The Semitic languages are a branch of the

Afroasiatic language family The Afroasiatic languages (also known as Afro-Asiatic, Afrasian, Hamito-Semitic, or Semito-Hamitic) are a language family (or "phylum") of about 400 languages spoken predominantly in West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and parts of the ...

. They include

Arabic Arabic (, , or , ) is a Central Semitic languages, Central Semitic language of the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family spoken primarily in the Arab world. The International Organization for Standardization (ISO) assigns lang ...

Amharic Amharic is an Ethio-Semitic language, which is a subgrouping within the Semitic branch of the Afroasiatic languages. It is spoken as a first language by the Amhara people, and also serves as a lingua franca for all other metropolitan populati ...

, Tigrinya,

Aramaic Aramaic (; ) is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written a ...

Hebrew Hebrew (; ''ʿÎbrit'') is a Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic language family. A regional dialect of the Canaanite languages, it was natively spoken by the Israelites and ...

Maltese Maltese may refer to: * Someone or something of, from, or related to Malta * Maltese alphabet * Maltese cuisine * Maltese culture * Maltese language, the Semitic language spoken by Maltese people * Maltese people, people from Malta or of Maltese ...

Modern South Arabian languages The Modern South Arabian languages, also known as Eastern South Semitic languages, are a group of endangered languages spoken by small populations inhabiting the Arabian Peninsula, in Yemen and Oman, and Socotra Island. Together with the Ethiose ...

and numerous other ancient and modern languages. They are spoken by more than 330 million people across much of

West Asia West Asia (also called Western Asia or Southwest Asia) is the westernmost region of Asia. As defined by most academics, UN bodies and other institutions, the subregion consists of Anatolia, the Arabian Peninsula, Iran, Mesopotamia, the Armenian ...

North Africa North Africa (sometimes Northern Africa) is a region encompassing the northern portion of the African continent. There is no singularly accepted scope for the region. However, it is sometimes defined as stretching from the Atlantic shores of t ...

, the

Horn of Africa The Horn of Africa (HoA), also known as the Somali Peninsula, is a large peninsula and geopolitical region in East Africa.Robert Stock, ''Africa South of the Sahara, Second Edition: A Geographical Interpretation'', (The Guilford Press; 2004), ...

Malta Malta, officially the Republic of Malta, is an island country in Southern Europe located in the Mediterranean Sea, between Sicily and North Africa. It consists of an archipelago south of Italy, east of Tunisia, and north of Libya. The two ...

, and in large

immigrant Immigration is the international movement of people to a destination country of which they are not usual residents or where they do not possess nationality in order to settle as permanent residents. Commuters, tourists, and other short- ...

and expatriate communities in

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere, Northern and Western Hemisphere, Western hemispheres. North America is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South Ameri ...

Europe Europe is a continent located entirely in the Northern Hemisphere and mostly in the Eastern Hemisphere. It is bordered by the Arctic Ocean to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the west, the Mediterranean Sea to the south, and Asia to the east ...

, and

Australasia Australasia is a subregion of Oceania, comprising Australia, New Zealand (overlapping with Polynesia), and sometimes including New Guinea and surrounding islands (overlapping with Melanesia). The term is used in a number of different context ...

. The terminology was first used in the 1780s by members of the

Göttingen school of history The Göttingen school of history was a group of historians associated with a particular style of historiography located at the University of Göttingen in the late 18th century. The University of Göttingen was the original centre of the " Geschi ...

, who derived the name from

Shem Shem (; ''Šēm''; ) is one of the sons of Noah in the Bible ( Genesis 5–11 and 1 Chronicles 1:4). The children of Shem are Elam, Ashur, Arphaxad, Lud and Aram, in addition to unnamed daughters. Abraham, the patriarch of Jews, Christ ...

, one of the three

sons of Noah The Generations of Noah, also called the Table of Nations or ''Origines Gentium'', is a genealogy of the sons of Noah, according to the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, Genesis ), and their dispersion into many lands after Genesis flood narrative ...

in the

Book of Genesis The Book of Genesis (from Greek language, Greek ; ; ) is the first book of the Hebrew Bible and the Christian Old Testament. Its Hebrew name is the same as its incipit, first word, (In the beginning (phrase), 'In the beginning'). Genesis purpor ...

. Semitic languages occur in written form from a very early historical date in

, with

East Semitic The East Semitic languages are one of three divisions of the Semitic languages. The East Semitic group is attested by three distinct languages, Akkadian, Eblaite and possibly Kishite, all of which have been long extinct. They were influenced ...

Akkadian (also known as Assyrian and Babylonian) and

Eblaite Eblaite (, also known as Eblan ISO 639-3), or Palaeosyrian, is an extinct East Semitic language used during the 3rd millennium BC in Northern Syria. It was named after the ancient city of Ebla, in modern western Syria. Variants of the language ...

texts (written in a script adapted from Sumerian

cuneiform Cuneiform is a Logogram, logo-Syllabary, syllabic writing system that was used to write several languages of the Ancient Near East. The script was in active use from the early Bronze Age until the beginning of the Common Era. Cuneiform script ...

) appearing from in

Mesopotamia Mesopotamia is a historical region of West Asia situated within the Tigris–Euphrates river system, in the northern part of the Fertile Crescent. Today, Mesopotamia is known as present-day Iraq and forms the eastern geographic boundary of ...

and the northeastern

Levant The Levant ( ) is the subregion that borders the Eastern Mediterranean, Eastern Mediterranean sea to the west, and forms the core of West Asia and the political term, Middle East, ''Middle East''. In its narrowest sense, which is in use toda ...

respectively. The only earlier attested languages are Sumerian and

Elamite Elamite, also known as Hatamtite and formerly as Scythic, Median, Amardian, Anshanian and Susian, is an extinct language that was spoken by the ancient Elamites. It was recorded in what is now southwestern Iran from 2600 BC to 330 BC. Elamite i ...

(2800 BCE to 550 BCE), both

language isolate A language isolate is a language that has no demonstrable genetic relationship with any other languages. Basque in Europe, Ainu and Burushaski in Asia, Sandawe in Africa, Haida and Zuni in North America, Kanoê in South America, and Tiwi ...

s, and

Egyptian ''Egyptian'' describes something of, from, or related to Egypt. Egyptian or Egyptians may refer to: Nations and ethnic groups * Egyptians, a national group in North Africa ** Egyptian culture, a complex and stable culture with thousands of year ...

(), a sister branch within the Afroasiatic family, related to the Semitic languages but not part of them.

Amorite The Amorites () were an ancient Northwest Semitic-speaking Bronze Age people from the Levant. Initially appearing in Sumerian records c. 2500 BC, they expanded and ruled most of the Levant, Mesopotamia and parts of Egypt from the 21st century BC ...

appeared in Mesopotamia and the northern Levant , followed by the mutually intelligible

Canaanite languages The Canaanite languages, sometimes referred to as Canaanite dialects, are one of four subgroups of the Northwest Semitic languages. The others are Aramaic and the now-extinct Ugaritic and Amorite language. These closely related languages origin ...

(including Hebrew, Phoenician, Moabite, Edomite, and Ammonite, and perhaps Ekronite, Amalekite and Sutean), the still spoken

, and

Ugaritic Ugaritic () is an extinct Northwest Semitic languages, Northwest Semitic language known through the Ugaritic texts discovered by French archaeology, archaeologists in 1928 at Ugarit, including several major literary texts, notably the Baal cycl ...

during the 2nd millennium BC. Most scripts used to write Semitic languages are

abjad An abjad ( or abgad) is a writing system in which only consonants are represented, leaving the vowel sounds to be inferred by the reader. This contrasts with alphabets, which provide graphemes for both consonants and vowels. The term was introd ...

sa type of

alphabet An alphabet is a standard set of letter (alphabet), letters written to represent particular sounds in a spoken language. Specifically, letters largely correspond to phonemes as the smallest sound segments that can distinguish one word from a ...

ic script that omits some or all of the vowels, which is feasible for these languages because the consonants are the primary carriers of meaning in the Semitic languages. These include the

, Phoenician,

, Syriac,

, and ancient South Arabian alphabets. The

Geʽez script Geʽez ( ; , ) is a script used as an abugida (alphasyllabary) for several Afroasiatic languages, Afro-Asiatic and Nilo-Saharan languages, Nilo-Saharan languages of Ethiopia and Eritrea. It originated as an abjad (consonantal alphabet) and was ...

, used for writing the Semitic languages of

Ethiopia Ethiopia, officially the Federal Democratic Republic of Ethiopia, is a landlocked country located in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa. It shares borders with Eritrea to the north, Djibouti to the northeast, Somalia to the east, Ken ...

and

Eritrea Eritrea, officially the State of Eritrea, is a country in the Horn of Africa region of East Africa, with its capital and largest city being Asmara. It is bordered by Ethiopia in the Eritrea–Ethiopia border, south, Sudan in the west, and Dj ...

, is technically an

abugida An abugida (; from Geʽez: , )sometimes also called alphasyllabary, neosyllabary, or pseudo-alphabetis a segmental Writing systems#Segmental writing system, writing system in which consonant–vowel sequences are written as units; each unit ...

a modified abjad in which vowels are notated using

diacritic A diacritic (also diacritical mark, diacritical point, diacritical sign, or accent) is a glyph added to a letter or to a basic glyph. The term derives from the Ancient Greek (, "distinguishing"), from (, "to distinguish"). The word ''diacrit ...

marks added to the consonants at all times, in contrast with other Semitic languages which indicate vowels based on need or for introductory purposes.

is the only Semitic language written in the

Latin script The Latin script, also known as the Roman script, is a writing system based on the letters of the classical Latin alphabet, derived from a form of the Greek alphabet which was in use in the ancient Greek city of Cumae in Magna Graecia. The Gree ...

and the only Semitic language to be an official language of the

European Union The European Union (EU) is a supranational union, supranational political union, political and economic union of Member state of the European Union, member states that are Geography of the European Union, located primarily in Europe. The u ...

. The Semitic languages are notable for their

nonconcatenative morphology Nonconcatenative morphology, also called discontinuous morphology and introflection, is a form of word formation and inflection in which the root is modified and which does not involve stringing morphemes together sequentially. Types Apophony ...

. That is, word

roots A root is the part of a plant, generally underground, that anchors the plant body, and absorbs and stores water and nutrients. Root or roots may also refer to: Art, entertainment, and media * ''The Root'' (magazine), an online magazine focusin ...

are not themselves syllables or words, but instead are isolated sets of consonants (usually three, making a so-called ''

triliteral root The roots of verbs and most nouns in the Semitic languages are characterized as a sequence of consonants or " radicals" (hence the term consonantal root). Such abstract consonantal roots are used in the formation of actual words by adding the vowel ...

''). Words are composed from roots not so much by adding prefixes or suffixes, but rather by filling in the vowels between the root consonants, although prefixes and suffixes are often added as well. For example, in Arabic, the root meaning "write" has the form ''

k-t-b K-T-B (; ) is a triconsonantal root of a number of Semitic words, typically those having to do with writing. The words for "office", "writer" and "record" all reflect this root. Most notably, the Arabic word ''kitab'' ("book") is also used in a ...

''. From this root, words are formed by filling in the vowels and sometimes adding consonants, e.g. كِتاب ''kitāb'' "book", كُتُب ''kutub'' "books", كاتِب ''kātib'' "writer", كُتّاب ''kuttāb'' "writers", كَتَب ''kataba'' "he wrote", يكتُب ''yaktubu'' "he writes", etc.

Name and identification

The similarity of the Hebrew, Arabic and Aramaic languages has been accepted by all scholars since medieval times. The languages were familiar to Western European scholars due to historical contact with neighbouring

Near East The Near East () is a transcontinental region around the Eastern Mediterranean encompassing the historical Fertile Crescent, the Levant, Anatolia, Egypt, Mesopotamia, and coastal areas of the Arabian Peninsula. The term was invented in the 20th ...

ern countries and through

Biblical studies Biblical studies is the academic application of a set of diverse disciplines to the study of the Bible, with ''Bible'' referring to the books of the canonical Hebrew Bible in mainstream Jewish usage and the Christian Bible including the can ...

, and a comparative analysis of Hebrew, Arabic, and Aramaic was published in Latin in 1538 by

Guillaume Postel Guillaume Postel (25 March 1510 – 6 September 1581) was a French linguist, Orientalist, astronomer, Christian Kabbalist, diplomat, polyglot, professor, religious universalist, and writer. Born in the village of Barenton in Normandy, Post ...

. Almost two centuries later,

Hiob Ludolf Hiob or Job Ludolf ( or '; 15 June 1624– 8 April 1704), also known as Job Leutholf, was a German orientalist, born at Erfurt. Edward Ullendorff rates Ludolf as having "the most illustrious name in Ethiopic scholarship". Life After studyin ...

described the similarities between these three languages and the

Ethio-Semitic languages Ethio-Semitic (also Ethiopian Semitic, Ethiosemitic, Ethiopic or Abyssinian) is a family of languages spoken in Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Sudan. They form the western branch of the South Semitic languages, itself a sub-branch of Semitic, part of t ...

. However, neither scholar named this grouping as "Semitic". The term "Semitic" was created by members of the

, initially by

August Ludwig von Schlözer August Ludwig von Schlözer (5 July 1735, in Gaggstatt – 9 September 1809, in Göttingen) was a German historian and pedagogist who laid foundations for the critical study of Russian medieval history. He was a member of the Göttingen schoo ...

(1781), to designate the languages closely related to Arabic, Aramaic, and Hebrew. The choice of name was derived from

, one of the three sons of Noah in the genealogical accounts of the biblical

, or more precisely from the

Koine Greek Koine Greek (, ), also variously known as Hellenistic Greek, common Attic, the Alexandrian dialect, Biblical Greek, Septuagint Greek or New Testament Greek, was the koiné language, common supra-regional form of Greek language, Greek spoken and ...

rendering of the name, .

Johann Gottfried Eichhorn Johann Gottfried Eichhorn (16 October 1752, in Dörrenzimmern – 27 June 1827, in Göttingen) was a German Protestant theologian of the Enlightenment and an early orientalist. He was a member of the Göttingen school of history. Education and ...

is credited with popularising the term, particularly via a 1795 article "Semitische Sprachen" (''Semitic languages'') in which he justified the terminology against criticism that Hebrew and Canaanite were the same language despite Canaan being "

Hamitic Hamites is the name formerly used for some North Africa, Northern and Horn of Africa peoples in the context of a Scientific racism, now-outdated model of dividing humanity into different races; this was developed originally by Europeans in suppo ...

