Editing Afroasiatic languages (section)

==Vocabulary comparison==
===Pronouns===
The forms of the pronouns are very stable throughout Afroasiatic (excluding Omotic),{{sfn|Meyer|Wolff|2019|p=269}} and they have been used as one of the chief tools for determining whether a language belongs to the family.{{sfn|Güldemann|2018|p=315-316}} However, there is no consensus on what the reconstructed set of Afroasiatic pronouns might have looked like.{{sfn|Gragg|2019|p=29}} A common characteristic of AA languages is the existence of a special set of "independent" pronouns, which are distinct from subject pronouns. They can occur together with subject pronouns but cannot fulfill an object function.{{sfn|Frajzyngier|2012|pp=523–524}} Also common are dependent/affix pronouns (used for direct objects and to mark possession).{{sfn|Gragg|2019|p=29}} For most branches, the first person pronouns contain a [[nasal consonant]] (n, m), whereas the third person displays a [[sibilant consonant]] (s, sh).{{sfn|Güldemann|2018|p=314-315}} Other commonalities are masculine and feminine forms used in both the second and third persons, except in Cushitic and Omotic.{{sfn|Meyer|Wolff|2019|p=269}} These pronouns tend to show a masculine "u" and a feminine "i".{{sfn|Hetzron|2009|p=548}} The Omotic forms of the personal pronouns differ from the others, with only the plural forms in North Omotic appearing potentially to be cognate.{{sfn|Gragg|2019|p=32}}

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:smaller;"
|+ Pronouns in the Afroasiatic family, following {{harvnb|Gragg|2019}}
|-
! Meaning !! North Omotic (Yemsa) !! Beja Cushitic (Baniamer) !! East Cushitic (Somali) !! West Chadic (Hausa) !! East Chadic (Mubi) !! Egyptian !! East Semitic (Akkadian) !! West Semitic (Arabic) !! Berber (Tashelhiyt)
|-
| 'I' (ind.) || tá || aní || aní-ga || ni: || ndé || jnk || ana:ku || ʔana || nkki
|-
| 'me, my' (dep.) || -ná-<br /> -tá- || -u: || -ʔe || na || ní  || -j<br /> wj || -i:<br /> -ya || -i:<br /> -ni: || -i
|-
| 'we' (ind.)  ||  ìnno || hinín || anná-ga<br /> inná-ga || mu: || ána<br /> éné || jnn || ni:nu: || naħnu || nkkwni 
|-
| 'you' (masc. sing. ind.)   || rowspan="2" |  né|| barú:k || rowspan="2" | adí-ga || kai || kám || nt-k || at-ta || ʔan-ta || kiji 
|-
| 'you' (fem. sing. ind.) || batú:k || ke: || kín || nt-ṯ  || at-ti || ʔan-ti  || kmmi (f)
|-
| 'you' (masc. sing., dep.) || rowspan="2" | -né-|| -ú:k(a) || ku || ka || ká  || -k || -ka ||-ka  || -k 
|-
| 'you' (fem. sing., dep.)  ||  -ú:k(i) || ku  || ki || kí  || -ṯ || -ki || -ki || -m 
|-
| 'you' (plural, dep.)  ||  -nitì- ||  -ú:kna || idin || ku || ká(n) || -ṯn || -kunu (m)<br /> -kina (f) ||-kum (m)<br /> -kunna (f) || -un (m)<br /> -un-t (f)
|-
| 'he' (ind.)  || rowspan="2" | bár ||  barú:s  || isá-ga || ši:|| ár || nt-f || šu  || huwa || ntta (m)
|-
| 'she' (ind.) || batú:s || ijá-ga || ita || tír ||  nt-s || ši || hiya || ntta-t
|-
| 'he' (dep.) || rowspan="2" | -bá- || rowspan="2" | -ūs || rowspan="2" | – || ši || à || -f<br /> sw  ||-šu || -hu ||  rowspan="2" | -s
|-
| 'she' (dep.)  || ta || dì || -s<br /> sy || -ša || -ha:
|-
|}

