large language family of Africa and West Asia From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Afroasiatic (Afro-Asiatic), also called Afrasian or Hamito-Semitic[1] or Semito-Hamitic,[2] is a large language family. They are mainly spoken in Western Asia, North Africa, the Horn of Africa and parts of the Sahel.[3] There are around 300 Afroasiatic languages that are still spoken. About 495 million people speak an Afroasiatic language as their first language.[4] There are six branches of the language family: Berber, Chadic, Cushitic, Egyptian, Omotic and Semitic. The most spoken language is Arabic, a Semitic language. It has around 313 million native speakers.[5]
| Afroasiatic | |
|---|---|
| Geographic distribution: | Malta, Horn of Africa, North Africa, Sahel, West Asia |
| Linguistic classification: | One of the world's primary language families |
| Proto-language: | Proto-Afroasiatic |
| Subdivisions: |
Egyptian †
|
| ISO 639-2 and 639-5: | afa |
Distribution of the Afro-Asiatic languages | |
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