Semitic languages - Definition


Semitic languages - Definition

The Semitic languages are the northeastern subfamily of the Afro-Asiatic languages, and the only family of this group spoken in Asia.

The most common Semitic languages spoken today are Arabic, Amharic, Hebrew, and Tigrinya.

The term "Semitic" for these language is etymologically a misnomer in some ways (see Semitic), but is the standard term in linguistics.

The classification given below is probably the most widespread - following Robert Hetzron - but is still disputed; in particular, several Semitists still argue for the traditional view of Arabic as part of South Semitic, and a few (eg Alexander Militarev) see the South Arabian languages as a third branch of Semitic alongside East and West Semitic, rather than as a subgroup of South Semitic.

Contents

1 The Eastern Semitic Languages

2 The Central Semitic languages

2.1 Northwest Semitic languages
2.2 South Central (Arabic) languages

3 The South Semitic languages

3.1 Western (within South Semitic)
3.2 Eastern (within South Semitic)

4 Common characteristics

5 See Also

The Eastern Semitic Languages

Akkadian language -- extinct

Controversial (either East Semitic or Northwest Semitic): Eblaite language -- extinct

The Central Semitic languages

Northwest Semitic languages

Canaanite languages (see also Hebrew languages)
- Ammonite language -- extinct
- Moabite language -- extinct
- Edomite language -- extinct
- Biblical Hebrew language -- live descendants
- Phoenician languages (including the later Punic) -- extinct
Aramaic language
- Syriac language
- Mandaic language
Ugaritic language -- extinct
Amorite language -- extinct (attested only from proper names transcribed in Akkadian; may effectively be the parent language of Northwest Semitic, or even predate the split of Central Semitic.)

South Central (Arabic) languages

The South Semitic languages

Western (within South Semitic)

Ethiopic languages
- North
- South
  - Transverse
    - Amharic language
    - Argobba language
    - Harari language
    - East Gurage languages
  - Outer
    - Soddo language
    - Goggot language
    - Muher language
    - West Gurage languages
Old South Arabian -- extinct
- Sabaean language -- extinct
- Minaean language -- extinct
- Qatabanian language -- extinct
- Hadhramautic languages -- extinct

Eastern (within South Semitic)

Common characteristics

These languages all exhibit a pattern of words consisting of triconsonantal roots, with vowel changes, prefixes, and suffixes used to inflect them. For instance, in Hebrew:

gdl means "big" but is no part of speech and not a word, just a root

gadol means "big" and is a masculine adjective

gdola means "big" (feminine adjective)

giddel means "he grew" (transitive verb)

gadal means "he grew" (intransitive verb)

higdil means "he magnified" (transitive verb)

magdelet means "magnifier" (lens)

spr is the root for "count" or "recount"

sefer means "book" (containing tales which are recounted)

sofer means "scribe" (Masoretic scribes counted verses)

mispar means "number".

Many roots are shared among more than one Semitic language. For example, the root ktb, a root signifying writing, exists in both Hebrew and Arabic ("he wrote" is rendered in Hebrew katav and in Classical Arabic kataba).

The following list will provide some equivalent words in Semitic languages.

Akkadian	Aramaic	Arabic	Hebrew	English translation
zikaru	dikrā	ḏakar	z�ḵ�r	Male
maliku	malkā	malik	mĕlĕḵ	King
im�ru	ḥamarā	ḥimār	ḥămōr	Donkey
erṣetu	ʔarʿā	ʔarḍ	ʔĕrĕṣ	Land

Sometimes certain roots differ in meaning from one Semitic language to another. For example, the root b-y-ḍ in Arabic has the meaning of "white" as well as "egg", whereas in Hebrew it only means "egg". The root l-b-n means "milk" in Arabic, but the color "white" in Hebrew.

Of course, there is sometimes no relation between the roots. For example, "knowledge" is represented in Hebrew by the root y-d-ʿ but in Arabic by the roots ʿ-r-f and ʿ-l-m.

Other Afro-Asiatic languages show similar patterns, but more usually with biconsonantal roots; e.g. in Kabyle afeg means "fly!", while affug means "flight", and yufeg means "he flew".