The Letter Vav
Vav, one of the smallest letters of the Hebrew alphabet, is a mere vertical line. Slight as it is, however, it is a letter that has a powerful impact on the Hebrew language. Perhaps this is because vav represents the physical world that surrounds us. Metaphorically, vav represents the letter six and six represents six directions: forward, back, right, left, up and down. Vav, however, is a letter of connection. As a prefix, vav is the connecting conjunction meaning either “and” or “or” depending on the context. In fact, the vav is translated in different places as a wide range of conjunctions, however "and/or" are the most common. Perhaps, this is why the literal meaning of the letter, vav, is hook. In Biblical Hebrew, the vav, when used as the conjunction “and,” and attached to a verb, becomes a vav hahm’ha’pehchet, a vav that flips the tense of the verb. For instance, “yomar” means “he will say,” but “va’yomar” means “he said.” The vav hahm’ha’pehchet changes past to future ...