קָטָן וקָטֹן במקרא ובמשנה ובחיבורים שביניהם בזמן

It is well known that in the Tiberian tradition of Biblical Hebrew there are two alternate forms for the static participle (as an adjective): Qatan and Qaton. Qatan is the pausal form and Qaton usually occurs as the contextual form. In this study I have first presented the findings in the Babylonian tradition of Biblical Hebrew and in the Hebrew tradition of the Samaritan Pentateuch. These two traditions have only the Qatan form. Following this presentation I
|examine the findings in post-Biblical Hebrew. In Qumran Hebrew and in the Hebrew of Ben Sira the only form that occurs is Qatan. On the other hand, in Mishnaic Hebrew there is a difference between the western and eastern traditions. In the western tradition of Mishnaic Hebrew, which is represented by evidence from the Kaufman ms. (namely the primary scribe, the vocalizer and the second scribe-vocalizer) and to a lesser degree by those manuscripts which share a similar linguistic tradition, both forms occur. However, unlike in Tiberian Hebrew, the western tradition of Mishnaic Hebrew reads Qaton almost always in proximity to the form Gadol. Qatan occurs when the form stands alone. The eastern tradition of Mishnaic Hebrew, which is reflected in the linguistic tradition of the Babylonian vocalization, in the traditions of the Parma B ms., in the Antonin ms. and in most oral traditions of Oriental Jewry, has only the Qatan form.