Semitic languages: Quick Facts

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Semitic languages: distribution

cuneiform tablet

Medieval Hebrew: Sefardic script

Qurʾān: Kūfic script

A diagram shows the family tree of Semitic languages, branching into West Semitic and East Semitic. West Semitic includes Ethiopic, Modern and Old South Arabian, Arabic and its dialects, Maltese, and Northwest Semitic languages like Amorite, Ugaritic, Canaanite, Aramaic, and Modern Hebrew. East Semitic includes Akkadian, Old Akkadian, Babylonian, and Assyrian.

Distribution of the Afro-Asiatic languages.

migration of Afro-Asiatic languages

A diagram showing the family tree of Afro-Asiatic modern languages, branching into Libyo-Chadic, Egypto-Semitic, Cushitic, and Omotic groups, with examples like Hausa, Hebrew, Somali, and Ometo listed under each branch.

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Topics

Ugaritic language Old South Arabian languages Punic language Old North Arabian language Moabite language Eblaite language Phoenician language Canaanite languages Amorite language Hebrew language Cushitic languages Chadic languages Berber languages Omotic languages Egyptian language

Key People

Antoine Galland, engraving by Morel after a portrait by Hyacinthe Rigaud

Antoine Galland

French scholar

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Charles Cutler Torrey

American biblical scholar

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Johannes Peder Ejler Pedersen

Danish scholar

Sayce, detail of an oil painting by an unknown artist, c. 1920; in the Ashmolean Museum, Oxford

Archibald H. Sayce

British language scholar

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Wilhelm Gesenius

German biblical critic

Nöldeke, Theodor

Theodor Nöldeke

German linguist

Buddhist engravings on wall in Thailand. Hands on wall. Hompepage blog 2009, history and society, science and technology, geography and travel, explore discovery

Languages & Alphabets