years after the fact. Lastly, even if you can't or don't wish to go to a professional for a translation, do get a second opinion on any translation you receive before you do anything vital with it. My boss, for instance, performs verifications for free as a way of keeping tabs on frauds (and there are some doozies out there), often so will professors in the field and sometimes Jewish scholars, though they tend to disapprove of tattoos and may not help you if they figure that is your intent.
Good luck!
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Aramaic Designs
aramaicdesigns dot blogspot dot com
aramaicdesigns dot rogueleaf dot com