" in the

Table of Nations The Generations of Noah, also called the Table of Nations or ''Origines Gentium'', is a genealogy of the sons of Noah, according to the Hebrew Bible (Book of Genesis, Genesis ), and their dispersion into many lands after Genesis flood narrative ...

: Previously these languages had been commonly known as the "" in European literature. In the 19th century, "Semitic" became the conventional name; however, an alternative name, "", was later introduced by

James Cowles Prichard James Cowles Prichard (11 February 1786 – 23 December 1848) was a British physician and ethnologist with broad interests in physical anthropology and psychiatry. His influential ''Researches into the Physical History of Mankind'' touched upon ...

and used by some writers.

History

Ancient Semitic-speaking peoples

Semitic languages were spoken and written across much of the

Middle East The Middle East (term originally coined in English language) is a geopolitical region encompassing the Arabian Peninsula, the Levant, Turkey, Egypt, Iran, and Iraq. The term came into widespread usage by the United Kingdom and western Eur ...

and

Asia Minor Anatolia (), also known as Asia Minor, is a peninsula in West Asia that makes up the majority of the land area of Turkey. It is the westernmost protrusion of Asia and is geographically bounded by the Mediterranean Sea to the south, the Aegean ...

during the

Bronze Age The Bronze Age () was a historical period characterised principally by the use of bronze tools and the development of complex urban societies, as well as the adoption of writing in some areas. The Bronze Age is the middle principal period of ...

and

Iron Age The Iron Age () is the final epoch of the three historical Metal Ages, after the Chalcolithic and Bronze Age. It has also been considered as the final age of the three-age division starting with prehistory (before recorded history) and progre ...

, the earliest attested being the

Akkadian of

( Akkad,

Assyria Assyria (Neo-Assyrian cuneiform: , ''māt Aššur'') was a major ancient Mesopotamian civilization that existed as a city-state from the 21st century BC to the 14th century BC and eventually expanded into an empire from the 14th century BC t ...

Isin Isin (, modern Arabic language, Arabic: Ishan al-Bahriyat) is an archaeological site in Al-Qādisiyyah Governorate, Iraq which was the location of the Ancient Near East city of Isin, occupied from the late 4th millennium Uruk period up until at ...

Larsa Larsa (, read ''Larsamki''), also referred to as Larancha/Laranchon (Gk. Λαραγχων) by Berossus, Berossos and connected with the biblical Arioch, Ellasar, was an important city-state of ancient Sumer, the center of the Cult (religious pra ...

, and

Babylonia Babylonia (; , ) was an Ancient history, ancient Akkadian language, Akkadian-speaking state and cultural area based in the city of Babylon in central-southern Mesopotamia (present-day Iraq and parts of Kuwait, Syria and Iran). It emerged as a ...

) from the

third millennium BC File:3rd millennium BC montage.jpg, 400x400px, From top left clockwise: Pyramid of Djoser; Khufu; Great Pyramid of Giza, one of the Seven Wonders of the Ancient World; Cuneiform, a contract for the sale of a field and a house; Enheduana, a high ...

. The origin of Semitic-speaking peoples is still under discussion. Several locations were proposed as possible sites of a prehistoric origin of Semitic-speaking peoples:

, the

Eastern Mediterranean The Eastern Mediterranean is a loosely delimited region comprising the easternmost portion of the Mediterranean Sea, and well as the adjoining land—often defined as the countries around the Levantine Sea. It includes the southern half of Turkey ...

region, the

Arabian Peninsula The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

, and

. According to a 2009 study, the Semitic languages originated in the

, and were introduced to the

c. 800 BC from the southern Arabian Peninsula. Others assign the arrival of Semitic speakers in the

to a much earlier date. According to another hypothesis, Semitic originated from an offshoot of a still earlier language in North Africa;

desertification Desertification is a type of gradual land degradation of Soil fertility, fertile land into arid desert due to a combination of natural processes and human activities. The immediate cause of desertification is the loss of most vegetation. This i ...

led to emigration in the fourth millennium BC to both what is now

and northeast out of Africa into West Asia. The various extremely closely related and

mutually intelligible In linguistics, mutual intelligibility is a relationship between different but related language varieties in which speakers of the different varieties can readily understand each other without prior familiarity or special effort. Mutual intellig ...

, a branch of the

Northwest Semitic languages Northwest Semitic is a division of the Semitic languages comprising the indigenous languages of the Levant. It emerged from Proto-Semitic in the Early Bronze Age. It is first attested in proper names identified as Amorite in the Middle Bronze ...

included Edomite,

Ammonite Ammonoids are extinct, (typically) coiled-shelled cephalopods comprising the subclass Ammonoidea. They are more closely related to living octopuses, squid, and cuttlefish (which comprise the clade Coleoidea) than they are to nautiluses (family N ...

, Moabite, Phoenician (

Punic The Punic people, usually known as the Carthaginians (and sometimes as Western Phoenicians), were a Semitic people who migrated from Phoenicia to the Western Mediterranean during the Early Iron Age. In modern scholarship, the term ''Punic'' ...

/ Carthaginian),

Samaritan Hebrew Samaritan Hebrew () is a reading tradition used liturgically by the Samaritans for reading the Biblical Hebrew, Ancient Hebrew language of the Samaritan Pentateuch. For the Samaritans, Ancient Hebrew ceased to be a spoken everyday language. It ...

, and

Ekron Ekron (Philistine: 𐤏𐤒𐤓𐤍 ''*ʿAqārān'', , ), in the Hellenistic period known as Accaron () was at first a Canaanite, and later more famously a Philistine city, one of the five cities of the Philistine Pentapolis, located in pr ...

ite. They were spoken in what is today

Israel Israel, officially the State of Israel, is a country in West Asia. It Borders of Israel, shares borders with Lebanon to the north, Syria to the north-east, Jordan to the east, Egypt to the south-west, and the Mediterranean Sea to the west. Isr ...

and the

Palestinian territories The occupied Palestinian territories, also referred to as the Palestinian territories, consist of the West Bank (including East Jerusalem) and the Gaza Strip—two regions of the former Mandate for Palestine, British Mandate for Palestine ...

Syria Syria, officially the Syrian Arab Republic, is a country in West Asia located in the Eastern Mediterranean and the Levant. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the west, Turkey to Syria–Turkey border, the north, Iraq to Iraq–Syria border, t ...

Lebanon Lebanon, officially the Republic of Lebanon, is a country in the Levant region of West Asia. Situated at the crossroads of the Mediterranean Basin and the Arabian Peninsula, it is bordered by Syria to the north and east, Israel to the south ...

Jordan Jordan, officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan, is a country in the Southern Levant region of West Asia. Jordan is bordered by Syria to the north, Iraq to the east, Saudi Arabia to the south, and Israel and the occupied Palestinian ter ...

, the northern

Sinai Peninsula The Sinai Peninsula, or simply Sinai ( ; ; ; ), is a peninsula in Egypt, and the only part of the country located in Asia. It is between the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Red Sea to the south, and is a land bridge between Asia and Afri ...

, some northern and eastern parts of the

, southwest fringes of

Turkey Turkey, officially the Republic of Türkiye, is a country mainly located in Anatolia in West Asia, with a relatively small part called East Thrace in Southeast Europe. It borders the Black Sea to the north; Georgia (country), Georgia, Armen ...

, and in the case of Phoenician, coastal regions of

Tunisia Tunisia, officially the Republic of Tunisia, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered by Algeria to the west and southwest, Libya to the southeast, and the Mediterranean Sea to the north and east. Tunisia also shares m ...

(

Carthage Carthage was an ancient city in Northern Africa, on the eastern side of the Lake of Tunis in what is now Tunisia. Carthage was one of the most important trading hubs of the Ancient Mediterranean and one of the most affluent cities of the classic ...

Libya Libya, officially the State of Libya, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It borders the Mediterranean Sea to the north, Egypt to Egypt–Libya border, the east, Sudan to Libya–Sudan border, the southeast, Chad to Chad–L ...

Algeria Algeria, officially the People's Democratic Republic of Algeria, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It is bordered to Algeria–Tunisia border, the northeast by Tunisia; to Algeria–Libya border, the east by Libya; to Alger ...

, and parts of

Morocco Morocco, officially the Kingdom of Morocco, is a country in the Maghreb region of North Africa. It has coastlines on the Mediterranean Sea to the north and the Atlantic Ocean to the west, and has land borders with Algeria to Algeria–Morocc ...

Spain Spain, or the Kingdom of Spain, is a country in Southern Europe, Southern and Western Europe with territories in North Africa. Featuring the Punta de Tarifa, southernmost point of continental Europe, it is the largest country in Southern Eur ...

, and possibly in

and other Mediterranean islands.

, a

Northwest Semitic Northwest Semitic is a division of the Semitic languages comprising the indigenous languages of the Levant. It emerged from Proto-Semitic language, Proto-Semitic in the Early Bronze Age. It is first attested in proper names identified as Amorite l ...

language closely related to but distinct from the Canaanite group was spoken in the kingdom of

Ugarit Ugarit (; , ''ủgrt'' /ʾUgarītu/) was an ancient port city in northern Syria about 10 kilometers north of modern Latakia. At its height it ruled an area roughly equivalent to the modern Latakia Governorate. It was discovered by accident in 19 ...

in north western Syria. A hybrid Canaano-Akkadian language also emerged in Canaan (Israel and the Palestinian territories, Jordan, Lebanon) during the 14th century BC, incorporating elements of the Mesopotamian East Semitic Akkadian language of Assyria and Babylonia with the West Semitic Canaanite languages.

, a still living ancient

language, first attested in the 12th century BC in the northern

, gradually replaced the East Semitic and Canaanite languages across much of the Near East, particularly after being adopted as the

lingua franca A lingua franca (; ; for plurals see ), also known as a bridge language, common language, trade language, auxiliary language, link language or language of wider communication (LWC), is a Natural language, language systematically used to make co ...

of the vast

Neo-Assyrian Empire The Neo-Assyrian Empire was the fourth and penultimate stage of ancient Assyrian history. Beginning with the accession of Adad-nirari II in 911 BC, the Neo-Assyrian Empire grew to dominate the ancient Near East and parts of South Caucasus, Nort ...

(911–605 BC) by Tiglath-Pileser III during the 8th century BC, and being retained by the succeeding

Neo-Babylonian The Neo-Babylonian Empire or Second Babylonian Empire, historically known as the Chaldean Empire, was the last polity ruled by monarchs native to ancient Mesopotamia. Beginning with the coronation of Nabopolassar as the King of Babylon in 626 BC ...

and

Achaemenid Empire The Achaemenid Empire or Achaemenian Empire, also known as the Persian Empire or First Persian Empire (; , , ), was an Iranian peoples, Iranian empire founded by Cyrus the Great of the Achaemenid dynasty in 550 BC. Based in modern-day Iran, i ...

s. The ''Chaldean language'' (not to be confused with

or its Biblical variant, sometimes referred to as ''Chaldean'') was a

language, possibly closely related to Aramaic, but no examples of the language remain, as after settling in south eastern Mesopotamia from the Levant during the 9th century BC, the

Chaldea Chaldea () refers to a region probably located in the marshy land of southern Mesopotamia. It is mentioned, with varying meaning, in Neo-Assyrian cuneiform, the Hebrew Bible, and in classical Greek texts. The Hebrew Bible uses the term (''Ka� ...

ns appear to have rapidly adopted the Akkadian and Aramaic languages of the indigenous Mesopotamians.

Old South Arabian languages Ancient South Arabian (ASA; also known as Old South Arabian, Epigraphic South Arabian, Ṣayhadic, or Yemenite) is a group of four closely related extinct languages ( Sabaean/Sabaic, Qatabanic, Hadramitic, Minaic) spoken in the far souther ...

(classified as South Semitic and therefore distinct from the Central-Semitic Arabic) were spoken in the kingdoms of

Dilmun Dilmun, or Telmun, ( Sumerian: ,Transliteration: Similar text: later 𒉌𒌇(𒆠), NI.TUKki = dilmunki; ) was an ancient East Semitic–speaking civilization in Eastern Arabia mentioned from the 3rd millennium BC onwards. Based on contextual ...

Sheba Sheba, or Saba, was an ancient South Arabian kingdoms in pre-Islamic Arabia, South Arabian kingdom that existed in Yemen (region), Yemen from to . Its inhabitants were the Sabaeans, who, as a people, were indissociable from the kingdom itself f ...

, Ubar,

Socotra Socotra, locally known as Saqatri, is a Yemeni island in the Indian Ocean. Situated between the Guardafui Channel and the Arabian Sea, it lies near major shipping routes. Socotra is the largest of the six islands in the Socotra archipelago as ...

, and

Magan Magan may refer to: Places * Magan (civilization) * Magan, Russia * Magan Airport * Magán, Spain *Magan, alternative name of Mahin, a village in Iran * Aman Magan, a village in Iran People * Magan (name) Film and television *'' Azhagiya Tamil ...

, which in modern terms encompassed part of the eastern coast of

Saudi Arabia Saudi Arabia, officially the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia (KSA), is a country in West Asia. Located in the centre of the Middle East, it covers the bulk of the Arabian Peninsula and has a land area of about , making it the List of Asian countries ...

, and

Bahrain Bahrain, officially the Kingdom of Bahrain, is an island country in West Asia. Situated on the Persian Gulf, it comprises a small archipelago of 50 natural islands and an additional 33 artificial islands, centered on Bahrain Island, which mak ...

Qatar Qatar, officially the State of Qatar, is a country in West Asia. It occupies the Geography of Qatar, Qatar Peninsula on the northeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in the Middle East; it shares Qatar–Saudi Arabia border, its sole land b ...

Oman Oman, officially the Sultanate of Oman, is a country located on the southeastern coast of the Arabian Peninsula in West Asia and the Middle East. It shares land borders with Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen. Oman’s coastline ...

, and

Yemen Yemen, officially the Republic of Yemen, is a country in West Asia. Located in South Arabia, southern Arabia, it borders Saudi Arabia to Saudi Arabia–Yemen border, the north, Oman to Oman–Yemen border, the northeast, the south-eastern part ...

. South Semitic languages are thought to have spread to the

circa 8th century BC where the

Geʽez Geez ( or ; , and sometimes referred to in scholarly literature as Classical Ethiopic) is an ancient South Semitic language. The language originates from what is now Ethiopia and Eritrea. Today, Geez is used as the main liturgical langu ...

language emerged (though the direction of influence remains uncertain).

