Proto-Afroasiatic
Proto-language (reconstructed) · historical / hidden variety
Proto-Afroasiatic is the deep, reconstructed ancestor of the Afroasiatic family (Semitic, Egyptian, Berber, Cushitic, Chadic, Omotic). It is usually placed in northeast Africa or the Horn around 10000–7500 BCE — one of the oldest reconstructed proto-languages — but both its date and its reconstruction are heavily debated, so almost all cells here are left blank.
Where it is spoken
87 core words in Proto-Afroasiatic
Sources
- Ehret (1995) Reconstructing Proto-Afroasiatic
- Militarev & Stolbova, Afroasiatic etymological databases
Words compared
Compared with languages in the same classification: Proto-language (reconstructed)
| Meaning | Proto-Afroasiatic | Messapic | Nicaraguan Sign Language | Proto-Japonic-Koreanic | Tartessian | Liburnian | Venetic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | *maw- /maw/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | ouriom /ˈouriom/ |
| Fire | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Sun | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Moon | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Star | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Night | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Stone | *ʔabun- /ʔabun/ | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Mother | *ʔim- /ʔim/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | *əma /əma/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | matur /ˈmatur/ |
| Father | *ʔab- /ʔab/ | ana /ˈana/ | — /—/ | *əpa /əpa/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| I | *ʔan- /ʔan/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | eχo /ˈexo/ |
| You | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| We | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Name | *sim- /sim/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eye | *ʕayn- /ʕayn/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Ear | *ʔudun- /ʔudun/ | — | — | — | — | — | — |
| Tooth | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Tongue | *lis- /lis/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hand | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Heart | *lib- /lib/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Bone | *ḳas- /kʼas/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Blood | *dam- /dam/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Love | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Tree | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Dog | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Cat | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Fish | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| House | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eat | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Drink | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| One | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Two | *sin- /sin/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Three | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hello | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Thank you | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Good | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Red | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
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