A useful study aid for biblical languages and research languages

Having only recently entered the world of “apps”—forced there by being the parent of middle schoolers—I was pleased to come across a free app that has been extremely helpful in enabling me to maintain and enhance my facility in both ancient and modern languages. The program is called Anki and it can run on a desktop, laptop, or smartphone, and can sync automatically across as many platforms as you use.

Anki is essentially a flash-card program based on two key elements: active recall testing and spaced repetition. The combination of these two elements results in a learning and review process that is much more efficient and effective than anything I have used in the past (namely, printed vocabulary lists and real, live flashcards). Check out the website for the technical details of the algorithm used to optimize memory and retention. In short, based on feedback you provide Anki about how easy or how hard it was to recall the meaning of a certain term, Anki optimizes the interval for the next time you need to recall the item.

While Anki enables you to create your own deck of flashcards, there are also hundreds of shared decks that others have created and made available for download. Thus, for example, for enhancing my working knowledge of theological German, I have been working with a list of 500 German Theological Vocabulary Words based on the books by H.J. Siliakus and Helmut Zeifle. In terms of biblical languageas, there are dozens of Greek and Hebrew decks keyed to various textbooks, as well as to certain classes or special topics (genres, books of the Bible, etc.). For students working on their biblical language skills or their reading ability in French or German, Anki seems to be an ideal tool to supplement undergraduate or graduate classes or independent study using other books or resources.

Just a note on cost: the program download and the app for android are free, but there is a cost for the iPhone app (to cover the costs of developing and maintaining the software).

I am aware that there are other flash-card programs out there, and probably many other apps that are helpful for language study. Do you have an app or program you have found helpful for acquiring or maintaining biblical languages or research languages? What has worked (or not worked) for you?