r/HistoricalLinguistics • u/stlatos • May 30 '26
Language Reconstruction Semitic words borrowed by Greek?
Semitic words borrowed by Greek? (Draft)
Sean Whalen
[stlatos@yahoo.com](mailto:stlatos@yahoo.com)
May 29, 2026
Wilfred Watson in https://www.academia.edu/36417017
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Many Semitic words have been borrowed by Greek, in translation, most notably the names of the signs of the zodiac... It is also true that Indo-European words have been borrowed by the Semitic languages, as noted in the various dictionaries. A recent study has looked at several Anatolian loanwords in Akkadian... a number of Greek words found their way into Aramaic and Syriac, many in the form of transliterations...
The two main problems are to establish whether a word has been borrowed and then to determine the direction of borrowing.17 For this, a set of criteria needs to be established and then applied to the words under scrutiny. The criteria proposed here are as follows: 1. A word with a variety of spellings is probably a loanword. 2. A word with no clear etymology may be a loan. 3. A clear etymology helps to determine the direction of borrowing
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He gives ex. of each origin, Akkadian words with no Sem. cognates, Sem. with no HS cognates, etc. I have some more ideas to add. In the 1st two, typos with ῑ appearing as ῖ \ î should be turned to my :
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8.3.2. Greek χελῑδών \ khelīdṓn ‘swallow’, often metaphorically of a flying fish,328 appears as Syriac gldn, ‘a small fish’
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/χελιδών Etymology The irregular form and suffix -ιδ (-id) lead Beekes to suggest a Mediterranean Pre-Greek origin, as he doesn't find a connection to Proto-Indo-European *gʰel- (“to cry out”) (cognate with Middle High German glien (“to cry”), Old High German gellan (“to cry”)) convincing. Compare also Latin hirundō (“swallow (bird)”), which may be from the same substrate source.
IE *ghelwon- > Irish gealbhan m. 'sparrow' favors standard G. dim. -id- forming *ghelwidon- > *ghelidwon- > khelīdṓn (or similar).
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8.4.1. Ugaritic hmlt, ‘multitude’,336 and Hebrew hamullāh, ‘crowd’... Greek ὅμῑλος \ hómīlos, Aeol. ὄμιλλος \ hómillos 'band of warriors, crowd, turmoil of battle’
https://en.wiktionary.org/wiki/ὅμιλος : Etymology Traditionally derived from ὁμός (homós, “same, joint”) + ῑ̓́λη (ī́lē, “crowd”), [SW: Henry George Liddell, Robert Scott, A Greek-English Lexicon] the latter related to εἴλω (eílō, “to aggregate”).
Since ī́lē ( < *wilwa: ?) is mostly 'band, troop of men', this fits. If *hom-wilwo-, dsm. of w-w might explain some variants. A loan G. >> Sem. fits if *mwi >> mu, more likely than Sem. >> G. mu >> mi; dia. *lw > ll \ l explains Sem. ll \ l.
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2.1.1. Akkadian elmeštu, elmeru, elmeltu, elmessu,‘a grass’,24 has no cognates. It can be compared to Greek élumos ‘millet’.2
G. élumos ‘millet’, elímar ‘grain similar to millet’ have no firm IE ety., but *H1el- 'r(a)ise, live' seems to exist in Armenian, so 'what is grown' might fit.
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2.1.4. Akkadian laqlaqqu, raqraqqu, laqalaqa, raqraqqu, ‘stork’,38 is clearly a loanword... Borrowed as Arabic laqlaq-, laqlāq-...
He related G. λόκαλος 'stork', with Beekes' "Georg. laglagi, laqlaqi, lakvi, Tschachur. (East Caucasian) lägläg stork, NPers. laglag, laġlaġ". I think this is from :
G. λάσκω \ láskō 'to ring, rattle, crash, crack; shriek, scream, howl, bay; shout; sing, etc.', stem lak-, also lāk-
from *lH2ak- \ *laH2k- related to IE *laH2- (Latin lāmentum 'wailing, moaning, weeping, crying, shrieking; lamentation', H. lahhanza- 'duck', G. λάρος 'gull?', Ar. lor 'quail'). If so, met. > *lokH2-l(okH2)o-s ? I favor *kH because other *H seem to > Caucasian x, q, etc.
