The Syriac grammar of Andreas Gottlieb Hoffmann, written in Latin and published in 1827, is known for its completeness. B.H. Cowper, having reasoned that English students of Syriac deserve an affordable and complete, yet not too cumbersome and detailed, guide to the language, here offers an abridged and edited English version of the work. The standard topics of reading and grammar are covered, together with a final section on prosody. The introduction includes a brief mention of some important names in Syriac literature and a short overview of its study in Europe (with some bibliography). This volume remains a useful and accessible text for students of Syriac.