English Explanatory Dictionary

Semitic

English dictionary entry

Meanings

adj
  1. Of or pertaining to a subdivision of Afroasiatic Semitic languages: Akkadian, Amharic, Arabic, Aramaic, Hebrew, Maltese, Phoenician, Syriac, Tigrigna etc.
  2. Of or pertaining to the Semites; of or pertaining to one or more Semitic peoples.
  3. Of or pertaining to the descendants of Shem, the eldest of three sons of Noah.
  4. Of or pertaining to the Israeli, Jewish, or Hebrew people.
  5. Of or pertaining to any of the religions which originated among the Semites; Abrahamic.
name
  1. The Semitic languages in general.

Pronunciation

/səˈmɪt.ɪk/ LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-Semitic.wav [səˈmɪɾ.ɪk] /səˈmɛtɪk/

Word forms

Semitic Shemitic

Etymology

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.

Related words

anti-Semite antisemite antisemitic anti-semitic antisemitism anti-semitism pro-semite prosemite prosemitic pro-semitic prosemitism pro-semitism Sem Semite Semitics Semitism Shem

Derived words

Semitically Semiticism Semiticist Semiticize Semiticness

Translations

Armenian: սեմական Bengali: সামী Catalan: semític Czech: semitský Finnish: seemiläinen French: sémitique German: semitisch Hindi: सामी Icelandic: semískur Irish: Seimíteach Polish: semicki Portuguese: semita Portuguese: semítico
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