Ammonite language

{{Short description|Extinct Semitic language}}

{{Infobox language

| name = Ammonite

| region = northwestern Jordan

| extinct = 5th century BC

| familycolor = Afro-Asiatic

| image = File:Tel Siran bottle at the Jordan Archaeological Museum.jpg

| imagealt = A bronze bottle on its side with text in the Phoenician alphabet "𐤅𐤀𐤔𐤇𐤕 / 𐤉𐤂𐤋 / 𐤅𐤉𐤔𐤌𐤇 /𐤁𐤉𐤅𐤌𐤕 𐤓𐤁𐤌 𐤅𐤁𐤔𐤍𐤕"

| imagecaption = The Tel Siran inscription.

| fam2 = Semitic

| fam3 = West Semitic

| fam4 = Central Semitic

| fam5 = Northwest Semitic

| fam6 = Canaanite

| fam7 = South

| iso3 = none

| linglist = qgg

| glotto = ammo1234

| glottorefname = Ammonite

| states = Ammon

}}

Ammonite is the extinct Canaanite language of the Ammonite people mentioned in the Bible, who used to live in modern-day Jordan, and after whom its capital Amman is named. Only fragments of their language survive—chiefly the 9th century BC Amman Citadel Inscription,[http://www.kchanson.com/ANCDOCS/westsem/citadel.html Amman Citadel Inscription] the 7th–6th century BC Tel Siran bronze bottle, and a few ostraca. As far as can be determined from the small corpus, it was extremely similar to Biblical Hebrew, with some possible Aramaic influence including the use of the verb {{Transliteration|sem-x-ammonite|‘bd}} ({{lang|sem-x-ammonite|עבד}}) instead of the more common Biblical Hebrew {{Transliteration|hbo|‘śh}} ({{lang|hbo|עשה}}) for {{gloss|make}}. The only other notable difference with Biblical Hebrew is the sporadic retention of feminine singular {{lang|sem|-t}} ({{Transliteration|sem-x-ammonite|’šħt}} {{gloss|cistern}}, but {{Transliteration|sem-x-ammonite|‘lyh}} {{gloss|high [{{abbr|fem.|feminine}}]}}.) Ammonite also appears to have possessed largely typical correspondences of diphthongs, with words such as {{Transliteration|sem-x-ammonite|ywmt}} ({{lang|sem-x-ammonite|יומת}} {{lang|sem-x-proto|*yawmōt}}, {{gloss|days}}) both preserving {{IPA|/aw/}} and showing a shift to {{IPA|/o/}}, and other words such as {{Transliteration|sem-x-ammonite|yn}} ({{lang|sem-x-ammonite|ין}} {{gloss|wine}}) exhibiting a shift of {{IPA|/ay/}} to ē ({{lang|sem-x-ammonite|yēn}} < {{lang|sem-x-proto|*yayn}}) much like Hebrew.{{cite book | author = W. Randall Garr | date = 2004 | title = Dialect Geography of Syria-Palestine, 1000-586 B.C.E. | publisher = Eisenbrauns | pages = 37| isbn = 978-1-57506-091-0 | oclc = 1025228731 | url = https://books.google.com/books?id=02DaEkaJizMC}}

It was first described as a separate language in 1970 by Italian Orientalist Giovanni Garbini.{{sfn|Ahituv|1995}} Subsequently, a number of inscriptions previously identified as Hebrew, Phoenician, or Aramaic were reclassified, as a result of consensus around the similarity of the Amman Theatre Inscription, Amman Citadel Inscription, Tell Siren Bottle, Heshbon Ostraca, and Tell el-Mazer Ostraca.{{sfn|Aufrecht|2019|ps=: "The discovery of the Amman Theatre Inscription, Amman Citadel Inscription, Tell Siren Bottle, Heshbon Ostraca, and Tell el-Mazer Ostraca opened a new chapter in the study of ancient Northwest Semitic inscriptions with the recognition and analysis of the language and script of ancient Ammon. These new discoveries prompted a reclassification of a number of epigraphic materials previously identified as Hebrew, Phoenician, or Aramaic."}}{{cite journal | last=Richelle | first=Matthieu | title=Revisiting the Ammonite Ostraca | journal=Maarav | publisher=University of Chicago Press | volume=22 | issue=1–2 | date=2018-01-01 | issn=0149-5712 | doi=10.1086/mar201822106 | pages=45–77|url=https://www.academia.edu/37069159}}