Among the Semitic languages, Samalian shows most similarities to
Aramaic. It has been earlier often considered an outright early dialect of Aramaic, possibly influenced by
Canaanite. Strong evidence is however absent, and Samalian is best considered an independent member of the
Northwest Semitic group,[2][3] or, together with the
Deir Alla Inscription, a sister variety of Aramaic in an "Aramoid" or "Syrian" group.[2][4]
Linguistic features
Features connecting Samalian with Aramaic include:
a change *n > r in the word br 'son', though this is attested only as a part of personal names and may not have been the native word. The same phenomenon appears also in a Phoenician text from Sam'al (the
Kilamuwa Stela).[5][6]
loss of *ʔ in the word ḥd (< *ʔḥd) 'one'.[5] This occurs sporadically also in biblical Hebrew and in the Phoenician dialect of
Byblos.[6]
a change *ɬʼ > q, e.g. ʔrq 'earth', known as an orthographic device also in
Old Aramaic[5] (in later Aramaic, Proto-Semitic *ɬʼ shifts instead to /ʕ/).
Pat-El & Wilson-Wright propose as additional general characteristics of Samalian the development of nasal vowels, as expected word-final n after long vowels is systematically absent in the Panamuwa inscriptions;[7] as well as an object marker wt, cognate with Aramean ləwāt 'with'.[8]
Huehnergard, John (1995), "What is Aramaic?", ARAM Periodical, 7 (2): 261–282,
doi:
10.2143/ARAM.7.2.2002231
Kogan, Leonid (2015), Genealogical Classification of Semitic, de Gruyter
Pat-El, Na'ama; Wilson-Wright, Aren (2019), "The subgrouping of Samalian: Arguments in favor of an independent branch", Maarav, 23 (2): 371–387
Further reading
Dion, Paul-E. (1978). "The Language Spoken in Ancient Samʾal". Journal of Near Eastern Studies. 37 (2): 115–18.
JSTOR545138. Accessed 6 July 2023.
Giusfredi, Federico; Pisaniello, Valerio (2021). "THE POPULATION, THE LANGUAGE AND THE HISTORY OF YADIYA/SAM'AL". In Payne, Annick; Velhartická, Šárka; Wintjes, Jorit (eds.). Beyond All Boundaries: Anatolia in the First Millennium BC.
Peeters Publishers. pp. 189–223.
doi:
10.2307/j.ctv2tjd71x.12.
Gzella, Holger (2014). "Language and Script". In Niehr, Herbert (ed.). The Aramaeans in Ancient Syria. Handbook of Oriental Studies. Vol. 106. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. pp. 71–107.
doi:
10.1163/9789004229433_005.
Gzella, Holger (2015). "The Emergence of Aramaic Dialects in the Fertile Crescent". A Cultural History of Aramaic. Leiden, The Netherlands: Brill. pp. 72–77.
doi:
10.1163/9789004285101_003.
Noorlander, Paul (2012). "Sam'alian in Its Northwest Semitic Setting: A Historical-Comparative Approach". Orientalia. 81 (3): 202–38.
JSTOR43077430. Accessed 6 July 2023.