Reconstruction:Proto-Semitic/ʔarbaʕ-

This Proto-Semitic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Semitic

Numeral

**Proto-Semitic numbers ^(edit)**
← 3	4	5 →
Cardinal: *ʔarbaʕ-

*ʔarbaʕ-

four

Usage notes

This number exhibited chiastic concord (gender polarity), in which masculine forms were used to agree with feminine nouns, and feminine forms with masculine nouns.

Inflection

Declension of *ʔarbaʕ-
Case	m	f
Nominative	*ʔarbaʕum	*ʔarbaʕatum
Accusative	*ʔarbaʕam	*ʔarbaʕatam
Genitive	*ʔarbaʕim	*ʔarbaʕatim

Descendants

East Semitic:
- Akkadian: 𒐉 (erbet)
West Semitic:
- Central Semitic:
  - Arabic: أَرْبَعَة (ʔarbaʕa)
    - Egyptian Arabic: أربعة (ʔaṛbaʕa)
    - Maltese: erbgħa
    - Moroccan Arabic: ربعة (rabʕa), أربعة (ʔarbʕa)
  - Dadanitic: 𐪑𐪇𐪈𐪒 (ʾrbʿ)
  - Northwest Semitic:
    - Aramaic:
      Western Neo-Aramaic: ܐܪܒ݆ܥܐ m (ʾarpʿa), ܐܪܒ݆ܥ f (ʾarpaʿ)
      - Classical Syriac: ܐܰܪܒ݁ܥܳܐ (ʾarbʿā)
    - Canaanite:
      - Hebrew: אַרְבָּעָה ('arba'á, ʾarbāʿâ)
      - Phoenician: 𐤀𐤓𐤁𐤏𐤕 (ʾrbʿt)
    - Ugaritic: 𐎀𐎗𐎁𐎓𐎚 (ảrbʿt /⁠ʾarbaʿatu⁠/)
  - Safaitic: 𐪑𐪇𐪈𐪒 (ʾrbʿ /⁠ʾarbaʿ⁠/), 𐪑𐪇𐪈𐪒𐪉 (ʾrbʿt /⁠ʾarbaʿat⁠/)
- Ethiopian Semitic:
  - Amharic: አራት (ʾärat)
  - Ge'ez: አርበዕቱ (ʾärbäʿtu)
  - Tigre: አርበዕ (ʾärbäʿ)
  - Tigrinya: ኣርባዕተ (ʾarbaʿtä)
→ Proto-Kartvelian: *arwa- (“eight”) (borrowed via a dual form)
- Proto-Georgian-Zan:
  - Old Georgian: რვაჲ (rvay)
    - Georgian: რვა (rva)
  - Zan:
    - Laz: ოვრო (ovro), ორვო (orvo) — Lome
    - Mingrelian: რუო (ruo), ბრუო (bruo)
- Svan: არა (ara)

References

Huehnergard, John (2019) “Proto-Semitic”, in Huehnergard, John and Na'ama Pat-El, editors, The Semitic Languages, 2nd edition, Routledge, →ISBN