westaramäische

West Aramaic, or Westaramäische in German, denotes the western branch of the Aramaic languages, part of the Northwest Semitic group. Traditionally, it comprises varieties historically spoken in the Levant and surrounding regions and contrasts with East Aramaic. West Aramaic languages are characterized by linguistic developments that set them apart from eastern varieties, reflected in phonology, lexicon, and morphology.

Historically, West Aramaic was used from the late 2nd millennium BCE through late antiquity, with some varieties persisting into modern times in restricted communities. Well-attested West Aramaic varieties include Samaritan Aramaic, Jewish Palestinian Aramaic, and Palmyrene Aramaic. Palmyrene is known from inscriptions dating roughly from the 1st century BCE to the 3rd century CE; Samaritan Aramaic survives in Samaritan liturgical texts, while Jewish Palestinian Aramaic is identified in certain Palestinian rabbinic and targumic sources. The West Aramaic area also contributed to the development of Western Neo-Aramaic in a small number of communities in modern Syria.

Scripts and writing: West Aramaic languages wrote in the Aramaic script, with subvarieties adopting distinct scripts in some cases—for example, Samaritan Aramaic using the Samaritan script and Palmyrene Aramaic using the Palmyrene script.

Current status: Most West Aramaic varieties are extinct as everyday languages. Some survive only in liturgical or ceremonial contexts (notably Samaritan Aramaic), while Western Neo-Aramaic remains spoken in a few villages in Syria. Academic study of West Aramaic focuses on historical linguistics, inscriptions, and philology.