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
31 core words in Proto-Afroasiatic
Water
*maw-
/maw-/
Fire
—
/—/
Sun
—
/—/
Moon
—
/—/
Star
—
/—/
Mother
*ʔim-
/ʔim-/
Father
*ʔab-
/ʔab-/
I
*ʔan-
/ʔan-/
You
—
/—/
Name
*sim-
/sim-/
Eye
*ʕayn-
/ʕayn-/
Hand
—
/—/
Heart
—
/—/
Love
—
/—/
Tree
—
/—/
House
—
/—/
Dog
—
/—/
Cat
—
/—/
Eat
—
/—/
Drink
—
/—/
One
—
/—/
Two
*sin-
/sin-/
Hello
—
/—/
Thank you
—
/—/
Good
—
/—/
Sources
- Ehret (1995) Reconstructing Proto-Afroasiatic
- Militarev & Stolbova, Afroasiatic etymological databases
Words compared
Compared with related Proto-language (reconstructed) languages
| Meaning | Proto-Afroasiatic | Goguryeo | Proto-Hmong-Mien | Proto-Japonic-Koreanic | Messapic | Nicaraguan Sign Language | Tartessian |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | *maw- /maw-/ | 買 /*mai/ | *ʔuwm /ʔuwm/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Fire | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Sun | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Moon | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Star | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Mother | *ʔim- /ʔim-/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | *əma /əma/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Father | *ʔab- /ʔab-/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | *əpa /əpa/ | ana /ˈana/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| I | *ʔan- /ʔan-/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| You | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Name | *sim- /sim-/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eye | *ʕayn- /ʕayn-/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hand | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Heart | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Love | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Tree | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| House | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Dog | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Cat | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eat | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Drink | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| One | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Two | *sin- /sin-/ | — /—/ | *ʔwei /ʔwei/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hello | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Thank you | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Good | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
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