First century to twentieth century CE

Classical Syriac The Syriac language ( ; ), also known natively in its spoken form in early Syriac literature as Edessan (), the Mesopotamian language () and Aramaic (), is an Eastern Middle Aramaic dialect. Classical Syriac is the academic term used to refer ...

, a 200 CE

Eastern Middle Aramaic Aramaic (; ) is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written and ...

dialect, used as a

liturgical language A sacred language, liturgical language or holy language is a language that is cultivated and used primarily for religious reasons (like church service) by people who speak another, primary language in their daily lives. Some religions, or part ...

, the

, and

Kerala Kerala ( , ) is a States and union territories of India, state on the Malabar Coast of India. It was formed on 1 November 1956, following the passage of the States Reorganisation Act, by combining Malayalam-speaking regions of the erstwhile ...

, India, rose to importance as a literary language of early

Christianity Christianity is an Abrahamic monotheistic religion, which states that Jesus in Christianity, Jesus is the Son of God (Christianity), Son of God and Resurrection of Jesus, rose from the dead after his Crucifixion of Jesus, crucifixion, whose ...

in the third to fifth centuries and continued into the early

Islam Islam is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic monotheistic religion based on the Quran, and the teachings of Muhammad. Adherents of Islam are called Muslims, who are estimated to number Islam by country, 2 billion worldwide and are the world ...

ic era. The

language, although originating in the

, first emerged in written form in the 1st to 4th centuries CE in the southern regions of The

. With the advent of the early Arab conquests of the seventh and eighth centuries, Classical Arabic eventually replaced many (but not all) of the indigenous Semitic languages and cultures of the

. Both the Near East and North Africa saw an influx of Muslim Arabs from the Arabian Peninsula, followed later by non-Semitic Muslim

Iranian Iranian () may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Iran ** Iranian diaspora, Iranians living outside Iran ** Iranian architecture, architecture of Iran and parts of the rest of West Asia ** Iranian cuisine, cooking traditions and practic ...

and

Turkic peoples Turkic peoples are a collection of diverse ethnic groups of West Asia, West, Central Asia, Central, East Asia, East, and North Asia as well as parts of Europe, who speak Turkic languages.. "Turkic peoples, any of various peoples whose members ...

. The previously dominant Aramaic dialects maintained by the Assyrians, Babylonians and Persians gradually began to be sidelined, however descendant dialects of Eastern Aramaic (including

Suret Suret ( �suːrɪtʰor �suːrɪθ, also known as Assyrian, refers to the varieties of Northeastern Neo-Aramaic (NENA) spoken by Christians, namely Assyrians.Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, ed ...

(Assyrian and Chaldean varieties),

Turoyo Turoyo (), also referred to as Surayt (), or modern Suryoyo (), is a Central Neo-Aramaic language traditionally spoken by the Syriac Christian community in the Tur Abdin region located in southeastern Turkey and in northeastern Syria. Turoyo ...

, and

Mandaic Mandaic may refer to: * Mandaic language * Mandaic alphabet The Mandaic alphabet is a writing system primarily used to write the Mandaic language. It is thought to have evolved between the second and seventh century CE from either a cursive fo ...

) survive to this day among the

Assyrians Assyrians (, ) are an ethnic group indigenous to Mesopotamia, a geographical region in West Asia. Modern Assyrians share descent directly from the ancient Assyrians, one of the key civilizations of Mesopotamia. While they are distinct from ot ...

and

Mandaeans Mandaeans (Mandaic language, Mandaic: ࡌࡀࡍࡃࡀࡉࡉࡀ) ( ), also known as Mandaean Sabians ( ) or simply as Sabians ( ), are an ethnoreligious group who are followers of Mandaeism. They believe that John the Baptist was the final and ...

of northern and southern

Iraq Iraq, officially the Republic of Iraq, is a country in West Asia. It is bordered by Saudi Arabia to Iraq–Saudi Arabia border, the south, Turkey to Iraq–Turkey border, the north, Iran to Iran–Iraq border, the east, the Persian Gulf and ...

, northwestern

Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West Asia. It borders Iraq to the west, Turkey, Azerbaijan, and Armenia to the northwest, the Caspian Sea to the north, Turkmenistan to the nort ...

, northeastern

and southeastern

, with up to a million fluent speakers. Syriac is a recognized language in Iraq, furthermore,

Mesopotamian Arabic Mesopotamian Arabic (), also known as Iraqi Arabic or the Iraqi dialect (), or just as Iraqi (), is a group of varieties of Arabic spoken in the Mesopotamian basin of Iraq, as well as in Syria, southeastern Turkey, Iran, Kuwait and Iraqi diaspora ...

is one of the most Syriac influenced dialects of Arabic, due to Syriac, the dialect of

Edessa Edessa (; ) was an ancient city (''polis'') in Upper Mesopotamia, in what is now Urfa or Şanlıurfa, Turkey. It was founded during the Hellenistic period by Macedonian general and self proclaimed king Seleucus I Nicator (), founder of the Sel ...

specifically, having originated in Mesopotamia. Meanwhile Western Aramaic is now only spoken by a few thousand Christian and Muslim Arameans (Syriacs) in western

. The Arabs spread their Central Semitic language to

(

Egypt Egypt ( , ), officially the Arab Republic of Egypt, is a country spanning the Northeast Africa, northeast corner of Africa and Western Asia, southwest corner of Asia via the Sinai Peninsula. It is bordered by the Mediterranean Sea to northe ...

, and northern

Sudan Sudan, officially the Republic of the Sudan, is a country in Northeast Africa. It borders the Central African Republic to the southwest, Chad to the west, Libya to the northwest, Egypt to the north, the Red Sea to the east, Eritrea and Ethiopi ...

and

Mauritania Mauritania, officially the Islamic Republic of Mauritania, is a sovereign country in Maghreb, Northwest Africa. It is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the west, Western Sahara to Mauritania–Western Sahara border, the north and northwest, ...

), where it gradually replaced Egyptian Coptic and many

Berber languages The Berber languages, also known as the Amazigh languages or Tamazight, are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They comprise a group of closely related but mostly mutually unintelligible languages spoken by Berbers, Berber communities, ...

(although Berber is still largely extant in many areas), and for a time to the

Iberian Peninsula The Iberian Peninsula ( ), also known as Iberia, is a peninsula in south-western Europe. Mostly separated from the rest of the European landmass by the Pyrenees, it includes the territories of peninsular Spain and Continental Portugal, comprisin ...

(modern

Portugal Portugal, officially the Portuguese Republic, is a country on the Iberian Peninsula in Southwestern Europe. Featuring Cabo da Roca, the westernmost point in continental Europe, Portugal borders Spain to its north and east, with which it share ...

, and

Gibraltar Gibraltar ( , ) is a British Overseas Territories, British Overseas Territory and British overseas cities, city located at the southern tip of the Iberian Peninsula, on the Bay of Gibraltar, near the exit of the Mediterranean Sea into the A ...

) and

With the patronage of the caliphs and the prestige of its

liturgical Liturgy is the customary public ritual of worship performed by a religious group. As a religious phenomenon, liturgy represents a communal response to and participation in the sacred through activities reflecting praise, thanksgiving, remembra ...

status, Arabic rapidly became one of the world's main literary languages. Its spread among the masses took much longer, however, as many (although not all) of the native populations outside the

only gradually abandoned their languages in favour of Arabic. As

Bedouin The Bedouin, Beduin, or Bedu ( ; , singular ) are pastorally nomadic Arab tribes who have historically inhabited the desert regions in the Arabian Peninsula, North Africa, the Levant, and Mesopotamia (Iraq). The Bedouin originated in the Sy ...

tribes settled in conquered areas, it became the main language of not only central Arabia, but also Yemen, the

Fertile Crescent The Fertile Crescent () is a crescent-shaped region in the Middle East, spanning modern-day Iraq, Israel, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, and Syria, together with northern Kuwait, south-eastern Turkey, and western Iran. Some authors also include ...

, and

. Most of the

Maghreb The Maghreb (; ), also known as the Arab Maghreb () and Northwest Africa, is the western part of the Arab world. The region comprises western and central North Africa, including Algeria, Libya, Mauritania, Morocco, and Tunisia. The Maghreb al ...

followed, specifically in the wake of the

Banu Hilal The Banu Hilal () was a confederation of Arab tribes from the Najd region of the central Arabian Peninsula that emigrated to the Maghreb region of North Africa in the 11th century. They ruled the Najd, and campaigned in the borderlands between I ...

's incursion in the 11th century, and Arabic became the native language of many inhabitants of

al-Andalus Al-Andalus () was the Muslim-ruled area of the Iberian Peninsula. The name refers to the different Muslim states that controlled these territories at various times between 711 and 1492. At its greatest geographical extent, it occupied most o ...

. After the collapse of the

Nubia Nubia (, Nobiin language, Nobiin: , ) is a region along the Nile river encompassing the area between the confluence of the Blue Nile, Blue and White Nile, White Niles (in Khartoum in central Sudan), and the Cataracts of the Nile, first cataract ...

n kingdom of

Dongola Dongola (), also known as Urdu or New Dongola, is the capital of Northern State in Sudan, on the banks of the Nile. It should not be confused with Old Dongola, a now deserted medieval city located 80 km upstream on the opposite bank. Et ...

in the 14th century, Arabic began to spread south of Egypt into modern

; soon after, the

Beni Ḥassān Beni Ḥassan ( "sons of Ḥassān") is a Bedouin Arab tribe which inhabits Western Sahara, Mauritania, Morocco and Algeria. It is one of the four sub-tribes of the Banu Maqil who emigrated in the 11th century from South Arabia to the Maghreb wi ...

brought

Arabization Arabization or Arabicization () is a sociology, sociological process of cultural change in which a non-Arab society becomes Arabs, Arab, meaning it either directly adopts or becomes strongly influenced by the Arabic, Arabic language, Arab cultu ...

. A number of

distinct from Arabic still survive, such as Soqotri, Mehri and Shehri which are mainly spoken in

, Yemen, and Oman. Meanwhile, the Semitic languages that had arrived from southern Arabia in the 8th century BC were diversifying in

and

, where, under heavy

Cushitic The Cushitic languages are a branch of the Afroasiatic language family. They are spoken primarily in the Horn of Africa, with minorities speaking Cushitic languages to the north in Egypt and Sudan, and to the south in Kenya and Tanzania. As of 2 ...

influence, they split into a number of languages, including

and Tigrinya. With the expansion of Ethiopia under the Solomonic dynasty, Amharic, previously a minor local language, spread throughout much of the country, replacing both Semitic (such as Gafat) and non-Semitic (such as Weyto) languages, and replacing Geʽez as the principal literary language (though Geʽez remains the liturgical language for

Christians A Christian () is a person who follows or adheres to Christianity, a monotheistic Abrahamic religion based on the life and teachings of Jesus Christ. Christians form the largest religious community in the world. The words '' Christ'' and ''C ...

in the region); this spread continues to this day, with Qimant set to disappear in another generation.

Present distribution

is currently the native language of majorities from

, and from

Classical Arabic Classical Arabic or Quranic Arabic () is the standardized literary form of Arabic used from the 7th century and throughout the Middle Ages, most notably in Umayyad Caliphate, Umayyad and Abbasid Caliphate, Abbasid literary texts such as poetry, e ...

is the language of the

Quran The Quran, also Romanization, romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a Waḥy, revelation directly from God in Islam, God (''Allah, Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which ...

. It is also studied widely in the non-Arabic-speaking

Muslim world The terms Islamic world and Muslim world commonly refer to the Islamic community, which is also known as the Ummah. This consists of all those who adhere to the religious beliefs, politics, and laws of Islam or to societies in which Islam is ...

. The

Maltese language Maltese (, also or ) is a Semitic languages, Semitic language derived from Siculo-Arabic, late medieval Sicilian Arabic with Romance languages, Romance Stratum (linguistics), superstrata. It is the only Semitic languages, Semitic language pred ...

is a descendant of the extinct

Siculo-Arabic Siculo-Arabic or Sicilian Arabic is a group of Arabic variaties that were spoken in the Emirate of Sicily (which included Malta) from the 9th century, persisting under the subsequent County of Sicily, Norman rule until the 13th century. It was d ...

, a variety of

Maghrebi Arabic Maghrebi Arabic, often known as ''ad-Dārija'' to differentiate it from Literary Arabic, is a vernacular Arabic dialect continuum spoken in the Maghreb. It includes the Moroccan, Algerian, Tunisian, Libyan, Hassaniya and Saharan Arabic di ...

formerly spoken in

Sicily Sicily (Italian language, Italian and ), officially the Sicilian Region (), is an island in the central Mediterranean Sea, south of the Italian Peninsula in continental Europe and is one of the 20 regions of Italy, regions of Italy. With 4. ...

. The modern

Maltese alphabet The Maltese alphabet is based on the Latin alphabet with the addition of some letters with diacritic marks and Digraph (orthography), digraphs. It is used to write the Maltese language, which evolved from the otherwise extinct Siculo-Arabic diale ...

is based on the

with the addition of some letters with

marks and digraphs.

is the only Semitic official language within the

. Successful as second languages far beyond their numbers of contemporary first-language speakers, a few Semitic languages today are the base of the sacred literature of some of the world's major religions, including Islam (Arabic),

Judaism Judaism () is an Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic, Monotheism, monotheistic, ethnic religion that comprises the collective spiritual, cultural, and legal traditions of the Jews, Jewish people. Religious Jews regard Judaism as their means of o ...

(Hebrew and Aramaic (

Biblical The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) biblical languages ...

and

Talmudic The Talmud (; ) is the central text of Rabbinic Judaism and the primary source of Jewish religious law (''halakha'') and Jewish theology. Until the advent of modernity, in nearly all Jewish communities, the Talmud was the centerpiece of Jewi ...

)), churches of

Syriac Christianity Syriac Christianity (, ''Mšiḥoyuṯo Suryoyto'' or ''Mšiḥāyūṯā Suryāytā'') is a branch of Eastern Christianity of which formative Christian theology, theological writings and traditional Christian liturgy, liturgies are expressed in ...

(Classical Syriac) and Ethiopian and Eritrean Orthodox Christianity (Geʽez). Millions learn these as a second language (or an archaic version of their modern tongues): many

Muslim Muslims () are people who adhere to Islam, a Monotheism, monotheistic religion belonging to the Abrahamic religions, Abrahamic tradition. They consider the Quran, the foundational religious text of Islam, to be the verbatim word of the God ...

s learn to read and recite the

Qur'an The Quran, also romanized Qur'an or Koran, is the central religious text of Islam, believed by Muslims to be a revelation directly from God ('' Allāh''). It is organized in 114 chapters (, ) which consist of individual verses ('). Besides ...

and

Jews Jews (, , ), or the Jewish people, are an ethnoreligious group and nation, originating from the Israelites of History of ancient Israel and Judah, ancient Israel and Judah. They also traditionally adhere to Judaism. Jewish ethnicity, rel ...

speak and study

Biblical Hebrew Biblical Hebrew ( or ), also called Classical Hebrew, is an archaic form of the Hebrew language, a language in the Canaanite languages, Canaanitic branch of the Semitic languages spoken by the Israelites in the area known as the Land of Isra ...