===Numerals===
Unlike in the [[Indo-European]] or [[Austronesian languages|Austronesian]] language families, numerals in AA languages cannot be traced to a proto-system.{{sfn|Zaborski|1987|p=317}}{{sfn|Kaye|Daniels|1992|p=439}} The Cushitic and Chadic numeral systems appear to have originally been base 5. The system in Berber, Egyptian, and Semitic, however, has independent words for the numbers 6–9.{{sfn|Zaborski|1987|pp=317–318}} Thus, it is possible that the numerals in Egyptian, Berber, and Semitic are more closely related, whereas the Cushitic and Chadic numerals are more closely related to each other.{{sfn|Lipiński|2001|p=280}}{{sfn|Kaye|Daniels|1992|pp=440–441}} Modern Chadic numeral systems are sometimes [[decimal]], having separate names for the numbers 1–10, and sometimes [[quinary|base-5]], deriving the numbers 6–9 from the numbers 1–5 in some way.{{sfn|Frajzyngier|Shay|2012a|p=273}} Some families show more than one word for a numeral: Chadic, Semitic, and Berber each have two words for two,{{sfn|Kaye|Daniels|1992|p=440}}{{sfn|Lipiński|2001|p=284}} and Semitic has four words for one.{{sfn|Lipiński|2001|p=281}} Andrzej Zaborski further notes that the numbers "one", "two", and "five" are particularly susceptible to replacement by new words, with "five" often based on a word meaning "hand".{{sfn|Zaborski|1987|p=317}}

Another factor making comparisons of AA numeral systems difficult is the possibility of [[loanword|borrowing]].{{sfn|Kaye|Daniels|1992|p=439}} Only some Berber languages maintain the native Berber numeral system, with many using Arabic loans for higher numbers and some from any numeral beyond two.{{sfn|Meyer|Wolff|2019|p=295}} In some Berber languages, the roots for one and two are also borrowed from Arabic.{{sfn|Lipiński|2001|p=280-281}} Some South Cushitic numerals are borrowed from [[Nilotic languages]], other Cushitic numerals have been borrowed from [[Ethiopian Semitic]] languages.{{sfn|Zaborski|1987|p=325}}

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:smaller;"
|-
|+ Numerals from throughout Afroasiatic, using data from {{harvnb|Blažek|2017}}, {{harvnb|Blažek|2018}}, {{harvnb|Lipiński|2001}}, and {{harvnb|Frajzyngier|Shay|2012a}}
|-
! colspan="2" | Meaning !! Egyptian !! Tuareg (Berber) !! Akkadian (East Semitic) !! Arabic (West Semitic) !! Beja (North Cushitic) !! West Central Oromo (Cushitic) !! Lele (East Chadic) !! Gidar (Central Chadic) !! Bench (North Omotic)
|-
| rowspan="2" | One || m. || wꜥ ||  yiwən, yan, iğ ||  ištēn ||  wāḥid||  gáal || rowspan="2" | tokko ||  rowspan="2" | pínà ||  rowspan="2" | tákà || rowspan="2" | mat'
|-
| f. || wꜥ.t  || yiwət, išt  || ištiāt || wāḥida ||gáat
|-
|rowspan="2" |Two || m. || sn.wj ||  sin, sən ||  šinā || ʔiṯnāni ||  máloob || rowspan="2" | lama || rowspan="2" | sò || rowspan="2" | súlà || rowspan="2" | nam
|-
| f. || sn.tj || snat, sənt || šittā || ʔiṯnatāni || máloot
|-
| rowspan="2" | Three || m. || ḫmt.w || ḵraḍ, šaṛḍ || šalāšat ||  ṯalāṯa ||  mháy || rowspan="2" | sadii ||rowspan="2" | súbù || rowspan="2" | hókù || rowspan="2" | kaz
|-
| f. || ḫmt.t || ḵraṭt, šaṛṭ || šalāš || ṯalāṯ ||  mháyt
|-
| rowspan="2" | Four || m. || (j)fd.w ||  kkuẓ || erbet(t) || ʔarbaʕa ||  faḍíg || rowspan="2" | afur || rowspan="2" | pórìn || rowspan="2" | póɗó || rowspan="2" | od
|-
| f. || (j)fd.t ||  kkuẓt || erba || ʔarbaʕ || faḍígt
|-
| rowspan="2" | Five || m. ||  dj.w || səmmus, afus ||  ḫamšat ||  ḫamsa ||  áy || rowspan="2" | šani || rowspan="2" |  bày || rowspan="2" | ɬé || rowspan="2" | ut͡ʃ 
|-
| f. || dj.t || səmmust || ḫamiš || ḫams || áyt
|-
| rowspan="2" | Six || m || sjs.w || sḍis || šiššet || sitta ||  aságwir || rowspan="2" | jaha || rowspan="2" | ménéŋ || rowspan="2" | ɬré || rowspan="2" | sapm 
|-
| f. || sjs.t || sḍist || šiš(š) || sitt || asagwitt
|-
| rowspan="2" | Seven || m || sfḫ.w ||  sa ||  sebet(t) ||  sabʕa || asarámaab || rowspan="2" | tolba || rowspan="2" | mátàlíŋ || rowspan="2" | bùhúl ||rowspan="2" | napm 
|-
| f. || sfḫ.t || sat || seba || sabʕ || asarámaat
|-
| rowspan="2" | Eight || m. || ḫmn.w ||  tam || samānat || ṯamāniya || asúmhay || rowspan="2" | saddet || rowspan="2" | jurgù || rowspan="2" | dòdòpórò || rowspan="2" | nyartn 
|-
| f. || ḫmn.t || tamt || samānē || ṯamānin || asúmhayt
|-
| rowspan="2" | Nine || m. || psḏ.w || tẓa || tišīt || tisʕa ||  aššaḍíg || rowspan="2" | sagal || rowspan="2" | célà ||rowspan="2" | váyták ||  rowspan="2" |  irstn 
|-
| f. || psḏ.t || tẓat ||  tiše || tisʕ || aššaḍígt
|-
| rowspan="2" | Ten || m. || mḏ.w|| mraw || ešeret || ʕašara || támin || rowspan="2" | kuḍan ||rowspan="2" | gòrò || rowspan="2" | kláù ||rowspan="2" | tam
|-
| f. || mḏ.t || mrawt || ešer ||  ʕašr ||  támint
|}

