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Semitic

//səˈmɪt.ɪk// adj, name

Definitions

Adjective
  1. 1
    Of or pertaining to a subdivision of Afroasiatic Semitic languages: Amharic, Arabic, Aramaic, Syriac, Akkadian, Hebrew, Maltese, Tigrigna, Phoenician etc. not-comparable
  2. 2
    Of or pertaining to the Semites; of or pertaining to one or more Semitic peoples. not-comparable

    "On the other hand, scholars say that the Philistines were an Indo-European people not related to the Semitic Palestinians."

  3. 3
    Of or pertaining to the Semites; of or pertaining to one or more Semitic peoples.; Of or pertaining to the descendants of Shem, the eldest of three sons of Noah. not-comparable
  4. 4
    Of or pertaining to the Semites; of or pertaining to one or more Semitic peoples.; Of or pertaining to the Israeli, Jewish, or Hebrew people. not-comparable
  5. 5
    Of or pertaining to the Semites; of or pertaining to one or more Semitic peoples.; Of or pertaining to any of the religions which originated among the Semites; Abrahamic. not-comparable

    "Thus we trace ever and again the similarities which are to be found among the Semitic religions."

Adjective
  1. 1
    of or relating to or characteristic of Semites wordnet
  2. 2
    of or relating to the group of Semitic languages wordnet
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    The Semitic languages in general.
Noun
  1. 1
    a major branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family wordnet

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Semite + -ic (18th century), from German semitisch, from Ancient Greek Σήμ (Sḗm), from the Hebrew שֵׁם (Šēm, “Shem”), the name of the eldest son of Noah in biblical tradition (Genesis 5.32, 6.10, 10.21), considered the forefather of the Semitic peoples. Perhaps derived from Akkadian 𒈬 (šumu, literally “name" or "son”). The word was coined and first applied to the Semitic languages by August Ludwig von Schlözer in 1781.

Etymology 2

From Semite + -ic (18th century), from German semitisch, from Ancient Greek Σήμ (Sḗm), from the Hebrew שֵׁם (Šēm, “Shem”), the name of the eldest son of Noah in biblical tradition (Genesis 5.32, 6.10, 10.21), considered the forefather of the Semitic peoples. Perhaps derived from Akkadian 𒈬 (šumu, literally “name" or "son”). The word was coined and first applied to the Semitic languages by August Ludwig von Schlözer in 1781.

See also for "semitic"

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