Re: [westasianconlangs] Questions about Semitic languages - westasianconlangs messages

Hi Nathaniel,

Hebrew and Arabic are not specially more closed related each other than each with amharic. Hebrew is a member of Canaanite (in fact Ancient Hebrew, Phoenician, Ammonite, Moabite and Edomite were high probably mutually inteligible).

Arabic has equidistant characteristics between Canaanite Group and South-Arabic Group (Minean, Sabean, ...). Finally Ethiosemitic is probably and offshot from South Arabic (century 7th BC), Ethio-semitic is divided in two main subgroups: northern-ethio-semitic (Ge`ez, Tigrinya, ...) and southern-ethio-semitic (Amhraric, Gurage, ...). You can see an excellent classification in:

http://www.proel.org/alfabetos/semleng.gif

Davius Sanctex

First, I know Hebrew and Arabic are closely related, and I see that Amharic (the national language of Ethiopia, about 15 million speakers) is in the same Semitic subgroup, but it seems to me it doesn't share much in common with Hebrew or Arabic. So how closely related is Hebrew/Arabic to Amharic? Second, does Amharic follow the three-consonant system of Arabic and Hebrew (the way, for example, the root k-t-b means writing, and kitab is a book, and kataba is he wrote, and maktub is a library, etc. etc.)? Also, on a less serious note, Amharic script is REALLY PRETTY! Nathaniel

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