72: Language Density in Joseph Smith's Reformed Egyptian | Ep. 2145

About this episode

This episode explores the claims of the Book of Mormon regarding its origins and the linguistic implications of its assertions.

Welcome to Episode 72 in our LDS Discussions series! This episode is a treat because for the first time in the history of LDS Discussions, every panelist is actually IN studio!Today we are doing a deep dive into one of the most foundational (and controversial) questions surrounding the Book of Mormon: What does the text actually claim about itself –and do those claims hold up?We explore the Book of Mormon’s own statements about its origins, including the assertion that it was written in “Reformed Egyptian,” the idea that Egyptian is more information-dense than Hebrew, and the claim that “none other people knoweth our language.” From there, the discussion expands into linguistics, ancient writing systems, and the internal logic of the text itself.Along the way, we examine: What Egyptian and Hebrew writing actually look like from a linguistic standpoint, the practicality of engraving dense records onto metal plates, the role of editors like Mormon and Moroni (who abridged the records) and whether their explanation makes sense, and the implications of “unfallisifiable” claims in religious texts.We also take a close look at historical developments like the decipherment of Egyptian…

Topics covered

• Reformed Egyptian
• Book of Mormon
• linguistics
• ancient writing systems
• Joseph Smith
• 19th-century context

Keywords

• Reformed Egyptian
• Book of Mormon
• linguistics
• Joseph Smith
• ancient languages
• Kirtland Egyptian Papers
• Rosette Stone
• Champollion

Mentioned in this episode

Organizations: LDS Discussions

Books & works: Book of Mormon, Rosette Stone

Places: Kirtland

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