Lashon Hakodesh

The phrase's first appearance is already in the Mishnah: "The following may be recited in any language: The Torah-portion of 'Sotah', the confession made at the presentation of the tithe, the 'Shema', and the 'Prayer' …The following are recited in the Holy Tongue: The declaration made at the 'First Fruits', the formula of 'Halizah', the blessings and curses, the benediction of the priests …"In its narrow sense, Lashon Hakodesh refers not to the Hebrew language in its entirety, but rather to the Biblical Hebrew only.

The exact meaning of the phrase "Lashon Hakodesh" becomes clear due to its contrary term.

In Yiddish, the term "Loshn Koydesh" serves to describe its own Hebrew-Aramaic component, as opposed to words originating from German or Slavic languages.

The Hebrew has no original expressions for these things, and only describes them in figurative language and by way of hints, as if to indicate thereby that these things should not be mentioned, and should therefore have no names; we ought to be silent about them, and when we are compelled to mention them, we must manage to employ for that purpose some suitable expressions, although these are generally used in a different sense.

"Nahmanides disagrees with Maimonides' reasoning, and provides his own reasoning, based on the way the Hebrew was being used: "As I see it, the reason for the Rabbis calling the language of the Torah the Holy Tongue is that the words of the Torah and of the prophecies and all sacred utterances were all spoken in that language; it is the language that the Holy One, blessed be He, speaks with His prophets and with His people, saying, "I am ...," "Thou shalt not have ..." and the remaining commandments and prophecies; it is the language by which He is called in His sacred names... and in which He created His universe, gave names to heaven and earth and all therein, giving his angels and his host names — Michael, Gabriel, etc.