, the language of the

Torah The Torah ( , "Instruction", "Teaching" or "Law") is the compilation of the first five books of the Hebrew Bible, namely the books of Genesis, Exodus, Leviticus, Numbers and Deuteronomy. The Torah is also known as the Pentateuch () ...

Midrash ''Midrash'' (;"midrash"
. ''Random House Webster's Unabridged Dictionary''. ; or ''midrashot' ...

, and other Jewish scriptures. The followers of the

Assyrian Church of the East The Assyrian Church of the East (ACOE), sometimes called the Church of the East and officially known as the Holy Apostolic Catholic Assyrian Church of the East, is an Eastern Christianity, Eastern Syriac Christianity, Syriac Christian denomin ...

Chaldean Catholic Church The Chaldean Catholic Church is an Eastern Catholic Churches, Eastern Catholic Catholic particular churches and liturgical rites, particular church (''sui iuris'') in full communion with the Holy See and the rest of the Catholic Church, and is ...

Ancient Church of the East The Ancient Church of the East (ACE) is an Eastern Christian denomination. It branched from the Assyrian Church of the East in 1964, under the leadership of Mar Toma Darmo (d. 1969). It is one of three Assyrian Churches that claim continuit ...

Assyrian Pentecostal Church The Assyrian Pentecostal Church (, ''‘Ittā d-Akhonāwāthā Pēnṭēqosṭāyē Ātūrāyē''; ), is a Reformed Eastern Christian denomination that began in ethnically Assyrian villages across the Urmia region in northwestern Iran, spre ...

Assyrian Evangelical Church The Assyrian Evangelical Church is a Presbyterian church in the Middle East that attained a status of ecclesiastical independence from the Presbyterian mission in Iran in 1870. Members Its members are predominantly ethnic Assyrians, an Easter ...

, and the

Syriac Orthodox Church The Syriac Orthodox Church (), also informally known as the Jacobite Church, is an Oriental Orthodox Christian denomination, denomination that originates from the Church of Antioch. The church currently has around 4-5 million followers. The ch ...

speak

Eastern Aramaic languages Eastern Aramaic refers to a group of dialects that evolved historically from the varieties of Aramaic spoken in the core territories of Mesopotamia (modern-day Iraq, southeastern Turkey and parts of northeastern Syria) and further expanded into n ...

and use

as their

. Classical Syriac is also used liturgically by the primarily Arabic-speaking followers of the

Maronite Church The Maronite Church (; ) is an Eastern Catholic '' sui iuris'' particular church in full communion with the pope and the worldwide Catholic Church, with self-governance under the Code of Canons of the Eastern Churches. The head of the Maronit ...

Syriac Catholic Church The Syriac Catholic Church is an Eastern Catholic '' sui iuris'' (self-governing) particular church that is in full communion with the Holy See and with the entirety of the Catholic Church. Originating in the Levant, it uses the West Syriac ...

, and was originally the liturgical language of the Melkites in

Antioch Antioch on the Orontes (; , ) "Antioch on Daphne"; or "Antioch the Great"; ; ; ; ; ; ; . was a Hellenistic Greek city founded by Seleucus I Nicator in 300 BC. One of the most important Greek cities of the Hellenistic period, it served as ...

, and ancient

and Classical Arabic are the main liturgical languages of

Oriental Orthodox Christians The Oriental Orthodox Churches are Eastern Christian churches adhering to Miaphysite Christology, with approximately 50 million members worldwide. The Oriental Orthodox Churches adhere to the Nicene Christian tradition. Oriental Orthodoxy is ...

in the Middle East, who compose the patriarchates of

Jerusalem Jerusalem is a city in the Southern Levant, on a plateau in the Judaean Mountains between the Mediterranean Sea, Mediterranean and the Dead Sea. It is one of the List of oldest continuously inhabited cities, oldest cities in the world, and ...

, and

Alexandria Alexandria ( ; ) is the List of cities and towns in Egypt#Largest cities, second largest city in Egypt and the List of coastal settlements of the Mediterranean Sea, largest city on the Mediterranean coast. It lies at the western edge of the Nile ...

. Mandaic is both spoken and used as a liturgical language by the

. Although the majority of Neo-Aramaic dialects spoken today are descended from Eastern varieties,

Western Neo-Aramaic Western Neo-Aramaic (, ''arōmay'', "Aramaic"), more commonly referred to as Siryon (, "Syriac"), is a modern variety of the Western Aramaic branch consisting of three closely related dialects. Today, it is spoken by Christian and Muslim Aramea ...

is still spoken in two villages in Syria. Despite the ascendancy of Arabic in the Middle East, other Semitic languages still exist. Biblical Hebrew, long extinct as a colloquial language and in use only in Jewish literary, intellectual, and liturgical activity, was revived in spoken form at the end of the 19th century.

Modern Hebrew Modern Hebrew (, or ), also known as Israeli Hebrew or simply Hebrew, is the Standard language, standard form of the Hebrew language spoken today. It is the only surviving Canaanite language, as well as one of the List of languages by first w ...

is the main language of

, with Biblical Hebrew remaining as the language of liturgy and religious scholarship of Jews worldwide. In Arab-dominated

and Oman, on the southern rim of the Arabian Peninsula, a few tribes continue to speak

such as Mahri and Soqotri. These languages differ greatly from both the surrounding Arabic dialects and from the languages of the

Old South Arabian Ancient South Arabian (ASA; also known as Old South Arabian, Epigraphic South Arabian, Ṣayhadic, or Yemenite) is a group of four closely related extinct languages ( Sabaean/Sabaic, Qatabanic, Hadramitic, Minaic) spoken in the far southern ...

inscriptions. Historically linked to the peninsular homeland of Old South Arabian, of which only one language, Razihi, remains, Ethiopia and Eritrea contain a substantial number of Semitic languages; the most widely spoken are

in Ethiopia, Tigre in

, and Tigrinya in both. Amharic is the official language of Ethiopia. Tigrinya is a working language in Eritrea. Tigre is spoken by over one million people in the northern and central Eritrean lowlands and parts of eastern Sudan. A number of

Gurage languages Gurage (, Gurage: ጉራጌ) are a Semitic-speaking ethnic group inhabiting Ethiopia.G. W. E. Huntingford, "William A. Shack: The Gurage: a people of the ensete culture" They inhabit the Gurage Zone and East Gurage Zone, a fertile, semi-mount ...

are spoken by populations in the semi-mountainous region of central Ethiopia, while Harari is restricted to the city of

Harar Harar (; Harari language, Harari: ሀረር / ; ; ; ), known historically by the indigenous as Harar-Gey or simply Gey (Harari: ጌይ, ݘٛىيْ, ''Gēy'', ), is a List of cities with defensive walls, walled city in eastern Ethiopia. It is al ...

. Geʽez remains the liturgical language for certain groups of Christians in Ethiopia and in Eritrea.

Phonology

The phonologies of the attested Semitic languages are presented here from a

comparative The degrees of comparison of adjectives and adverbs are the various forms taken by adjectives and adverbs when used to compare two entities (comparative degree), three or more entities (superlative degree), or when not comparing entities (positi ...

point of view (see Proto-Semitic language#Phonology for details on the phonological reconstruction of Proto-Semitic used in this article). The reconstruction of Proto-Semitic (PS) was originally based primarily on

, whose phonology and morphology (particularly in

) is very conservative, and which preserves as contrastive 28 out of the evident 29 consonantal phonemes. with and merging into Arabic and becoming Arabic . Note: the fricatives *s, *z, *ṣ, *ś, *ṣ́, and *ṱ may also be interpreted as affricates (/t͡s/, /d͡z/, /t͡sʼ/, /t͡ɬ/, /t͡ɬʼ/, and /t͡θʼ/), as discussed in . This comparative approach is natural for the

consonant In articulatory phonetics, a consonant is a speech sound that is articulated with complete or partial closure of the vocal tract, except for the h sound, which is pronounced without any stricture in the vocal tract. Examples are and pronou ...

s, as sound correspondences among the consonants of the Semitic languages are very straightforward for a family of its time depth. Sound shifts affecting the vowels are more numerous and, at times, less regular.

Consonants

Each Proto-Semitic phoneme was reconstructed to explain a certain regular sound correspondence between various Semitic languages. Note that Latin letter values (''italicized'') for extinct languages are a question of transcription; the exact pronunciation is not recorded. Most of the attested languages have merged a number of the reconstructed original fricatives, though South Arabian retains all fourteen (and has added a fifteenth from *p > f). In Aramaic and Hebrew, all non-emphatic stops occurring singly after a vowel were softened to fricatives, leading to an alternation that was often later phonemicized as a result of the loss of gemination. In languages exhibiting pharyngealization of emphatics, the original velar emphatic has rather developed to a

uvular Uvulars are consonants articulated with the back of the tongue against or near the uvula, that is, further back in the mouth than velar consonants. Uvulars may be stops, fricatives, nasals, trills, or approximants, though the IPA does not prov ...

stop .

, , rowspan="29", , , rowspan="29" , , ب , ' , colspan="2" , , rowspan="29", , b , , rowspan="29", , ' , rowspan="29", , 𐎁 , , ' , rowspan="29", , 𐤁 , , , ' , rowspan="29", , ב , , ⁵ , ⁵ , , ࠁ , , , rowspan="29", , 𐡁 , ܒ , , , ⁵ , rowspan="29", , በ , , , , - ! ! , , , ج , ' , ⁹ , ¹¹ , ġ , , ' , 𐎂 , , ' , 𐤂 , , , ', , ג , , ⁵ , ⁵ , , ࠂ , , , 𐡂 , ܓ , , , ⁵ , ገ , , , , - ! ! , , , ف , ' , colspan="2" , , f , , ' , 𐎔 , , ' , 𐤐 , , , ', , פ , , ⁵ , ⁵ , , ࠐ , , , 𐡐 , ܦ , , , ⁵ , ፈ , , , , - ! ! , , , ك , ' , colspan="2" , , k , , ' , 𐎋 , , ' , 𐤊 , , , ', , כ , , ⁵ , ⁵ , , ࠊ , , , 𐡊 , ܟ , , , ⁵ , ከ , , , , - ! ! , , , ق , ' , colspan="2" , , q , , ' , 𐎖 , , ' , 𐤒 , , , ', , ק , , , , ࠒ , , , 𐡒 , ܩ , , , ቀ , , , , - ! ! , , , د , ' , colspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , d , rowspan="2" , , ' , 𐎄 , ' , 𐤃 , , ' , ד , , ⁵ , ⁵ , , ࠃ , , , 𐡃 , ܕ , , ⁵ , ደ , , , - ! ! , , , ذ , ' , colspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , ' , 𐎏 , , ' > ' , rowspan="2" , 𐤆 , rowspan="2" , , , rowspan="2" , ', , rowspan="2" , ז , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , ࠆ , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , , , , , '³, , rowspan="2" , ዘ , , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , , - ! ! , , , ز , ' , colspan="2" , , ż , , 𐎇 , , ' , 𐡆 , ܙ , , , - ! (s₃) ! / , , , rowspan="2" , س , rowspan="2" , ' , colspan="2" rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , s , rowspan="2" , , ' , 𐎒 , , ' , 𐤎 , , , ', , ס , ' , , , ࠎ , , , 𐡎 , ܣ , , , rowspan="2" , ሰ , , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , , - ! (s₁) ! / , , , , rowspan="3" , ' , rowspan="2" , 𐎌 , , rowspan="2" , ' , rowspan="3" , 𐤔 , rowspan="3" , , , rowspan="3" , ', , שׁ , , , , rowspan="3" , ࠔ , rowspan="3" , , rowspan="3" , , 𐡔 , ܫ , , , - ! (s₂) ! , , , ش , ' , colspan="2" , , x , , , , ¹ , , , , , , '³, , ሠ , , , , - ! ! , , , ث , ' , colspan="2" , , rowspan="3" , t , rowspan="3" , , 𐎘 , ' , שׁ , , , , , , '³, , ሰ , , , - ! ! , , , ت , ' , colspan="2" , , ' , 𐎚 , ' , 𐤕 , , ' , ת , , ⁵ , ⁵ , , ࠕ , , , 𐡕 , ܬ , , ⁵ , ተ , , , - ! ! , , , ط , ' , colspan="2" , , ' , 𐎉 , ' , 𐤈 , , ' , ט , , , , ࠈ , , , 𐡈 , ܛ , , ጠ , , , - ! ! , , , ظ , ' , colspan="2" , , d , , rowspan="3" , ' , 𐎑 , , '¹² > ' , rowspan="3" , 𐤑 , rowspan="3" , , rowspan="3" , ' , rowspan="3" , צ , rowspan="3" , ' , rowspan="3" , , rowspan="3" , , rowspan="3" , ࠑ , rowspan="3" , , rowspan="3" , , , , , '³, , rowspan="2" , ጸ , , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , ' , - ! ! , , , ¹⁵ , ص , ' , colspan="2" , , s , , rowspan="2" , 𐎕 , , rowspan="2" , ' , 𐡑 , ܨ , , , - ! ! , , , ض , ' , , , d , , , , , '³, , ፀ , , , ' , - ! ! ~ , , , غ , ' , colspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , għ , rowspan="2" , / ˤ ː/ , ' , 𐎙 , , ',' , rowspan="2" , 𐤏 , rowspan="2" , , , rowspan="2" , ', , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , '² , , rowspan="2" , ¹⁴ , rowspan="2" , ࠏ , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , , , , , '³, , rowspan="2" , ዐ , , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , ' , - ! ! , , , ع , ' , colspan="2" , , –⁴ , 𐎓 , , ' , , 𐡏 , ܥ , , , - ! ! , , , ء , ' , colspan="2" , , – , – , –, ''ʾ'' , 𐎀, 𐎛, 𐎜 , , ', ', '¹⁰ , 𐤀 , , , ', , א , ' , , , ࠀ , , , 𐡀 , ܐ, , , አ , , , ' , - ! ! ~ , , , خ , ' , colspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , ħ , rowspan="2" , , ' , 𐎃 , , ' , rowspan="2" , 𐤇 , rowspan="2" , , , rowspan="2" , ', , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , ² , , rowspan="2" , ¹⁴ , rowspan="2" , ࠇ , rowspan="2" , , rowspan="2" , , , , , '³, , ኀ , , , ' , - ! ! , , , ح , ' , colspan="2" , , –⁴ , 𐎈 , , ' , , 𐡇 , ܚ , , ሐ , , ' , - ! ! , , , ه , ' , colspan="2" , , h , / ː/ , – , 𐎅 , , ' , 𐤄 , , , ', , ה , , , , ࠄ , , , 𐡄 , ܗ, , , ሀ , , , ' , - ! ! , , , م , ''m'' , colspan="2" , , m , , ''m'' , 𐎎 , , ''m'' , 𐤌 , , , ''m'', , מ , , /m/ , /m/ , ࠌ , , /m/ , 𐡌 , ܡ, , m , መ , , , ' , - ! ! , , , ن , ' , colspan="2" , , n , , ' , 𐎐 , , ' , 𐤍 , , , ', , נ , , /n/ , /n/ , ࠍ , , /n/ , 𐡍 , ܢ , , , ነ , , , ' , - ! ! , , , ر , ' , colspan="2" , , r , , ' , 𐎗 , , ' , 𐤓 , , , ', , ר , , /r/ , /ʁ/ , ࠓ , , /ʁ/ , 𐡓 , ܪ , , , ረ , , , ' , - ! ! , , , ل , ' , colspan="2" , , l , , ' , 𐎍 , , ' , 𐤋 , , , ', , ל , , , , ࠋ , , , 𐡋 , ܠ , , , ለ , , , ' , - ! ! , , , و , ' , colspan="2" , , w , , ' , 𐎆 , , ' , 𐤅 , , , ', , ו , , , , ࠅ , , , 𐡅 , ܘ , , , ወ , , , ' , - ! ! , , , ي , ' , colspan="2" , , j , , ' , 𐎊 , , ' , 𐤉 , , , ', , י , , , , ࠉ , , , 𐡉 , ܝ , , , የ , , , '

