Tip 33: Factbook Biblical Person: Lemma: Bible Word Study: Andersen-Forbes Semantic Domains
Please be generous with your additional details, corrections, suggestions, and other feedback. This is being built in a .docx file for a PBB which will be shared periodically.
Previous post: tip 32 Next post: tip 34a
For Semantic Domains, Louw-Nida (and its extension to Hebrew via Swanson) and Andersen-Forbes are the available options. A comparison of their root categories illustrates the differences in emphasis:
| 
 Louw-Nida 
 | 
 Andersen-Forbes 
 | 
- Geographical Objects and Features
 
- Natural Substances
 
- Plants
 
- Animals
 
- Foods and Condiments
 
- Artifacts
 
- Constructions
 
- Body, Body Parts, and Body Products
 
- People
 
- Kinship Terms
 
- Groups and Classes of Persons and Members of Such Groups and Classes
 
- Supernatural Being and Powers
 
- Be, Become, Exist, Happen
 
- Physical Events and States
 
- Linear Movement
 
- Non-linear Movements
 
- Stances and Events Related to Stances
 
- Attachment
 
- Physical Impact
 
- Violence, Harm, Destroy, Kill
 
- Danger, Risk, Safe, Save
 
- Trouble, Hardship, Relief, Favorable Circumstances
 
- Physiological Processes and States
 
- Sensory Events and States
 
- Attitudes and Emotions
 
- Psychological Faculties
 
- Learn
 
- Know
 
- Memory and Recall
 
- Think
 
- Hold a View, Believe, Trust
 
- Understand
 
- Communication
 
- Association
 
- Help, Care-For
 
- Guide, Discipline, Follow
 
- Control, Rule
 
- Punish, Reward
 
- Hostility, Strife
 
- Reconciliation, Forgiveness
 
- Behavior and Related States
 
- Perform, Do
 
- Agriculture
 
- Animal Husbandry, Fishing
 
- Building, Constructive
 
- Household Activities
 
- Activities Involving Liquids or Masses
 
- Activities involving Cloth
 
- Activities involving Clothing and Adorning
 
- Contest and Play
 
- Festivals
 
- Funerals and Burial
 
- Religious Activities
 
- Maritime Activities
 
- Military Activities
 
- Courts and Legal Procedures
 
- Possess, Transfer, Exchange
 
- Nature, Class, Example
 
- Quantity
 
- Number
 
- Sequence
 
- Arrange, Organize
 
- Whole, Unite, Part, Divide
 
- Comparison
 
- Value
 
- Proper, Improper
 
- Time
 
- Aspect
 
- Affirmation, Negation
 
- Real, Unreal
 
- Mode
 
- True, False
 
- Genuine, Phony
 
- Able, Capable
 
- Adequate, Qualified
 
- Power, Force
 
- Ready, Prepared
 
- Degree
 
- Features of Objects
 
- Space
 
- Spatial Dimensions
 
- Spatial Orientations
 
- Spatial Positions
 
- Spatial Extensions
 
- Existence in Space
 
- Weight
 
- Status
 
- Moral and Ethical Qualities and Related Behavior
 
- Relations
 
- Case
 
- Discourse Markers
 
- Discourse Referentials
 
- Names of Persons and Places
 
  | 
 Substantive Semantics: 
- Abstract Concept
 
- Appliance / Furniture
 
- Body Part
 
- Building
 
- Color
 
- Creature
 
- Deity
 
- Document
 
- Event
 
- Food
 
- Garment / Apparel
 
- Geographic Name / Place
 
- Human
 
- Medical Term
 
- Mental State
 
- Quality
 
- Quantity
 
- Spatial and Directional
 
- Substance
 
- Thing (default semantics)
 
- Time / Season
 
- Undecidable/ Unknown
 
- Utensil
 
- Valuable
 
- Vegetation
 
- Vocable
 
- War Term
 
- Work
 
   
Verbal Semantics / Valency: 
- Attitude
 
- Caused Motion
 
- Destruction
 
- Stative
 
- Temporal Locative
 
- Intransitive
 
- Movement
 
- Call (qr’)
 
- Say (‘mr)
 
- Transitive
 
- Utterance (except ‘mr)
 
- Ditransitive Hiphil
 
- Existence
 
   
 | 
 
To illustrate both the use of each system and the difference between them:
Step 1: Open the NRSV (1) to Genesis 1:29 (2), the first occurrence of “food” as identified by the Find command (3) (4).
Step 2: Open the Context Menu though the right-click (5) and note that the left side show neither the Louw-Nida/Swanson coding nor the Andersen-Forbes coding for Semantic Domains. Select Show more information (6) which will open the Information Panel.

Step 3: The Dictionary section of the Information Panel show the definition in Swanson which includes the Louw-Nida semantic domain coding. Note no values for the Andersen-Forbes coding have been shown.

Step 4: Build a Search for LN 5.1-5.22 against the NRSV, remembering that the Louw-Nida coding may be accessed via the reverse interlinear. Run the search and note that only the New Testament is included in the results.

To find food in the Andersen-Forbes semantic domains:
Step 1: Open The Hebrew Bible: Andersen-Forbes Analyzed Text. 2008. Francis I. Andersen; A. Dean Forbes (1) which contains Andersen-Forbes coding.
Step 2: Select “food” in Genesis 1:29 (2). Open the Context Menu and select “<> Food Semantic Domain (Andersen-Forbes Hebrew (3) on the left side. Choose the action Search: All Open (4) on the right.

Step 3: Run the search and view the results – in the Old Testament only, Hebrew only.
