| 词源 |
Semitic. German historian August Ludwig von Schloyer gave this language group its name in 1781, taking it from the name of Shem, a son of Noah described in the Bible as the common ancestor of various ancient peoples who spoke this group of re- lated languages. The principal languages in the group were He- brew, Aramaean, Arabic, Ethiopic, and ancient Assyrian. Later (ca. 1825) the word was applied to the people who spoke or speak these languages and it has most recently (ca. 1875) been used to refer primarily to Jewish people. |