Note: the fricatives *s, *z, *ṣ, *ś, *ṣ́, and *ṱ may also be interpreted as affricates (/t͡s/, /d͡z/, /t͡sʼ/, /t͡ɬ/, /t͡ɬʼ/, and /t͡θʼ/).

Notes: # Proto-Semitic was still pronounced as in Biblical Hebrew, but no letter was available in the Early Linear Script, so the letter ש did double duty, representing both and . Later on, however, merged with , but the old spelling was largely retained, and the two pronunciations of ש were distinguished graphically in

Tiberian Hebrew Tiberian Hebrew is the canonical pronunciation of the Hebrew Bible (Tanakh) committed to writing by Masoretic scholars living in the Jewish community of Tiberias in ancient Galilee under the Abbasid Caliphate. They wrote in the form of Tib ...

as שׁ vs. שׂ < . # Biblical Hebrew as of the 3rd century BCE apparently still distinguished the phonemes and from and , respectively, based on transcriptions in the

Septuagint The Septuagint ( ), sometimes referred to as the Greek Old Testament or The Translation of the Seventy (), and abbreviated as LXX, is the earliest extant Greek translation of the Hebrew Bible from the original Biblical Hebrew. The full Greek ...

. As in the case of , no letters were available to represent these sounds, and existing letters did double duty: ח and ע . In both of these cases, however, the two sounds represented by the same letter eventually merged, leaving no evidence (other than early transcriptions) of the former distinctions. # Although early Aramaic (pre-7th century BCE) had only 22 consonants in its alphabet, it apparently distinguished all of the original 29 Proto-Semitic phonemes, including , , , , , , and although by

Middle Aramaic Aramaic (; ) is a Northwest Semitic language that originated in the ancient region of Syria and quickly spread to Mesopotamia, the southern Levant, Sinai, southeastern Anatolia, and Eastern Arabia, where it has been continually written and ...

times, these had all merged with other sounds. This conclusion is mainly based on the shifting representation of words etymologically containing these sounds; in early Aramaic writing, the first five are merged with , , , , and respectively, but later with , , , , and . (Also note that due to

begadkefat Begadkefat (also begedkefet) is the phenomenon of lenition affecting the non-emphatic consonant, emphatic stop consonants of Biblical Hebrew and Aramaic when they are preceded by a vowel and not gemination, geminated. The name is also given to si ...

spirantization, which occurred after this merger, OAm. t > ṯ and d > ḏ in some positions, so that PS *t,ṯ and *d, ḏ may be realized as either of t, ṯ and d, ḏ respectively.) The sounds and were always represented using the pharyngeal letters and , but they are distinguished from the pharyngeals in the Demotic-script papyrus Amherst 63, written about 200 BCE. This suggests that these sounds, too, were distinguished in Old Aramaic language, but written using the same letters as they later merged with. # The earlier pharyngeals can be distinguished in Akkadian from the zero reflexes of *ḥ, *ʕ by e-coloring adjacent *a, e.g. pS ''*ˈbaʕal-um'' 'owner, lord' > Akk. ''bēlu(m)''. # Hebrew and Aramaic underwent

spirantization at a certain point, whereby the stop sounds were softened to the corresponding fricatives (written ''ḇ ḡ ḏ ḵ p̄ ṯ'') when occurring after a vowel and not geminated. This change probably happened after the original Old Aramaic phonemes disappeared in the 7th century BCE, and most likely occurred after the loss of Hebrew . It is known to have occurred in Hebrew by the 2nd century CE. After a certain point this alternation became contrastive in word-medial and final position (though bearing low

functional load In linguistics and especially phonology, functional load, or phonemic load, is the collection of words that contain a certain pronunciation feature (a phoneme) that makes distinctions between other words. Phonemes with a high functional load distin ...

), but in word-initial position they remained allophonic. In

, the distinction has a higher functional load due to the loss of gemination, although only the three fricatives are still preserved (the fricative is pronounced in modern Hebrew).

hasn't undergone this process at all. # In the

, became at the beginning of a word, e.g. Hebrew ''yeled'' "boy" < ''*wald'' (cf. Arabic ''walad''). # There is evidence of a rule of assimilation of /j/ to the following coronal consonant in pre-tonic position, shared by Hebrew, Phoenician, and Aramaic. # In

Assyrian Neo-Aramaic Suret ( Help:IPA for Aramaic, �suːrɪtʰor Help:IPA for Aramaic, �suːrɪθ, also known as Assyrian, refers to the varieties of Northeastern Neo-Aramaic (NENA) spoken by Christians, namely Assyrian people, Assyrians.Nordhoff, Sebast ...

, is nonexistent. In general cases, the language would lack pharyngeal fricative (as heard in ''

Ayin ''Ayin'' (also ''ayn'' or ''ain''; transliterated ) is the sixteenth letter of the Semitic scripts, including Phoenician ''ʿayin'' 𐤏, Hebrew ''ʿayin'' , Aramaic ''ʿē'' 𐡏, Syriac ''ʿē'' ܥ, and Arabic ''ʿayn'' (where it is si ...

''). However, /ʕ/ is retained in educational speech, especially among Assyrian priests. #The

palatalization Palatalization may refer to: *Palatalization (phonetics), the phonetic feature of palatal secondary articulation *Palatalization (sound change) Palatalization ( ) is a historical-linguistic sound change that results in a palatalized articulati ...

of Proto-Semitic gīm to Arabic jīm, might be connected to the pronunciation of

qāf Qoph is the nineteenth Letter (alphabet), letter of the Semitic abjads, including Phoenician alphabet, Phoenician ''qōp'' 𐤒, Hebrew alphabet, Hebrew ''qūp̄'' , Aramaic alphabet, Aramaic ''qop'' 𐡒, Syriac alphabet, Syriac ''qōp̄'' ܩ, ...

as a gāf in most of the

Arabian peninsula The Arabian Peninsula (, , or , , ) or Arabia, is a peninsula in West Asia, situated north-east of Africa on the Arabian plate. At , comparable in size to India, the Arabian Peninsula is the largest peninsula in the world. Geographically, the ...

; since in most of the colloquial dialects of the Arabian Peninsula is pronounced jīm and is pronounced gāf , except in western and southern

and parts of

where is gīm and is qāf . # Ugaritic orthography indicated the vowel after the

glottal stop The glottal stop or glottal plosive is a type of consonantal sound used in many Speech communication, spoken languages, produced by obstructing airflow in the vocal tract or, more precisely, the glottis. The symbol in the International Phonetic ...

. #The Arabic letter ' () has three main pronunciations in Modern Standard Arabic. in north Algeria, Iraq, also in most of the Arabian peninsula and as the predominant pronunciation of Literary Arabic outside the Arab world, occurs in most of the

and most North Africa; and is used in northern Egypt and some regions in Yemen and Oman. In addition to other minor allophones. #' can be written ', and always is in the

and

contexts. In Ugaritic, sometimes assimilates to ', as in ''ġmʔ'' 'thirsty' (Arabic ''ẓmʔ'', Hebrew ''ṣmʔ'', but Ugaritic ''mẓmủ'' 'thirsty', root ''ẓmʔ'', is also attested). #Early

might have had a different phonology. #The pronunciations /ʕ/ and /ħ/ for ''ʿAyin'' and ''Ḥet'', respectively, still occur among some older Mizrahi speakers, but for most modern Israelis, ''ʿAyin'' and ''Ḥet'' are realized as /ʔ, -/ and /χ ~ x/, respectively. #the correspondence between Proto-Semitic phonemes and Modern South Arabian languages is not one-to-one, since some phonemes have merged, some phonemes have changed their pronunciation and some phonemes were split depending on the language, for example the phoneme appears to be connected to different phonological developments.

Plain Sibilants

Sibilants have been one of the aspects of Semitic phonology that historical linguists have taken the most interest in, and Semiticists are nearly unanimous in the opinion that Proto-Semitic contained three plain sibilants, referred to by the shorthand S1, S2, and S3, or as š, ś, and s. The realizations of these phonemes in earlier times is debated, with hypotheses ranging from a palatal for S1, and or for S3, to plain for S1 and for S3. Interestingly, the point of least controversy is the realization of S2, widely accepted to be lateral , In spite of the fact that this phoneme has completely merged with S1 or S3 in every other Semitic language outside of Modern South Arabian languages, such that the most widely-spoken Semitic languages (Arabic, Amharic, Hebrew and Tigrinya) have a two-way sibilant distinction rather than the original three-way distinction. This merger occurred at different times, and in different ways across Semitic which has lead to the non-correspondence of, for example, Arabic, Hebrew and Shehri (Jibbali) words for ‘ten’ from Proto-Semitic (ʕ-s₂-r). Notes: s₁ (š) is , sometimes and (in Soqotri) - and (for some speakers of Jibbali). The following table shows the development of the various fricatives in Hebrew, Aramaic, Arabic and Maltese through cognate words:

# possibly affricated (/dz/ /tɬʼ/ /ʦʼ/ /tθʼ/ /tɬ/)

Vowels

Proto-Semitic vowels are, in general, harder to deduce due to the

of Semitic languages. The history of vowel changes in the languages makes drawing up a complete table of correspondences impossible, so only the most common reflexes can be given: # in a stressed open syllable # in a stressed closed syllable before a geminate # in a stressed closed syllable before a consonant cluster # when the proto-Semitic stressed vowel remained stressed # pS *a,*ā > Akk. e,ē in the neighborhood of pS *ʕ,*ħ and before r # i.e. pS *g,*k,*ḳ,*χ > Geʽez gʷ, kʷ,ḳʷ,χʷ / _u

Grammar

The Semitic languages share a number of grammatical features, although variation — both between separate languages, and within the languages themselves — has naturally occurred over time.

Word order

The reconstructed default word order in Proto-Semitic is verb–subject–object (VSO), possessed–possessor (NG), and noun–adjective (NA). This was still the case in

and

, e.g. Classical Arabic رأى محمد فريدا ''ra'ā muħammadun farīdan''. (literally "saw Muhammad Farid", ''Muhammad saw Farid''). In the modern Arabic vernaculars, however, as well as sometimes in

Modern Standard Arabic Modern Standard Arabic (MSA) or Modern Written Arabic (MWA) is the variety of Standard language, standardized, Literary language, literary Arabic that developed in the Arab world in the late 19th and early 20th centuries, and in some usages al ...

(the modern literary language based on Classical Arabic) and

, the classical VSO order has given way to SVO. Modern Ethiopian Semitic languages follow a different word order: SOV, possessor–possessed, and adjective–noun; however, the oldest attested Ethiopian Semitic language, Geʽez, was VSO, possessed–possessor, and noun–adjective. Akkadian was also predominantly SOV.

Cases in nouns and adjectives

The proto-Semitic three-case system (

nominative In grammar, the nominative case ( abbreviated ), subjective case, straight case, or upright case is one of the grammatical cases of a noun or other part of speech, which generally marks the subject of a verb, or (in Latin and formal variants of E ...

accusative In grammar, the accusative case (abbreviated ) of a noun is the grammatical case used to receive the direct object of a transitive verb. In the English language, the only words that occur in the accusative case are pronouns: "me", "him", "her", " ...

and

genitive In grammar, the genitive case ( abbreviated ) is the grammatical case that marks a word, usually a noun, as modifying another word, also usually a noun—thus indicating an attributive relationship of one noun to the other noun. A genitive can ...

) with differing vowel endings (-u, -a -i), fully preserved in Qur'anic Arabic (see

ʾIʿrab (, ) is an Arabic language, Arabic term for the declension system of nominal, adjectival, or verbal suffixes of Classical Arabic to mark grammatical case. These suffixes are written in fully Harakat, vocalized Arabic texts, notably the ''Qur'an, ...

), Akkadian and

, has disappeared everywhere in the many colloquial forms of Semitic languages. Modern Standard Arabic maintains such case distinctions, although they are typically lost in free speech due to colloquial influence. An accusative ending ''-n'' is preserved in Ethiopian Semitic. In the northwest, the scarcely attested Samalian reflects a case distinction in the plural between nominative ''-ū'' and oblique ''-ī'' (compare the same distinction in Classical Arabic). Additionally, Semitic nouns and adjectives had a category of state, the indefinite state being expressed by

nunation Nunation (, '), in some Semitic languages such as Arabic, is the addition of one of three vowel diacritics (''ḥarakāt'') to a noun or adjective. This is used to indicate the word ends in an alveolar nasal without the addition of the letter ''n ...