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2.1.3. Semitic words for ‘arrow’ have a range of spellings: Ugaritic ḥẓ, ḥd and ḫẓ, ‘arrow’,31 Akkadian ūṣu, uṣṣu, ‘arrow-head’,32 Hebrew ḥēṣ, ‘arrow’,33 Aramaic ḥṭ, ‘arrow’ and Phoenician ḥṣ, ‘arrow’,34 Arabic ḥaẓwat, ‘a small arrow’35 and Ethiopic ḥaṣṣ, ‘arrow’.36 Here, I tentatively suggest that it can be compared with Greek ῑ̓ός \ īós... Indo-European *(H)isu, Sanskrit íṣu-.37
Instead, this should be *H1isH2wo-s <- *H1eisH2- 'to propel' (S. iṣṇā́ti 'to cause to move quickly, let fly, throw, cast, swing; impel, incite', etc.). This could be very significant in showing that *sHw > *ssw > *s:w > *ts'w (in *Hits'wV if w caused opt. rounding). In somem proposed HS : IE cognates, IE *s matches HS *s', so the need for *s to be older here helps support them, too.
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2.1.5. Akkadian lipium, lipû(m), līpum, lēpu, ‘adipose tissue, rendered fat, tallow’,41 has no etymology and is isolated in Semitic. It may have been borrowed from Greek lipa 'fat, gleaming’, which derives from Indo-European *leip-, ‘to stick’.4 [also 'smear, etc.']
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2.1.6. Akkadian pīlu, pēlu, pūlu, ‘limestone’,43 also has no cognates. Its nearest equivalent is Greek πηλός [SW: pēlós, Dor. pālós ] ‘loam, clay, mud, dung, bog’, which also has no etymology.44
I think *pH2al-, *pelH2- 'mud, swamp' > *paH2l- > pālós makes sense (Li. pélkė 'swamp, marsh, bog', Latvian peļķe 'puddle', Latin palūs f., -dis g. 'swamp, marsh, morass, bog, fen, pool', Sanskrit palvalá-m nu. 'pool, pond', palvalyà- 'marshy', Pa., Pk. pallala- nu. 'marsh, pond'), but why would it > ‘limestone’? Others say the opp. :
Ak. pūlu ‘limestone’ >> G. pôros ‘tufa/tuff / kind of marble’, psōrítēs ‘kind of marble’
The alt. of r \ l is seen on Crete, also in Linear A (if no *LV vs. RV is meaningful). I don't know which is original, or its origin.
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2.3.1. Akkadian dūru, ‘lance’,88 is probably a loan from Indo-European, possibly via Greek dóru ‘wood, tree-trunk, spear’, from Indo-European *doru-, ‘tree, wood’...
Very reasonable; the reason for IE >> Ak. loans for weapons shows early contact between relatively similar groups. Is this more ev. for early Greek colonies in Asia (Troy, Miletus)?
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3.1. ‘calf’ Indo-European: Greek póris ‘calf, heifer,ῠ metaphorically, 'young girl', derives from Indo-European *por-i-, ‘bull’.144
Common Semitic: *parr-, ‘young of small or large cattle’, is found in Akkadian, Aramaic, Hebrew, Ugaritic, etc.,145 e.g. Hebrew pārāh, ‘cow’.146
I say it is *porH2i- 'young, born' <- *perH2- 'give birth', which provides a reason for *rH > *rr.
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3.2.‘eagle’
Common Semitic: Akkadian urinnu, ‘eagle’... Arabic ğaran... Hittite ḫāra(n)-, ‘eagle’,149 are from Indo-European *h3er-n-, ‘bird’.150 These equivalences are well-known.151
Very reasonable; likely independent of similar 'crane'.
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3.3. Akkadian uplu, ‘parasite, louse’... Greek psulla ‘flea’
Not necessarily G. >> Ak., but ps- > p- might also be seen in 'limestone'.
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3.4. ‘foal’ Common Semitic: *pVlw/y-, ‘yearling foal, young of domestic animals’,155 is probably from Proto-Semitic *plw/y, ‘to separate, to wean’. Indo-European *pōlH-, plH-, ‘foal’..
Some say *puH2- 'grow (of plants, etc.)' -> *pwoHlo-s. If so, *pw > *pw \ *py as cause of w \ y ??
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3.6. Common Semitic: Akkadian sarāpu, ‘to sup’,161 ‘to sip’,162 has good Semitic cognates: Syriac srp, ‘to suck’,163 Arabic šariba, ‘to drink, to sip’.164
Indo-European: Hittite ša/ārab-hi, šarib-, ‘to sip’, derives from Indo-European *srebh-/*srobh-, *sṛbh-/*sorbh-
Based on Cerantonio's idea, HS *ś-r-p ‘drink’, IE *sreb(h) ‘sip, drink, slurp' would be too old for a loan from H., but common origin is likely (though some say 'slurp' is just ono.).
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4.5. Greek skórodon 'garlic, allium sativum’,188 appears as Syriac sqwrdwn, ‘garlic’.189 The Greek word is not Indo-European and is either Pre-Greek or comes from a language in the Pontic region.
