Proto-Afro-Asiatic (proto-language)

Proto-Afro-Asiatic is a proto-language that belongs to the Afro-Asiatic language family.

Notice about reconstructed forms

Heads up This page contains 'proto' and '*' records. This means that they are unattested, hypothetical forms derived using the comparative method. These are speculative.

The study of language is aided by means of documented evidence in the form-factor of writing. However, not all languages utilized writing at all points in time. Consequently, scholars rely on the comparative method in order to fill this gap. While useful, this method is not perfect. This is why words that begin with '*' are called reconstructions; they are word forms reconstructed by means of said method.

  • What this means: information with 'proto-' or '*' before it is either speculative, understood as accurate by a minority of scholars, or both
  • Why this is: there is a lack of attested written records or scholars may disagree
  • Why this matters: these data may be inaccurate or subject to rapid change
  • Why this is included: reconstructed languages and terms help scholars study historical linguistics; and they encourage open debate

In short, it is not recommended to rely on these data as facts. Before referencing these data for scholarly works, we recommend checking for newer sources. If referencing said data, we recommend introducing them with indeterminate modifiers such as "some evidence may suggest that ..." or "one interpretation by [scholar name] argues that ...", and so forth.

Proto-Afro-Asiatic proto-languages: A–Z

Proto-language
Reconstructions

Reconstructions in Proto-Afro-Asiatic: A–Z

Citation

MLA 8

PsychLing Contributors. "Proto-Afro-Asiatic." PsychLing, OMNIKA Foundation, 1 Sep. 2023, psylng.org/mli/afro/paa. Accessed 17 May. 2024.

APA 6

PsychLing (2023, September 1). Proto-Afro-Asiatic. Retrieved from https://psylng.org/mli/afro/paa

CMS 16

PsychLing Contributors. "Proto-Afro-Asiatic." Las Vegas, NV: OMNIKA Foundation. Created September 1, 2023. Modified September 3, 2023. Accessed May 17, 2024. https://psylng.org/mli/afro/paa.

Bibliography

DLP

Crystal, David, ed. A Dictionary of Linguistics and Phonetics. 6ed. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing, 2011.

RO 68(1)

Takács, Gábor. "Layers of the Oldest Egyptian Lexicon I." Rocznik Orientalistyczny 68, no. 1 (2015): 85–39.

Wiktionary

Wales, Jimmy D., et al. "Wiktionary: The Free Dictionary." San Francisco, CA: Wikimedia Foundation, Inc. Created December 12, 2002. Accessed July 28, 2023. https://wiktionary.org. [Visit]

Wikipedia

Wales, Jimmy D., Larry Sanger, et al. "Wikipedia: A Multilingual Free Online Encyclopedia." San Francisco, CA: Wikimedia Foundation. Created January 15, 2001. Accessed August 20, 2023. https://www.wikipedia.org. [Visit]

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