Number in nouns

Semitic languages originally had three

grammatical number In linguistics, grammatical number is a Feature (linguistics), feature of nouns, pronouns, adjectives and verb agreement (linguistics), agreement that expresses count distinctions (such as "one", "two" or "three or more"). English and many other ...

s: singular, dual, and

plural In many languages, a plural (sometimes list of glossing abbreviations, abbreviated as pl., pl, , or ), is one of the values of the grammatical number, grammatical category of number. The plural of a noun typically denotes a quantity greater than ...

. Classical Arabic still has a mandatory dual (i.e. it must be used in all circumstances when referring to two entities), marked on nouns, verbs, adjectives and pronouns. Many contemporary dialects of Arabic still have a dual, as in the name for the nation of Bahrain (''baħr'' "sea" + ''-ayn'' "two"), although it is marked only on nouns. It also occurs in Hebrew in a few nouns (''šana'' means "one year", ''šnatayim'' means "two years", and ''šanim'' means "years"), but for those it is obligatory. The curious phenomenon of

broken plural In linguistics, a broken plural (or internal plural) is an irregular plural form of a noun or adjective found in the Semitic languages and other Afroasiatic languages such as the Berber languages. Broken plurals are formed by changing the pattern ...

se.g. in Arabic, ''sadd'' "one dam" vs. ''sudūd'' "dams"found most profusely in the languages of Arabia and Ethiopia, may be partly of proto-Semitic origin, and partly elaborated from simpler origins.

Verb aspect and tense

All Semitic languages show two quite distinct styles of morphology used for conjugating verbs. ''Suffix conjugations'' take suffixes indicating the person, number and gender of the subject, which bear some resemblance to the pronominal suffixes used to indicate direct objects on verbs ("I saw him") and possession on nouns ("his dog"). So-called ''prefix conjugations'' actually takes both prefixes and suffixes, with the prefixes primarily indicating person (and sometimes number or gender), while the suffixes (which are completely different from those used in the suffix conjugation) indicate number and gender whenever the prefix does not mark this. The prefix conjugation is noted for a particular pattern of ' prefixes where (1) a ''t-'' prefix is used in the singular to mark the second person and third-person feminine, while a ''y-'' prefix marks the third-person masculine; and (2) identical words are used for second-person masculine and third-person feminine singular. The prefix conjugation is extremely old, with clear analogues in nearly all the families of

Afroasiatic languages The Afroasiatic languages (also known as Afro-Asiatic, Afrasian, Hamito-Semitic, or Semito-Hamitic) are a language family (or "phylum") of about 400 languages spoken predominantly in West Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa, and parts of th ...

(i.e. at least 10,000 years old). The table on the right shows examples of the prefix and suffix conjugations in Classical Arabic, which has forms that are close to Proto-Semitic. In Proto-Semitic, as still largely reflected in East Semitic, prefix conjugations are used both for the past and the non-past, with different vocalizations. Cf. Akkadian ''niprus'' "we decided" (preterite), ''niptaras'' "we have decided" (perfect), ''niparras'' "we decide" (non-past or imperfect), vs. suffix-conjugated ''parsānu'' "we are/were/will be deciding" (stative). Some of these features, e.g.

gemination In phonetics and phonology, gemination (; from Latin 'doubling', itself from '' gemini'' 'twins'), or consonant lengthening, is an articulation of a consonant for a longer period of time than that of a singleton consonant. It is distinct from ...

indicating the non-past/imperfect, are generally attributed to Afroasiatic. Proto-Semitic had an additional form, the

jussive The jussive (abbreviated ) is a grammatical mood of verbs for issuing orders, commanding, or exhorting (within a subjunctive framework). English verbs are not marked for this mood. The mood is similar to the '' cohortative'' mood, which typically a ...

, which was distinguished from the preterite only by the position of stress: the jussive had final stress while the preterite had non-final (retracted) stress. The West Semitic languages significantly reshaped the system. The most substantial changes occurred in the

Central Semitic languages Central Semitic languages are one of the three groups of West Semitic languages, alongside Modern South Arabian languages and Ethiopian Semitic languages. Central Semitic can itself be further divided into two groups: Arabic and Northwest Semi ...

(the ancestors of modern Hebrew, Arabic and Aramaic). Essentially, the old prefix-conjugated jussive or preterite became a new non-past (or imperfect), while the stative became a new past (or perfect), and the old prefix-conjugated non-past (or imperfect) with gemination was discarded. New suffixes were used to mark different moods in the non-past, e.g. Classical Arabic ''-u'' (indicative), ''-a'' (subjunctive), vs no suffix (jussive). It is not generally agreed whether the systems of the various Semitic languages are better interpreted in terms of tense, i.e. past vs. non-past, or aspect, i.e. perfect vs. imperfect. A special feature in classical Hebrew is the waw-consecutive, prefixing a verb form with the letter waw in order to change its tense or aspect. The

South Semitic languages South Semitic is a putative branch of the Semitic languages, which form a branch of the larger Afro-Asiatic language family, found in (North and East) Africa and Western Asia. The grouping is controversial and several alternate classifications ...

show a system somewhere between the East and Central Semitic languages. Later languages show further developments. In the modern

varieties of Arabic Varieties of Arabic (or dialects or vernaculars) are the linguistic systems that Arabic speakers speak natively. Arabic is a Semitic languages, Semitic language within the Afroasiatic languages, Afroasiatic family that originated in the Arabian P ...

, for example, the old mood suffixes were dropped, and new mood prefixes developed (e.g. ''bi-'' for indicative vs. no prefix for subjunctive in many varieties). In the extreme case of Neo-Aramaic, the verb conjugations have been entirely reworked under Iranian influence.

Morphology: triliteral roots

All Semitic languages exhibit a unique pattern of stems called

Semitic root The roots of verbs and most nouns in the Semitic languages are characterized as a sequence of consonants or " radicals" (hence the term consonantal root). Such abstract consonantal roots are used in the formation of actual words by adding the vowel ...

s consisting typically of triliteral, or three-consonant consonantal roots (two- and four-consonant roots also exist), from which nouns, adjectives, and verbs are formed in various ways (e.g., by inserting vowels, doubling consonants, lengthening vowels or by adding prefixes, suffixes, or

infix An infix is an affix inserted inside a word stem (an existing word or the core of a family of words). It contrasts with '' adfix,'' a rare term for an affix attached to the outside of a stem, such as a prefix or suffix. When marking text for ...

es). For instance, the root ''k-t-b'' (dealing with "writing" generally) yields in Arabic: :''katabtu'' كَتَبْتُ or كتبت "I wrote" (f and m) :''yuktab(u)'' يُكْتَب or يكتب "being written" (masculine) :''tuktab(u)'' تُكتَب or تكتب "being written" (feminine) :''yatakātabūn(a)'' يَتَكَاتَبُونَ or يتكاتبون "they write to each other" (masculine) :''istiktāb'' اِستِكتاب or استكتاب "causing to write" :''kitāb'' كِتَاب or كتاب "book" (the hyphen shows end of stem before various case endings) :''kutayyib'' كُتَيِّب or كتيب "booklet" (diminutive) :''kitābat'' كِتَابَة or كتابة "writing" :''kuttāb'' كُتاب or كتاب "writers" (broken plural) :''katabat'' كَتَبَة or كتبة "clerks" (broken plural) :''maktab'' مَكتَب or مكتب "desk" or "office" :''maktabat'' مَكتَبة or مكتبة "library" or "bookshop" :''maktūb'' مَكتوب or مكتوب "written" (participle) or "postal letter" (noun) :''katībat'' كَتيبة or كتيبة "squadron" or "document" :''iktitāb'' اِكتِتاب or اكتتاب "registration" or "contribution of funds" :''muktatib'' مُكتَتِب or مكتتب "subscription" and the same root in Hebrew: :''kāṯaḇti'' כתבתי or כָּתַבְתִּי "I wrote" :''kattāḇ'' כתב or כַּתָּב "reporter" (''m'') :''katteḇeṯ'' כתבת or כַּתָּבֶת "reporter" (''f'') :''kattāḇā'' כתבה or כַּתָּבָה "article" (plural ''kattāḇōṯ'' כתבות) :''miḵtāḇ'' מכתב or מִכְתָּב "postal letter" (plural ''miḵtāḇīm'' מכתבים) :''miḵtāḇā'' מכתבה "writing desk" (plural ''miḵtāḇōṯ'' מכתבות) :''kəṯōḇeṯ'' כתובת "address" (plural ''kəṯōḇōṯ'' כתובות) :''kəṯāḇ'' כתב "handwriting" :''kāṯūḇ'' כתוב "written" (''f'' ''kəṯūḇā'' כתובה) :''hiḵtīḇ'' הכתיב "he dictated" (''f'' ''hiḵtīḇā'' הכתיבה) :''hiṯkattēḇ'' התכתב "he corresponded (''f'' ''hiṯkattəḇā'' התכתבה) :''niḵtaḇ'' נכתב "it was written" (''m'') :''niḵtəḇā'' נכתבה "it was written" (''f'') :''kəṯīḇ'' כתיב "spelling" (''m'') :''taḵtīḇ'' תכתיב "prescript" (''m'') :''məḵuttāḇ'' מכותב "addressee" (''meḵutteḇeṯ'' מכותבת ''f'') :''kəṯubbā'' כתובה "ketubah (a Jewish marriage contract)" (''f'') (Underlined consonants , , represent the

fricative A fricative is a consonant produced by forcing air through a narrow channel made by placing two articulators close together. These may be the lower lip against the upper teeth, in the case of ; the back of the tongue against the soft palate in ...

s /x/, /θ/, /v/ respectively.) In Tigrinya and Amharic, this root was used widely but is now seen as an archaic form. Ethiopic-derived languages use different roots for things that have to do with writing (and in some cases counting). The primitive root ''ṣ-f'' and the trilateral root stems ''m-ṣ-f'', ''ṣ-h-f'', and ''ṣ-f-r'' are used. This root also exists in other Semitic languages, such as Hebrew: ''sep̄er'' "book", '' sōp̄er'' "scribe", ''mispār'' "number", and ''sippūr'' "story". This root also exists in Arabic and is used to form words with a close meaning to "writing", such as ''ṣaḥāfa'' "journalism", and ''ṣaḥīfa'' "newspaper" or "parchment". Verbs in other non-Semitic Afroasiatic languages show similar radical patterns, but more usually with biconsonantal roots; e.g. Kabyle ''afeg'' means "fly!", while ''affug'' means "flight", and ''yufeg'' means "he flew" (compare with Hebrew, where ''hap̄lēḡ'' means "set sail!", ''hap̄lāḡā'' means "a sailing trip", and ''hip̄līḡ'' means "he sailed", while the unrelated ''ʕūp̄'', ''təʕūp̄ā'', and ''ʕāp̄'' pertain to flight).

Independent personal pronouns

Cardinal numerals

These are the basic numeral stems without feminine suffixes. In most older Semitic languages, the forms of the numerals from 3 to 10 exhibit

polarity of gender In linguistics, polarity of gender is when a lexical item takes the opposite grammatical gender than expected. The phenomenon is widespread in Afroasiatic languages such as Semitic and Cushitic tongues. For example, in Somali, which is a Cushiti ...

(also called "chiastic concord" or "reverse agreement"), i.e. if the counted noun is masculine, the numeral would be feminine and vice versa.

Typology

Some early Semitic languages are speculated to have had weak ergative features.

Common vocabulary

Due to the Semitic languages' common origin, they share some words and roots. Others differ. For example: Terms given in brackets are not derived from the respective Proto-Semitic roots, though they may also derive from Proto-Semitic (as does e.g. Arabic ''dār'', cf. Biblical Hebrew ''dōr'' "dwelling"). 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. The root ''l-ḥ-m'' means "meat" in Arabic, but "bread" in Hebrew and "cow" in Ethiopian Semitic; the original meaning was most probably "food". The word ''medina'' (root: ''d-y-n''/''d-w-n'') has the meaning of "metropolis" in Amharic, "city" in Arabic and Ancient Hebrew, and "State" in Modern Hebrew. 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'' and in Ethiosemitic by the roots ''ʿ-w-q'' and ''f-l-ṭ''. For more comparative vocabulary lists, see the Wiktionary appendix List of Proto-Semitic stems.

Classification

There are six fairly uncontroversial nodes within the Semitic languages:

, North Arabian,

(also known as Sayhadic),

Modern South Arabian The Modern South Arabian languages, also known as Eastern South Semitic languages, are a group of endangered languages spoken by small populations inhabiting the Arabian Peninsula, in Yemen and Oman, and Socotra Island. Together with the Ethiosem ...

, and

Ethiopian Semitic Ethio-Semitic (also Ethiopian Semitic, Ethiosemitic, Ethiopic or Abyssinian) is a family of languages spoken in Ethiopia, Eritrea, and Sudan. They form the western branch of the South Semitic languages, itself a sub-branch of Semitic, part of t ...

. These are generally grouped further, but there is ongoing debate as to which belong together. The classification based on shared innovations given below, established by

Robert Hetzron Robert Hetzron, born Herzog (31 December 1937, Budapest – 12 August 1997, Santa Barbara, California), was a Hungarian-born linguist known for his work on the comparative study of Afro-Asiatic languages, as well as for his study of Cushitic ...

in 1976 and with later emendations by John Huehnergard and Rodgers as summarized in Hetzron 1997, is the most widely accepted today. In particular, several Semiticists still argue for the traditional (partially nonlinguistic) view of Arabic as part of South Semitic, and a few (e.g.

Alexander Militarev Alexander Militarev (; born January 14, 1943) is a Russian scholar of Semitic, Berber Berber or Berbers may refer to: Ethnic group * Berbers, an ethnic group native to Northern Africa * Berber languages, a family of Afro-Asiatic languages Pl ...

or the German-Egyptian professor Arafa Hussein Mustafa) see Modern South Arabian as a third branch of Semitic alongside East and West Semitic, rather than as a subgroup of South Semitic. However, a new classification groups Old South Arabian as Central Semitic instead.