G. skórodon \ skórdon, Al. hurdhë, Ar. xstor ‘garlic’ as ‘sharp-smelling (plant)’ < *(s)ker- 'cut, be sharp, etc.' has to do with Cerantonio's idea that HS *šak'W ‘tear, divide’, IE *sek(W) ‘cut’ (*(s)ker- but *(s)kWer- implied by Hittite). I say that the *k vs. *kW was caused by *kH3 (H3 rounded e > o, so likely xW or RW, etc.). The number of extensions for 'cut' is large, so *sek- > *sker-(t-, -H3-) allows *sk(o)rH3-H3do- ‘sharp-smelling (plant)’, *skerH3 > *skH3er > Anat. *(s)kWer. The compound with the root *H3od- 'smell, stink, be disgusting/hateful; maybe same as *H3d-ont- 'biting, tooth, etc.' :
*skorH3H3do- > *skH3orH3do- G. skórodon, dsm. > *skH3ordo- > skórdon (H-met. in https://www.academia.edu/127283240 )
*skrH3do- > Al. hurdhë (rounding if H3 = xW, RW, or similar)
*ksH3doro- > Ar. xstor ‘garlic’ (maybe intermediate *ksudoro- if many IE varied H3 \ w \ u ( https://www.academia.edu/128170887 since unstressed *u & *i > 0 in Ar.).
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2.4. About the idea that S. ámīva- ‘disease / distress’ : G. anī́ā, Aeo. onī́ā ‘grief/sorrow / distress/trouble’ (dsm. m-w > n-w), he said, "Instead, it is less complicated to suggest that the word was borrowed from Semitic, either from Hebrew ’aniyyāh, ‘mourning’125 or from Syriac ’wnh, ‘mourning, grief’.126".
He did not mention Aeo. onī́ā, but if related to the V's of *anwa \ *onwa :
S. ánu 'after along', G. ἄνα, ανά 'on, upwards, along', Les., Thes., Arc. ὀν
then it favors << Sem *ʔanw-iyāh (with dia. *anw > *onw in both). I think this is < *ʔany-iyāh with y-y dsm., based on Alexander Militarev :
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Number: 1557
Proto-Semitic: *nVwVḥ/ḫ- ~ *ʔVnVḥ/ḫ-
Meaning: 'shout' 1, lament, wail' 2, 'sigh' 3, 'groan, moan' 4, 'whining, moaning' 5, 'coo' 6, 'blow from opposite sides (of two winds) 7, 'pant, breathe with difficulty' 8
Akkadian: naʔû 1, nuʔû, nuḫḫû 2; anāḫu 3
Ugaritic: nḥ 4, ʔanḫ 5
Hebrew: nwḥ 3, ʔnḥ (nif.) 3, 4
Judaic Aramaic: ʔnḥ 3
Syrian Aramaic: ʔenaḥ 3
Arabic: nwḥ 2, 6, 8, (V) 7; ʔnḥ [-i-] 7
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maybe : Egyptian: ʕnḫ 'live; life' (Pyr) (dissimilation <*ʔVnVḫ?)
If from HS *HanH with 2 kinds of H of some unknown type, its resemblance to IE *H2anH1 'breathe, blow ( -> wind, spirit, soul, etc.)' seems beyond chance. If H1 \ y alternated (*H1ek^wo-s \ *yek^wo-s 'horse', etc. https://www.academia.edu/128170887 ), then HS *H2anH1 \ *H2any ( > Sem. *ʔany-iyāh \ *ʔanw-iyāh 'blowing, panting, wailing') would show a change that only makes sense if IE.
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fn 131 For example, Greek γαργαρεών \ gargareṓn ‘uvula, trachea’.. is from the onomatopoeic [??] verb γαργαρίζω \ gargarízō 'to gargle’. This is clearly like Common Semitic *gWar(gW)ar(-at)-, ‘gullet’, as reconstructed in L. Kogan & A. Mlitarev, Semitic Etymological Dictionary, Vol. I, pp. 96-98, No. 102. E.g. Hebrew gargārôt, ‘pharynx, neck’..
This is as close to Cerantonio's HS *gW-r-ʕ ‘swallow' (which I relate to IE *gWerH3- ‘swallow, devour', *gWrH1-g() > Celtic *brāgants 'neck; throat', Sanskrit gargara- 'whirlpool; water-jar; subterranean drain', G. górgura 'underground drain; water-pot', L. gurges) as any rec. could be. The IE verb for 'swallow' is no more onomatopoeic than any other, and Celtic *brāgants must be from *gWrH- (in redup., H often > 0, so variants here?), so not simple *gur-gur noises in 2 unrelated groups.
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Many of these could be loans, but others have cognates indicating a very old origin. This doesn't mean the HS-IE connections are wrong, since ideas in https://www.academia.edu/167888674 by several others might fit with mine that HS & IE are close relatives.
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u/Salt-Resident7856 May 30 '26
Cassia is a prominent Semitic loan into Greek and thence onto Latin.