===Cognates===
<!-- One sound sample per phylum - alphabetical -->
Afroasiatic languages share a vocabulary of Proto-Afroasiatic origin to varying extents.{{sfn|Meyer|Wolff|2019|p=248}} Writing in 2004, John Huehnergard notes the great difficulty in establishing cognate sets across the family.{{sfn|Huehnergard|2004|p=141}} Identifying cognates is difficult because the languages in question are often separated by thousands of years of development and many languages within the family have long been in contact with each other, raising the possibility of loanwords.{{sfn|Gragg|2019|p=41}} Work is also hampered because of the poor state of documentation of many languages.{{sfn|Porkhomovsky|2020|p=273}}

There are two etymological dictionaries of Afroasiatic, one by Christopher Ehret, and one by Vladimir Orel and Olga Stolbova, both from 1995. Both works provide highly divergent reconstructions and have been heavily criticized by other scholars.{{sfn|Güldemann|2018|p=317-318}} Andrzej Zaborski refers to Orel and Stolbova's reconstructions as "controversial", and Ehret's as "not acceptable to many scholars".{{sfn|Zaborski|2011}} Tom Güldemann argues that much comparative work in Afroasiatic suffers from not attempting first to reconstruct smaller units within the individual branches, but instead comparing words in the individual languages.{{sfn|Güldemann|2018|p=318}} Nevertheless, both dictionaries agree on some items and some proposed cognates are uncontroversial.{{sfn|Gragg|2019|p=41}}{{sfn|Huehnergard|2004|p=141}} Such cognates tend to rely on relatively simple [[sound correspondence]]s.{{sfn|Hayward|2000|p=94}}