Roger Blench Roger Marsh Blench (born August 1, 1953) is a British linguist, ethnomusicologist and development anthropologist. He has an M.A. and a Ph.D. from the University of Cambridge and is based in Cambridge, England. He researches, publishes, and work ...

notes that the

are highly divergent and wonders whether they might not be a primary branch, reflecting an origin of Afroasiatic in or near Ethiopia. At a lower level, there is still no general agreement on where to draw the line between "languages" and "dialects"an issue particularly relevant in Arabic, Aramaic and Gurageand the strong mutual influences between Arabic dialects render a genetic subclassification of them particularly difficult. A

computational phylogenetic Computational phylogenetics, phylogeny inference, or phylogenetic inference focuses on computational and optimization algorithms, heuristics, and approaches involved in phylogenetic analyses. The goal is to find a phylogenetic tree representing op ...

analysis by Kitchen et al. (2009) considers the Semitic languages to have originated in the

during the Early

, with early Ethiosemitic originating from southern Arabia . Evidence for gene movements consistent with this were found in Almarri et al. (2021). The Himyaritic and Sutean languages appear to have been Semitic, but are unclassified due to insufficient data. ;Summary classification *

* West Semitic ** Central Semitic ***

***

South Semitic South Semitic is a putative branch of the Semitic languages, which form a branch of the larger Afro-Asiatic language family, found in (North and East) Africa and Western Asia. The grouping is controversial and several alternate classifications ...

*** Western:

and

*** Eastern:

Detailed list

* Semitic **

(All extinct) *** Akkadian **** Old Akkadian **** Babylonian **** Assyrian **** Canaano-Akkadian ***

*** Kishite *** Dilmunite ? ** West Semitic *** Central Semitic ****

*****

******

Old Aramaic Old Aramaic refers to the earliest stage of the Aramaic language, known from the Aramaic inscriptions discovered since the 19th century. Emerging as the language of the city-states of the Arameans in the Fertile Crescent in the Early Iron Age, ...

******* Samalian (extinct) *******

Imperial Aramaic Imperial Aramaic is a linguistic term, coined by modern Aramaic studies, scholars in order to designate a specific historical Variety (linguistics), variety of Aramaic language. The term is polysemic, with two distinctive meanings, wider (socioli ...

(extinct) ********

Biblical Aramaic Biblical Aramaic is the form of Aramaic that is used in the books of Daniel and Ezra in the Hebrew Bible. It should not be confused with the Targums — Aramaic paraphrases, explanations and expansions of the Hebrew scriptures. History During ...

(extinct) *******

******** Eastern Aramaic (

dialect continuum A dialect continuum or dialect chain is a series of Variety (linguistics), language varieties spoken across some geographical area such that neighboring varieties are Mutual intelligibility, mutually intelligible, but the differences accumulat ...

) *********

**********

Hatran Aramaic Hatran Aramaic (Aramaic of Hatra, Ashurian or East Mesopotamian) designates a Middle Aramaic dialect, that was used in the region of Hatra and Assur in northeastern parts of Mesopotamia (modern Iraq), approximately from the 3rd century BC to t ...

(extinct) ********** Central Neo-Aramaic *********** Turoyo (Surayt) *********** Mlaḥsô (extinct) **********

Northeastern Neo-Aramaic Northeastern Neo-Aramaic (NENA) is a grouping of related dialects of Neo-Aramaic spoken before World War I as a vernacular language by Jews and Assyrian Christians between the Tigris and Lake Urmia, stretching north to Lake Van and southwards t ...

(

) *********** Sureth ************

************* Christian Urmi Neo-Aramaic ************* Bohtan Neo-Aramaic ************* Senaya Neo-Aramaic ************

Chaldean Neo-Aramaic Suret ( �suːrɪtʰor �suːrɪθ, also known as Assyrian, refers to the varieties of Northeastern Neo-Aramaic (NENA) spoken by Christians, namely Assyrians.Nordhoff, Sebastian; Hammarström, Harald; Forkel, Robert; Haspelmath, Martin, e ...

*********** Koy Sanjaq Christian Neo-Aramaic *********** Hertevin Neo-Aramaic *********** Qaraqosh Neo-Aramaic *********** Jewish Assyrian Neo-Aramaic ************ Lishanid Noshan ************

Barzani Jewish Neo-Aramaic Barzani Jewish Neo-Aramaic is a modern Jewish Aramaic language, often called ''Neo-Aramaic'' or '' Judeo-Aramaic''. It was originally spoken in three villages near Akre in Iraqi Kurdistan. The native name of the language is ''Lishanid Janan'', w ...

************ Hulaulá ************ Lishana Deni ************ Lishán Didán ************ Betanure Jewish Neo-Aramaic ************ Koy Sanjaq Jewish Neo-Aramaic ********** Southeastern Aramaic ***********

************ Neo-Mandaic ***********

Jewish Babylonian Aramaic Jewish Babylonian Aramaic (Aramaic: ) was the form of Middle Aramaic employed by writers in Lower Mesopotamia between the fourth and eleventh centuries. It is most commonly identified with the language of the Babylonian Talmud (which was comp ...

(extinct) ******** Western Aramaic (

) ********* Western Middle Aramaic **********

Nabataean Aramaic Nabataean Aramaic is the extinct Aramaic variety used in inscriptions by the Nabataeans of the Transjordan_(region), East Bank of the Jordan River, the Negev, and the Sinai Peninsula. Compared with other varieties of Aramaic, it is notable for ...

(extinct) **********

Palmyrene Aramaic Palmyrene Aramaic was a Middle Aramaic dialect, exhibiting both Eastern and Western Aramaic grammatical features, and is therefore often regarded as a dialect continuum between the two branches. It was primarily documented in Palmyra itself, bu ...

(extinct) **********

********** Palestinian Aramaic (All extinct) ***********

Samaritan Aramaic Samaritan Aramaic was the dialect of Aramaic used by the Samaritans in their sacred and scholarly literature. This should not be confused with Samaritan Hebrew, the language of the Samaritan Pentateuch. Samaritan Aramaic ceased to be a spoke ...

***********

Jewish Palestinian Aramaic Jewish Palestinian Aramaic also known as Jewish Western Aramaic was a Western Aramaic language spoken by the Jews during the Classic Era in Judea and the Levant, specifically in Hasmonean, Herodian and Roman Judaea and adjacent lands in the ...

************ Galilean dialect ***********

Christian Palestinian Aramaic Christian Palestinian Aramaic was a Western Aramaic languages, Western Aramaic dialect used by the Melkite, Melkite Christian community, predominantly of Jews, Jewish descent, in Palestine (region), Palestine, Transjordan (region), Transjordan an ...

**********

Lebanese Aramaic Lebanese Aramaic is a dormant Western Aramaic dialect. It was traditionally spoken in the Levant, especially in Mount Lebanon, by Maronite Christians. Name Similar to Christian Palestinian Aramaic, Lebanese Aramaic did not have a unique name ...

(extinct) ******** Armazic (extinct) ***** Canaanite ****** North Canaanite ******* Phoenician (extinct) ********

(extinct) ****** South Canaanite *******

(extinct) ******* Moabite (extinct) ******* Edomite (extinct) *******

********

Mishnaic Hebrew Mishnaic Hebrew () is the Hebrew language used in Talmudic texts. Mishnaic Hebrew can be sub-divided into Mishnaic Hebrew proper (c. 1–200 CE, also called Tannaim, Tannaitic Hebrew, Early Rabbinic Hebrew, or Mishnah, Mishnaic Hebrew I), which w ...

********* Medieval Hebrew **********

(

) (revived) ********

(extinct (apart from modern liturgical uses)) *****

(extinct) *****

Taymanitic Taymanitic was the language and script of the oasis of Taymāʾ in northwestern Arabia, dated to the second half of the 6th century BC. Classification Taymanitic does not participate in the key innovations of Proto-Arabic, precluding it from b ...

? (extinct) **** North Arabian *****

Old Arabic Old Arabic is the name for any Arabic language or dialect continuum before Islam. Various forms of Old Arabic are attested in scripts like Safaitic, Hismaic, Nabataean alphabet, Nabatean, and even Greek alphabet, Greek. Alternatively, the term ha ...

******

Pre-classical Arabic Pre-classical Arabic is the cover term for all varieties of Arabic spoken in the Arabian Peninsula until immediately after the Arab conquests and emergence of Classical Arabic in the 7th century C.E. Scholars disagree about the status of these ...

*******

********

*********

********

Mashriqi Arabic Mashriqi Arabic, Sharqi Arabic or Mashriqi ʿAmmiya, encompasses the varieties of Arabic spoken in the Mashriq, including the countries of Egypt, Lebanon, Palestine, Kuwait, Jordan, Syria, Turkey, Iraq, Sudan, Saudi Arabia, UAE, Oman, Bahrain ...

(Eastern Arabic) (

) *********

Peninsular Arabic Peninsular Arabic are the varieties of Arabic spoken throughout the Arabian Peninsula. This includes the countries of Saudi Arabia, Yemen, Oman, United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, Southern Iran, South Iraq, Southern Iraq and Jordan. ...

(

) ********** Old Hijazi Arabic ***********

Hejazi Arabic Hejazi Arabic or Hijazi Arabic (HA) (, Hejazi Arabic: , ), also known as West Arabian Arabic, is a Varieties of Arabic, variety of Arabic spoken in the Hejaz region in Saudi Arabia. Strictly speaking, there are two main groups of dialects spoken i ...

**********

Gulf Arabic Gulf Arabic or Khaleeji ( ' local pronunciation: or ', local pronunciation: ) is a variety of the Arabic language spoken in Eastern Arabia around the coasts of the Persian Gulf in Kuwait, Bahrain, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, southern Iraq, ...

***********

Emirati Arabic Emirati Arabic (), also known as Al Ramsa (), refers to a group of Arabic dialectal varieties spoken by the Emiratis native to the United Arab Emirates that share core characteristics with specific phonological, lexical, and morphosyntactic featur ...

*********** Bahraini Gulf Arabic ***********

Kuwaiti Arabic Kuwaiti (, ) is a Gulf Arabic dialect spoken in Kuwait. Kuwaiti Arabic shares many phonetic features unique to Gulf dialects spoken in the Arabian Peninsula. Due to Kuwait's soap opera industry, knowledge of Kuwaiti Arabic has spread throughou ...

**********

Bahrani Arabic Bahrani Arabic (also known as Bahrani or Baharna Arabic) is a variety of Arabic spoken by the Baharna in Eastern Arabia and Oman. In Bahrain, the dialect is primarily spoken in Shia villages and some parts of Manama. In Saudi Arabia, the diale ...

**********

Omani Arabic Omani Arabic (; also known as Omani Hadari Arabic) is a variety of Arabic spoken in the Al Hajar Mountains of Oman and in a few neighboring coastal regions. It is the easternmost traditional Arabic dialect. It was formerly spoken by colonists ...

********** Shihhi Arabic ********** Dhofari Arabic **********

Yemeni Arabic Yemeni Arabic () is a cluster of varieties of Arabic spoken in Yemen and southwestern Saudi Arabia. It is generally considered a very conservative dialect cluster, having many classical features not found across most of the Arabic-speaking world ...

(

) *********** Hadhrami Arabic ************

Indonesian Arabic Indonesian Arabic (, ) is a variety of Arabic spoken in Indonesia. It is primarily spoken by people of Arab descents and by students (''santri'') who study Arabic at Islamic educational institutions or ''pesantren''. This language generally incor ...

*********** Sanʽani Arabic ***********

Taʽizzi-Adeni Arabic Taʽizzi-Adeni Arabic () or Southern Yemeni Arabic is a dialect of Arabic spoken primarily in Yemen. The dialect itself is further sub-divided into the regional vernaculars of Ta'izzi, spoken in Ta'izz, and Adeni, spoken in Aden. While both are s ...

************ Taʽizzi Arabic ************ Adeni Arabic ************ Djibouti Arabic ***********

Judeo-Yemeni Arabic Judeo-Yemeni Arabic (also known as Judeo-Yemeni and Yemenite Judeo-Arabic) is a variety of Arabic spoken by Jews living or formerly living in Yemen. The language is quite different from mainstream Yemeni Arabic, and is written in the Hebrew alph ...

***********

Tihamiyya Arabic Tihāmiyyah (Arabic: تهامية Tihāmiyyah; also known as Tihamiyya, Tihami) is the dialect of the Arabic language originally spoken only by the people of the historic region of the Tihamah which is the coastal plain at the Eastern shore of ...

************ Zabidi dialect *********** Yafi'i Arabic ********** Northwest Arabian Arabic (Levantine Bedawi Arabic, Eastern Egyptian Bedawi Arabic) **********

Najdi Arabic Najdi Arabic (, Najdi Arabic: , ) is the group of Arabic varieties originating from the Najd region of Saudi Arabia. Outside of Saudi Arabia, it is also the main Arabic variety spoken in the Syrian Desert of Iraq, Jordan, and Syria (with the exc ...

********** Bareqi Arabic ********* Egypto-Sudanic Arabic (

) **********

Egyptian Arabic Egyptian Arabic, locally known as Colloquial Egyptian, or simply as Masri, is the most widely spoken vernacular Arabic variety in Egypt. It is part of the Afro-Asiatic language family, and originated in the Nile Delta in Lower Egypt. The esti ...

(

) ***********

Judeo-Egyptian Arabic Judeo-Egyptian Arabic (also Egyptian Judeo-Arabic) is an Arabic dialect spoken by Egyptian Jews. It is a variety of Egyptian Arabic. Classification Judeo-Egyptian Arabic is one of the Judeo-Arabic dialects. It is close to the dialect of Alexa ...

***********

Saʽidi Arabic Ṣaʽīdi Arabic (autonym: , ), or Upper Egyptian Arabic, is a variety of Arabic spoken by the Upper Egyptians in the area that is South/Upper Egypt, a strip of land on both sides of the Nile that extends from Aswan and downriver (northwards) ...

*********** Cairene Arabic ********** Sudanese-Chadian Arabic (

) ***********

Sudanese Arabic Sudanese Arabic, also referred to as the Sudanese dialect (, ), Colloquial Sudanese ( ) or locally as Common Sudanese ( ) refers to the various related varieties of Arabic spoken in Sudan as well as parts of Egypt, Eritrea and Ethiopia. Sudanese ...

***********

Chadian Arabic Chadian Arabic (), also known as Shuwa Arabic, Western Sudanic Arabic, or West Sudanic Arabic (WSA), is a variety of Arabic and the first language of 1.9 million people in Chad, both town dwellers and Baggara, nomadic cattle herders. Most of its ...

*********

Levantine Arabic Levantine Arabic, also called Shami (Endonym and exonym, autonym: or ), is an Varieties of Arabic, Arabic variety spoken in the Levant, namely in Syria, Jordan, Lebanon, Palestine, Israel and southern Turkey (historically only in Adana Prov ...

(

) **********

North Levantine Arabic North Levantine Arabic (, North Levantine: ) was defined in the ISO 639-3 international standard for language codes as a distinct Arabic variety, under the apc code. It was also known as Syro-Lebanese Arabic, though that term was also used to ref ...

