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Geez

ግዕዝ

Geez was an Afro-Asiatic language once spoken in Ethiopia and Eritrea.

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Geez · 10.1°N 40.7°E

Geʽez ( or ; ግዕዝ Gəʽ(ə)z [ˈɡɨʕ(ɨ)z]), sometimes referred to in scholarly literature as Classical Ethiopic, is an ancient South Semitic language. The language originates from what is now Ethiopia and Eritrea.

As of today, Geʽez is used as the main liturgical language of the Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church, the Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church, the Ethiopian Catholic Church, the Eritrean Catholic Church, and the Beta Israel Jewish community.

The first inscription of Ge'ez is from the Hawulti Obelisk in the historic region of Akele Guzay. It is an ancient pre-Aksumite obelisk located in ancient city of Metera in Eritrea. The monument dates tentatively to circa 400 CE in the early Aksumite period and bears the first known example of the ancient Geʽez script.

From Wikipedia · Geʽez · CC BY-SA 4.0

Words in Geez

MeaningWordRomanization
fatherኣብʾab
childወልድwäld
manዕድʿəd
earእዝንʾəzn
tongueልስሳንləssan
handእድʾəd
heartልብləb
headርእስrəʾs
bloodደምdäm
boneዐፅምʿäṣ́m
kneeብርክbərk
liverከብድkäbd
waterማይmay
fireእሳትʾəsat
sunፀሐይṣ́äḥäy
starኮከብkokäb
skyሰማይsämay
windነፋስnäfas
stoneእብንʾəbn
mountainደብርdäbr
seaባሕርbaḥr
treeዕፅʿəṣ́
leafቈጽልḳʷäṣl
nightሌሊትlelit
dogከልብkälb
catድመትdəmät
fishዓሣʿaśa
birdዖፍʿof
horseፈረስfäräs
pigሐሣምḥäśam

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Glottolog · geez1241 · Wikipedia (English) · Ethnologue · gez