ProtoSemitic

Proto-Semitic is the reconstructed common ancestor language of the Semitic languages. It is not a language that was ever written down, but rather a hypothetical language that linguists have painstakingly reconstructed through comparative linguistics. By examining the similarities and differences between modern and ancient Semitic languages like Arabic, Hebrew, Aramaic, and Amharic, scholars have been able to infer the features of their shared parent tongue.

The reconstruction of Proto-Semitic is based on systematic sound correspondences, grammatical patterns, and lexical items. For example, the consistent replacement of a certain consonant in one Semitic language with a different consonant in another suggests a specific sound change that occurred after Proto-Semitic diverged. Similarly, shared grammatical structures and cognates (words with a common origin) point to features present in the ancestral language.

Scholars generally place the origin of Proto-Semitic somewhere in the Arabian Peninsula or the Levant, with estimates for its breakup into daughter languages ranging from the 4th to the 2nd millennium BCE. The study of Proto-Semitic is crucial for understanding the historical development of Semitic languages and their relationship to other Afro-Asiatic languages. It provides insights into the culture, environment, and migrations of the ancient peoples who spoke these languages.