{| class="wikitable" style="font-size:smaller;"
|-
|+ Some widely recognized cognates in Afroasiatic, following {{harvnb|Hayward|2000}}, {{harvnb|Gragg|2019}}, and {{harvnb|Huehnergard|2004}}{{efn|Many of these roots have other proposed cognates that are not included on the table.}}
|-
! rowspan="2" | Meaning !! colspan="2" | Proto-Afroasiatic !! rowspan="2" | Omotic !! rowspan="2" | Cushitic !!rowspan="2" | Chadic !! rowspan="2" |Egyptian !! rowspan="2" |Semitic !! rowspan="2" | Berber
|-
!  {{harvnb|Ehret|1995}}{{efn|A [[caron]] ˇ over a vowel indicates rising [[Tone (linguistics)|tone]], and a [[circumflex]] ^ over a vowel indicates falling tone. V indicates a [[vowel]] of unknown quality. ʔ indicates a [[glottal stop]]. * indicates [[Linguistic reconstruction|reconstructed forms]] based on [[Comparative method (linguistics)|comparison of related languages]].}} !! {{harvnb|Orel|Stolbova|1995}}
|-
| to strike, to squeeze || – || *bak- || Gamo ''bak-'' 'strike' || Afar ''bak'' || Wandala ''bak'' 'to strike, beat'; 
(possibly) Hausa bùgaː 'to hit, strike 
| ''bk'' 'kill (with a sword)' || Arabic ''bkk'' 'to squeeze, tear' || Tuareg ''bakkat'' 'to strike, pound'
|-
| blood || *dîm-<br /> *dâm- || *dam-  || Kaffa ''damo'' 'blood';<br /> Aari ''zomʔi'' 'to bleed' || (cf. Oromo ''di:ma'' 'red') || Bolewa ''dom'' || (cf. ''jdmj'' 'red linen') || Akkadian ''damu'' 'blood' || Ghadames ''dəmm-ən'' 'blood'
|-
| food || – || *kamaʔ- / *kamay- || – || Afar ''okm-'' 'to eat' || Hausa ''ka:ma:ma:'' 'snack';<br /> Tumak ''ka:m'' 'mush' || ''kmj'' 'food' || – || –
|-
| to be old, elder || *gâd-/gûd- || *gad- || – || Oromo ''gada'' 'age group, generation';<br /> Burji ''gad-uwa'' 'old man'|| Ngizim ''gad'e'' 'old' || – || Arabic ''gadd-'' 'grandfather, ancestor' || –
|-
| to say || *geh- || *gay- || Sheko ''ge'' 'to say';<br /> Aari ''gai-'' 'to say' || – || Hausa ''gaya'' 'to say' || ''ḏwj'' 'to call, say' || (cf. Hebrew ''gʕy'' 'to shout') || –
|-
| tongue || *lis'- 'to lick' || *les- 'tongue' || Kaffa ''mi-laso'' 'tongue' || – || Mwaghavul ''liis'' tongue,<br /> Gisiga ''eles'' 'tongue 
Hausa halshe(háɽ.ʃè) 'tongue'; lashe 'to lick'
| ''ns'' 'tongue' || Akkadian ''liša:nu'' 'tongue' || Kabyle ''iləs'' 'tongue'
|-
| to die || *maaw- || *mawut- || – || Rendille ''amut'' 'to die, to be ill' || Hausa ''mutu'' 'to die',<br /> Mubi ''ma:t'' 'to die' || ''mwt'' 'to die' || Hebrew ''mwt'', 'to die'<br /> Geʽez ''mo:ta'' 'to die' || Kabyle ''əmmət'' 'to die'
|-
| to fly, to soar || *pîr- || *pir- || (cf. Yemsa ''fill-'' 'to jump';<br /> Dime ''far'' 'to jump') || Beja ''fir'' 'to fly' || Hausa ''fi:ra'' 'to soar';<br> Mafa ''parr'', ''perr'' 'bird's flight'  || ''pꜣ'' 'to fly';<br /> ''prj'' 'to soar, rise' || Ugaritic ''pr'' 'to flee';<br /> Arabic ''frr'' 'to flee' || Ahogar ''fərə-t'' 'to fly'
|-
| name || *sǔm / *sǐm- || *süm- || – || – || Hausa ''su:na:'' 'name';<br /> Sura ''sun'' 'name';<br /> Ga'anda ''ɬim'' 'name' || – || Akkadian ''šumu'' 'name' || Kabyle ''isəm'' 'name'
|-
| to sour || *s'ăm- || – || Mocha ''č'àm-'' 'to be bitter' || PEC ''*cam-'' 'to rot' || ''*s'am'' 'sour'; Hausa (t)sʼáː.mí 'sour'
| ''smj'' 'curds' 
| Arabic ''sumūț'' 'to begin to turn sour' || –
|-
| to spit || *tuf- || *tuf- || – || Beja ''tuf'' 'to spit';<br /> Kemant ''təff y-'' 'to spit';<br /> Somali ''tuf'' 'to spit' || Hausa t''u:fa 'to spit'''|| ''tf'' 'to spit' || Aramaic ''tpp'' 'to spit';<br /> Arabic ''tff'' 'to spit' || –
|-
| to rend, tear || *zaaʕ- || – || Gamo ''zaʔ'' 'to rend, split' || Dahalo ''ḏaaʕ-'' 'to rend, to tear (of an animal tearing its prey)'<br /> Kw'adza ''daʔ-'' 'to bite'{{efn| Ehret's dictionary lists "Proto-South-Cushitic ''*daaʕ-'' 'to rend, tear', a root he reconstructs from the two words listed here in {{harvnb|Ehret|1980}}.}} || Ngizim ''dáar-'' 'to cut into long strips' || || Arabic ''zaʕy-'' 'to snatch violently from, tear out' || –
|}
:''Abbreviations:'' PEC='Proto-Eastern Cushtic'.