Safaitic

Safaitic is a collection of ancient North Arabian dialects spoken by nomadic peoples in the basaltic desert regions of southern Syria, eastern Jordan, and northwestern Saudi Arabia, collectively known as Ḥurrat Raḥah. These dialects are primarily known from a vast corpus of inscriptions found etched onto rocks, particularly the black basalt stones characteristic of the region. The inscriptions date roughly from the 1st century BCE to the 4th century CE.

The Safaitic language is written using a script derived from the Old South Arabian alphabet, also known as the Safaitic script. This script consists of 29 letters and is written from right to left. The inscriptions are typically short and often consist of personal names, genealogies, tribal affiliations, and brief statements about travel, hunting, or longing for home. They provide valuable insights into the social, economic, and religious lives of these nomadic communities.

Scholars have deciphered thousands of these inscriptions, allowing for linguistic analysis and a better understanding of the evolution of the North Arabian languages. While Safaitic shares similarities with other ancient North Arabian dialects like Thamudic and Hismaic, it possesses distinct phonetic and grammatical features. The study of Safaitic contributes significantly to our knowledge of pre-Islamic Arabia and the development of the Arabic language.