From Question to Query Building a bridge between traditional scholarship and data-oriented research methods in biblical studies Wido van Peursen VU University Amsterdam

The ETCBC database Database of Hebrew Old Testament of the Eep Talstra Centre for Bible and Computer Unique features: ▫inclusion of annotations at higher linguistic levels such as clauses and text hierarchy > much broader range of options than just word searches. ▫database model that is very appropriate for linguistic queries.

EMdF, MQL and Emdros EMdF text database model Extension of MdF (Monads-dot-Features). MQL query language Emdros text database engine (“Engine for MdF Database Retrieval, Organization, and Storage”)

Biblical studies a specific body of texts, with a long transmission history, resulting in many different versions; extensive analysis of languages for which no native speakers are alive anymore; religious content which has a long and diverse history of interpretation.

Challenges Availability and the transparency of the ETCBC database. Some peculiarities of approaches to language that are common among Semitic scholars. Continuous interaction of linguistic and literary research in biblical scholarship.

SHEBANQ Curation part: aims at a durable representation of the ETCBC database in the CLARIN infrastructure. Demonstrator: a web application that provides access to the database, allows for queries, and can save these queries as annotations.

CLARIN, ISOcat and LAF CLARIN infrastructure: ▫Make ETCBC database available and transparent. ISOcat: Standard used in the CLARIN infrastructure for the defining linguistic data categories. ▫Spell out the differences between the linguistic features in the WIVU database and mainstream linguistic concepts. LAF: a linguistic annotation framework for representing linguistic annotations of language data. ▫Help exchange and use in other programs.

From question to query We try to build a bridge between the questions that biblical scholars have about language, meaning and textual relations and the potential of querying the database to answer those questions. Also the other way round (serendipity)