Semitic

/səˈmɪdɪk/

Other forms: Semitics

Semitic describes a group of languages — including Hebrew and Arabic — as well as the people who traditionally speak them.

Semitic is rooted in the Biblical name Shem, the son of Noah, who is traditionally thought of as the direct ancestor of the Jews and Arabs. While the word is often thought of as another term for "Jewish," this is just one of a larger group of people who fall into the category. As well as Arabic and Hewbrew, Semitic languages also include dozens of ancient ones, including Phoenician and Aramic, and modern languages such as Maltese.

Definitions of Semitic

1. noun

   a major branch of the Afro-Asiatic language family
   types:

   Akkadian

   an ancient branch of the Semitic languages

   Amharic, Ethiopian language

   the dominant and official language of Ethiopia; a Semitic language much influenced by the Cushitic language with which Amhara have been in close contact

   Arabic, Arabic language

   the Semitic language of the Arabs; spoken in a variety of dialects

   Aramaic

   a Semitic language originally of the ancient Arameans but still spoken by other people in southwestern Asia

   Maltese, Maltese language, Malti

   the national language of the Republic of Malta; a Semitic language derived from Arabic but with many loan words from Italian, Spanish, and Norman-French

   Canaanitic, Canaanitic language

   a group of Semitic languages

   Hebrew

   the ancient Canaanitic language of the Hebrews that has been revived as the official language of Israel

   Assyrian, Assyrian Akkadian

   an extinct language of the Assyrians in ancient Mesopotamia

   Biblical Aramaic

   the form of Aramaic that was spoken in Palestine in the time of the New Testament

   Assyrian, Assyrian Neo-Aramaic

   the language of modern Iraq

   Mandaean, Mandean

   the form of Aramaic used by the Mandeans

   Canaanite

   the extinct language of the Semitic people who occupied Canaan before the Israelite conquest

   Phoenician

   the extinct language of an ancient Semitic people who dominated trade in the ancient world

   Ugaritic

   an extinct Semitic language of northern Syria

   type of:

   Afrasian, Afrasian language, Afro-Asiatic, Afroasiatic, Afroasiatic language, Hamito-Semitic

   a large family of related languages spoken both in Asia and Africa
2. adjective

   of or relating to the group of Semitic languages
   “Semitic tongues have a complicated morphology”
3. adjective

   of or relating to people who speak Semitic languages, especially Hebrew and Arabic
   synonyms: Semite