Proto-Semitic (proto-language)

Proto-Semitic is a proto-language that belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family. Proto-Semitic's parent proto-language is Proto-Afro-Asiatic.

Notice about reconstructed forms

Heads up This page contains 'proto' and '*' records. This means that they are unattested, hypothetical forms derived using the comparative method. These are speculative.

The study of language is aided by means of documented evidence in the form-factor of writing. However, not all languages utilized writing at all points in time. Consequently, scholars rely on the comparative method in order to fill this gap. While useful, this method is not perfect. This is why words that begin with '*' are called reconstructions; they are word forms reconstructed by means of said method.

  • What this means: information with 'proto-' or '*' before it is either speculative, understood as accurate by a minority of scholars, or both
  • Why this is: there is a lack of attested written records or scholars may disagree
  • Why this matters: these data may be inaccurate or subject to rapid change
  • Why this is included: reconstructed languages and terms help scholars study historical linguistics; and they encourage open debate

In short, it is not recommended to rely on these data as facts. Before referencing these data for scholarly works, we recommend checking for newer sources. If referencing said data, we recommend introducing them with indeterminate modifiers such as "some evidence may suggest that ..." or "one interpretation by [scholar name] argues that ...", and so forth.

Reconstructions in Proto-Semitic: A–Z

Information about Proto-Semitic

Entry
Source
§ 3. Proto-Semitic
Huehnergard, TSL 2ed., 49–79. Read on OMNIKA

Citation

MLA 8

PsychLing Contributors. "Proto-Semitic." PsychLing, OMNIKA Foundation, 1 Sep. 2023, psylng.org/mli/afro/proto-semitic. Accessed 4 Oct. 2024.

APA 6

PsychLing (2023, September 1). Proto-Semitic. Retrieved from https://psylng.org/mli/afro/proto-semitic

CMS 16

PsychLing Contributors. "Proto-Semitic." Las Vegas, NV: OMNIKA Foundation. Created September 1, 2023. Modified September 4, 2023. Accessed October 4, 2024. https://psylng.org/mli/afro/proto-semitic.

Bibliography

RTO

Almansa-Villatoro, María Victoria, and Silvia Štubňová Nigrelli, eds. Ancient Egyptian and Afroasiatic: Rethinking the Origins. University Park, PA: Eisenbrauns, 2023.

DLP

Crystal, David, ed. A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics. 6ed. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing, 2011.

TSL 2ed.

Huehnergard, John, and Na'ama Pat El, eds. The Semitic Languages. Routledge Language Family Series. 2nd Edition. New York, NY: Routledge, 2019.

CAD 9/L

Oppenheim, Adolf L., Erica Reiner, and Robert D. Biggs, eds. The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago: Volume 9, L. Chicago, IL: The Oriental Institute, 1973.

CAD 6/Ḫ

Oppenheim, Adolf L., Erica Reiner, Ignace J. Gelb, and Michael B. Rowton, eds. The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago: Volume 6, Ḫ. Chicago, IL: The Oriental Institute, 1956.

CAD 11/N2

Reiner, Erica, and Robert D. Biggs, eds. The Assyrian Dictionary of the Oriental Institute of the University of Chicago: Volume 11, N, Part II. Chicago, IL: The Oriental Institute, 1980.

RO 68(1)

Takács, Gábor. "Layers of the Oldest Egyptian Lexicon I." Rocznik Orientalistyczny 68, no. 1 (2015): 85–39.

Wiktionary

Wales, Jimmy D., et al. "Wiktionary: The Free Dictionary." San Francisco, CA: Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. Created December 12, 2002. Accessed July 28, 2023. https://wiktionary.org. [Visit]

Wikipedia

Wales, Jimmy D., Larry Sanger, et al. "Wikipedia: A Multilingual Free Online Encyclopedia." San Francisco, CA: Wikimedia Foundation. Created January 15, 2001. Accessed August 20, 2023. https://www.wikipedia.org. [Visit]

PsychLing MLI

Afro-Asiatic is a language family.

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PsychLing Glossary

Attested Language is a term in Historical Linguistics that means a language with documented writing.

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PsychLing Glossary

Comparative Linguistics is a field of study that concerns the scientific study of comparing languages.

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PsychLing Glossary

Comparative Method is a term in Comparative Linguistics that means a method of comparing languages and words to determine if they are related.

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PsychLing Glossary

Proto- is a term in Historical Linguistics that means a prefix used to denote hypothetical aspects of ancestral languages.

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PsychLing MLI

Proto-Afro-Asiatic is a proto-language that belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family.

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PsychLing Glossary

Proto-Language is a term in Historical Linguistics that means a hypothetical ancestor language of other languages.

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PsychLing Glossary

Reconstruction is a term in Historical Linguistics that means a procedure for determining the ancestral form of a word in an unattested language.

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