*********** Cilician Arabic *********** Aleppine Arabic *********** Damascene Arabic *********** Judeo-Syrian Arabic ***********

Lebanese Arabic Lebanese Arabic ( ; autonym: ), or simply Lebanese ( ; autonym: ), is a Varieties of Arabic, variety of Levantine Arabic, indigenous to and primarily Languages of Lebanon, spoken in Lebanon, with significant linguistic influences borrowed from ...

**********

South Levantine Arabic South Levantine Arabic (, South Levantine: ) was defined in the ISO 639-3 international standard for language codes as a distinct Arabic variety, under the ajp code. It was reported by ''Ethnologue'' as being spoken in the Southern Levant: Palesti ...

***********

Palestinian Arabic Palestinian Arabic (also known as simply Palestinian) is part of a dialect continuum comprising various mutually intelligible varieties of Levantine Arabic spoken by Palestinians in Palestine, which includes the State of Palestine, Israel, and t ...

************ Modern Palestinian Judeo-Arabic ***********

Jordanian Arabic Jordanian Arabic is a dialect continuum of mutually intelligible varieties of Arabic spoken in Jordan. Jordanian Arabic can be divided into sedentary and Bedouin varieties. Sedentary varieties belong to the Levantine Arabic dialect continuum. ...

*********

Iraqi Arabic Mesopotamian Arabic (), also known as Iraqi Arabic or the Iraqi dialect (), or just as Iraqi (), is a group of varieties of Arabic spoken in the Mesopotamian basin of Iraq, as well as in Syria, southeastern Turkey, Iran, Kuwait and Iraqi diaspor ...

(

) ********** Gilit Dialects (

) *********** Baghdadi Arabic *********** Shawi Arabic *********** Khuzestani Arabic ***********

South Mesopotamian Arabic South Mesopotamian Arabic () or Marsh Arabic is a variety of Mesopotamian Arabic spoken by Southern Iraqis in Basra, Maysan, Dhi Qar, Wasit and Muthanna. This dialect differs distinctly from other dialects of Iraq and features a strong Arama ...

********** Qeltu Dialects (

) ***********

North Mesopotamian Arabic North Mesopotamian Arabic, also known as Moslawi (meaning 'of Mosul Mosul ( ; , , ; ; ; ) is a major city in northern Iraq, serving as the capital of Nineveh Governorate. It is the second largest city in Iraq overall after the capital Baghda ...

*********** Anatolian Arabic *********** Judeo-Iraqi Arabic ************ Jewish Baghdadi Arabic ***********

Cypriot Arabic Cypriot Arabic (, ), also known as Cypriot Maronite Arabic or Sanna (, ), is a moribund variety of Arabic spoken by the Maronite community of Cyprus. Formerly speakers were mostly situated in Kormakitis, but following the Turkish invasion of C ...

*********

Central Asian Arabic Central Asian Arabic or Jugari Arabic () refers to a set of four closely-related varieties of Arabic currently facing extinction and spoken predominantly by Arab communities living in portions of Central Asia. These varieties are Bactrian (or ...

(

) ********** Bakhtiari Arabic ********** Bukharian Arabic ********** Kashkadarian Arabic **********

Khorasani Arabic Khorasani Arabic is a dialect of Arabic spoken in Iran. It is a variety of Central Asian Arabic spoken in a few villages in the Iran Iran, officially the Islamic Republic of Iran (IRI) and also known as Persia, is a country in West A ...

*********

Shirvani Arabic Shirvani Arabic () is a variety of Arabic that was once spoken in what is now central and northeastern Azerbaijan (historically known as Shirvan) and southern Dagestan. History Arabic had been spoken in the region since the Muslim conquest of t ...

(extinct) ********

(Western Arabic) (

) ********* Pre-Hilalian dialects ********** Pre-Hilalian Urban Arabic dialects ***********

Fessi dialect The Fessi dialect () is a dialect of Moroccan vernacular Arabic, or Darija, associated with the city of Fes, especially with the old elite families of the city. It is considered pre-Hilalian and some of its distinguishing phonological feature ...

********** Jebli Arabic ********** Jijel Arabic ********** Maghrebi

Judeo-Arabic Judeo-Arabic (; ; ) sometimes referred as Sharh, are a group of different ethnolects within the branches of the Arabic language used by jewish communities. Although Jewish use of Arabic, which predates Islam, has been in some ways distinct ...

***********

Judeo-Moroccan Arabic Judeo-Moroccan Arabic is the variety or the varieties of the Moroccan vernacular Arabic spoken by Moroccan Jews living or formerly living in Morocco. Historically, the majority of Moroccan Jews spoke Moroccan vernacular Arabic, or ''Darija'', ...

***********

Judeo-Tripolitanian Arabic Judeo-Tripolitanian Arabic (also known as Tripolitanian Judeo-Arabic, Jewish Tripolitanian–Libyan Arabic, Tripolita'it, Yudi) is a variety of Arabic spoken by Jews formerly living in Libya. Judeo-Tripolitanian Arabic differs from standard ...

***********

Judeo-Tunisian Arabic Judeo-Tunisian Arabic, also known as Judeo-Tunisian, is a variety of Tunisian Arabic mainly spoken by Jews living or formerly living in Tunisia. Speakers are older adults, and the younger generation has only a passive knowledge of the language. ...

*********** Judeo-Algerian Arabic **********

***********

************ Cottonera Dialect ************ Gozitan dialects ************ Qormi dialect ************

Żejtun dialect Żejtun ( ) is a town in the Southern Region, Malta, Southern Region of Malta, with a population of 11,218 at the end of 2016. Żejtun is traditionally known as Città Beland, a title conferred by the Grand Master (order), grandmaster of the Kn ...

************ Maltralian ************ Corfiot Maltese (extinct) **********

Andalusi Arabic Andalusi Arabic or Andalusian Arabic () was a variety or varieties of Arabic spoken mainly from the 8th to the 15th century in Al-Andalus, the regions of the Iberian Peninsula under the Muslim rule. Arabic spread gradually over the centuries ...

(extinct) ********** Eastern pre-Hilali Dialects ***********

Tunisian Arabic Tunisian Arabic, or simply Tunisian (), is a Varieties of Arabic, variety of Arabic spoken in Tunisia. It is known among its 13 million speakers as ''Tūnsi'', "Tunisian" or ''Maghrebi Arabic, Derja'' (; meaning "common or everyday dialect") t ...

********** Western pre-Hilali dialects ********* Hilalian dialects ********** Sulaym dialects ***********

Libyan Arabic Libyan Arabic (), also called Sulaimitian Arabic by scholars, is a variety of Arabic spoken in Libya, and neighboring countries. It can be divided into two major dialect areas: the eastern centred in Benghazi and Bayda, and the western centre ...

************ Western Egyptian Bedawi Arabic ********** Eastern Hilali dialects ********** Central Hilali dialects ***********

Algerian Saharan Arabic Algerian Saharan Arabic (also known as Saharan Arabic, Tamanrasset Arabic, Tamanghasset Arabic) is a variety of Arabic indigenous to and spoken predominantly in the Algerian Sahara. Its ISO 639-3 language code is "aao," and it belongs to Maghreb ...

********** Western Hilali dialects ********** Maqil dialects ***********

Hassaniya Arabic Hassaniya Arabic (; also known as , , , , and Maure) is a variety of Maghrebi Arabic spoken by Mauritanian Arabs, Malian Arabs and the Sahrawis. It was spoken by the Beni Ḥassān Bedouin tribes of Yemeni origin who extended their authority o ...

********* Koines **********

Algerian Arabic Algerian Arabic (, romanized: ), natively known as , or , is a variety of Arabic spoken in Algeria. It belongs to the Maghrebi Arabic dialect continuum and is mostly intelligible with the Tunisian and Moroccan dialects. Darja () means "eve ...

********** Moroccan Arabic ******* Pre-classical Arabic#ˀAzd dialect, ˀAzd dialect (extinct) ******* Pre-classical Arabic#Huḏayl dialect, Huḏayl dialect (extinct) ******* Pre-classical Arabic#Ṭayyiˀ dialect, Ṭayyiˀ dialect (extinct) ****** Safaitic#Language, Safaitic (extinct) ****** Hismaic (extinct) ****** Hasaitic (extinct) ****** Nabataean Arabic (extinct) ***** Dadanitic ? (extinct) ***** Thamudic ? (extinct) ***

**** Western South Semitic ***** Ethiopian Semitic languages, Ethiopic ****** North Ethiopic *******

(Classical Ethiopic) ******** Dahalik language, Dahalik ******** Tigre ******* Tigrinya ****** South Ethiopic ******* Transversal South Ethiopic ******** Amharic–Argobba *********

********* Argobba language, Argobba ******** Harari–East Gurage ********* Harari ********* Gurage languages#Eastern, East Gurage ********** Siltʼe language, Silt'e ********** Zay language, Zway ******* Outer South Ethiopic ******** n-group ********* Gafat (extinct) ********* Soddo language, Soddo ******** tt-group ********* Mesmes language, Mesmes (extinct) ********* Muher language, Muher ********* Gurage languages#Western, West Gurage ********** Mesqan language, Mesqan ********** Sebat Bet *********** Sebat Bet Gurage language, Sebat Bet Gurage *********** Inor language, Inor ***** Old South Arabian, Old South Arabian (Ṣayhadic) ****** Sabaic (extinct) ****** Minaean language, Minaean (extinct) ****** Qatabanian language, Qatabanian (extinct) ******* Awsānian (extinct) ****** Hadramautic language, Hadramautic (extinct) ****** Razihi ? ****** Faifi language, Faifi ? ****** Himyaritic ? (extinct) **** Modern South Arabian languages, Modern South Arabian (Eastern South Semitic) ***** Baṭḥari language, Baṭḥari ***** Ḥarsusi language, Ḥarsusi ***** Hobyót language, Hobyót ***** Mehri ***** Shehri ***** Soqotri ** Unclassified *** Sutean language, Sutean (extinct)

Semitic-speaking peoples

The following is a list of some modern and ancient Semitic-speaking peoples and nations: Detailed Afroasiatic map

Central Semitic

* Amorites * Arabs ** Alawites ** Ancient North Arabian-speaking bedouins ** Itureans ** Nabataeans ** Tayy ** Thamud2nd to 5th centuries AD * Arameansan ancient Northwest Semitic people. They had various kingdoms and city-states and were historically organized in tribal structures. ** Ahlamu ** Arameans (Syriacs)a minority ethnic group in the Qalamoun Mountains, Qalamoun mountains who still speak Western Aramaic. * Canaanite languages, Canaanite-speaking nations of the early Iron Age: ** Ammon, Ammonites ** Edom, Edomitesappeared in Transjordan between 11th to 2nd centuries BCE. Eventually assimilated into Jewish population during Hasmonean conquest. ** Hebrews/Israelitesfounded the nation of History of ancient Israel and Judah, Israel which later split into the Kingdoms of Kingdom of Israel (Samaria), Israel and Kingdom of Judah, Judah. ***

*** Samaritans ** Moab, Moabites ** Phoenicia, Phoeniciansfounded Mediterranean colonies including Tyre, Lebanon, Tyre, Sidon and ancient Carthage/Punics. The remnants of these people became the modern inhabitants of Lebanon. * Chaldea, Chaldeansappeared in southern Mesopotamia and eventually disappeared into the general Babylonian population. * Druze * Maltese people, Maltese *

* Maronites * Mhallami * Samalian, Samalians * Ugarit, Ugarites14th to 12th centuries BC

East Semitic

* Akkadian Empire, Akkadiansancient East Semitic speakers who moved from the Arabian Desert into Mesopotamia in the fourth millennium BC and settled among the indigenous peoples of Sumer. **Assyria, Assyrians ***Modern Assyrian people **Babylonia, Babylonians *Ebla, Eblaites23rd century BC

South Semitic

* Ethiopian Semitic languages, Abyssinian-speaking peoples ** Kingdom of Aksum, Axum4th century BC to 7th century AD ** Amhara people ** Argobba people ** Dahalik language, Dahalik people ** Gurage people ** Harari people ** Beta Israel, Beta Abraham, and Falash Muras. ** Jeberti people ** Silt'e people ** Tigrigni, Tigrigna People ** Tigrayans, Tigray people ** Tigre people ** Wolane people ** Zay people * Old South Arabian, Old and Modern South Arabian-speaking peoples ** Bathari language, Bathari people ** Faifi language, Faifi people ** Ancient Hadramautic language, Hadramitic-speakers. Eventually evolved into the modern day Hadhrami people. ** Himyarites from 110 BCE until 578 CE *** Yemenite Jews ** Harasis, Harsusi people ** Hobyot language, Hobyot people ** Mehri people ** Minaeans8th century BCE to 2nd centuries BC ** Qatabanians ** Shehri language, Shehri people ** Razihi language, Razihi people ** Sabaeans of Yemen8th to 1st centuries BC ** Soqotri people

Unknown

* Suteans14th century BC

Notes

References

Bibliography

* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * Mustafa, Arafa Hussein. 1974. ''Analytical study of phrases and sentences in epic texts of Ugarit.'' (German title: Untersuchungen zu Satztypen in den epischen Texten von Ugarit). Dissertation. Halle-Wittenberg: Martin-Luther-University. * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * [2002 edition: ]

External links

Semitic genealogical tree
(as well as the Afroasiatic one), presented by

at his talk "Genealogical classification of Afro-Asiatic languages according to the latest data" (at the conference on the 70th anniversary of Vladislav Illich-Svitych, Moscow, 2004
short annotations of the talks given there

''Pattern-and-root inflectional morphology: the Arabic broken plural''

* [https://hal.archives-ouvertes.fr/hal-02113751 '' Alexis Neme and Sébastien Paumier (2019), Restoring Arabic vowels through omission-tolerant dictionary lookup, Lang Resources & Evaluation, Vol 53, 1–65 pages''] * wikt:Appendix:Afroasiatic Swadesh lists, Swadesh vocabulary lists of Semitic languages (from Wiktionary's wikt:Appendix:Swadesh lists, Swadesh-list appendix) {{Use dmy dates, date=April 2017 Semitic languages, Afroasiatic languages

Name and identification

History

Ancient Semitic-speaking peoples

First century to twentieth century CE

Present distribution

Phonology

Consonants

Plain Sibilants

Vowels

Grammar

Word order

Cases in nouns and adjectives

Number in nouns

Verb aspect and tense

Morphology: triliteral roots

Independent personal pronouns

Cardinal numerals

Typology

Common vocabulary

Classification

Detailed list

Semitic-speaking peoples

Central Semitic

East Semitic

South Semitic

Unknown

See also

Notes

References

Bibliography

External links