Proto-Kartvelian
Proto-language (reconstructed) · historical / hidden variety
Proto-Kartvelian is the reconstructed ancestor of the Kartvelian (South Caucasian) family — Georgian, Mingrelian, Laz and Svan. It is placed in the South Caucasus around 3000–2000 BCE. The family is small, with no demonstrated relationship to any other family (proposals linking it to the North Caucasian families or to Nostratic remain unproven), and is comparatively well reconstructed.
Where it is spoken
31 core words in Proto-Kartvelian
Water
*c̣q̇ar-
/c̣q̇ar-/
Fire
*cecxl-
/cecxl-/
Sun
*mze-
/mze-/
Moon
—
/—/
Star
—
/—/
Mother
*deda-
/deda-/
Father
*mama-
/mama-/
I
*me
/me/
You
*sen-
/sen-/
Name
*saqel-
/saqel-/
Eye
*tʼwal-
/tʼwal-/
Hand
*qel-
/qel-/
Heart
*gul-
/gul-/
Love
—
/—/
Tree
—
/—/
House
—
/—/
Dog
*ʒaɣl-
/ʒaɣl-/
Cat
—
/—/
Eat
*č̣am-
/č̣am-/
Drink
—
/—/
One
*ert-
/ert-/
Two
*jor-
/jor-/
Hello
—
/—/
Thank you
—
/—/
Good
—
/—/
Sources
- Klimov (1998) Etymological Dictionary of the Kartvelian Languages
- Fähnrich (2007) Kartwelisches etymologisches Wörterbuch
Words compared
Compared with related Proto-language (reconstructed) languages
| Meaning | Proto-Kartvelian | Proto-Afroasiatic | Umbrian | Proto-Austroasiatic | Proto-Japonic-Koreanic | Venetic | Meroitic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Water | *c̣q̇ar- /c̣q̇ar-/ | *maw- /maw-/ | utur /ˈu.tur/ | *ɗaːk /ɗaːk/ | — /—/ | ouriom /ˈou.ri.om/ | 𐦠𐦶 /ato/ |
| Fire | *cecxl- /cecxl-/ | — /—/ | pir /pir/ | *ʔuːs /ʔuːs/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Sun | *mze- /mze-/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | *tŋiːʔ /tŋiːʔ/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | 𐦨𐦯 /ˈmasa/ |
| Moon | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Star | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Mother | *deda- /deda-/ | *ʔim- /ʔim-/ | matrer /ˈma.trer/ | *maʔ /maʔ/ | *əma /əma/ | matur /ˈma.tur/ | — /—/ |
| Father | *mama- /mama-/ | *ʔab- /ʔab-/ | patre /ˈpa.tre/ | — /—/ | *əpa /əpa/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| I | *me /me/ | *ʔan- /ʔan-/ | — /—/ | *ʔaɲ /ʔaɲ/ | — /—/ | eχo /ˈexo/ | — /—/ |
| You | *sen- /sen-/ | — /—/ | tu /tuː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Name | *saqel- /saqel-/ | *sim- /sim-/ | nome /ˈnome/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eye | *tʼwal- /tʼwal-/ | *ʕayn- /ʕayn-/ | — /—/ | *mat /mat/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hand | *qel- /qel-/ | — /—/ | manuv-e /ma.ˈnu.we/ | *tiːʔ /tiːʔ/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Heart | *gul- /gul-/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Love | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Tree | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| House | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Dog | *ʒaɣl- /ʒaɣl-/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | *cɔː /cɔː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Cat | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Eat | *č̣am- /č̣am-/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | *ɟaː /ɟaː/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Drink | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| One | *ert- /ert-/ | — /—/ | unu /ˈu.nu/ | *muːj /muːj/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Two | *jor- /jor-/ | *sin- /sin-/ | dur /dur/ | *ɓaːr /ɓaːr/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Hello | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Thank you | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
| Good | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ | — /—/ |
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