The Origin of Amharic

By Girma Awgichew Demeke

There are two main hypotheses on the origin of Amharic: it may be a descendent of a common Proto-Ethiosemitic language or it may have evolved as a Semitic-based pidgin, which became a creole and eventually developed into a full-fledged language. While the first hypothesis is commonly accepted in Semitic Studies, the second hypothesis - first proposed in the beginning of the 1980s - became popular very recently and has even entered Amharic textbooks. Girma clearly demonstrates that the pidgin hypothesis is blatantly implausible.

• Format: Paperback
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1569023794
• ISBN13: 9781569023792
• Release Date: August 2013
• Publisher: Red Sea Press,U.S.
• Length: 428 Pages
• Weight: 1.11 lbs.
• Dimensions: 6.0" x 0.9" x 9.0"