Reconstruction:Proto-Semitic/šurš-

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

*šuršūna

Noun

*šurš- m

root, wort

Inflection

Declension of *šurš-

Case

Singular

Dual

Plural

Nominative

*šuršum

*šuršāna

plural stem + *-ūna

Genitive

*šuršim

*šuršayna

plural stem + *-īna

Accusative

*šuršam

possessive forms

1st person

*šuršī / *šuršVya

—

*šuršVni

2nd person m

*šuršVka

*šuršVkumā / *šuršVkumay

*šuršVkum(ū)

2nd person f

*šuršVki

*šuršVkin(ā)

3rd person m

*šuršVšu

*šuršVšumā / *šuršVšumay

*šuršVšum(ū)

3rd person f

*šuršVša

*šuršVšin(ā)

Note: the endings -m and -na are dropped in the bound form, which may also undergo syncopation of an unstressed final vowel where possible.

Note: the ending -V before the possessive endings responds to case: *šuršuya for nom. case, *šuršiya for gen. case, *šuršaya for acc. case, etc.

Declension of 2sg m. possessive form (your/thy m.) *šurš-

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	*šuršuka	*šuršāka	plural stem + *-ūka
Genitive	*šuršika	*šuršayka	plural stem + *-īka
Accusative	*šuršaka	*šuršayka	plural stem + *-īka

Declension of 2sg f. possessive form (your/thy f.) *šurš-

	Singular	Dual	Plural
Nominative	*šuršuki	*šuršāki	plural stem + *-ūki
Genitive	*šuršiki	*šuršayki	plural stem + *-īki
Accusative	*šuršaki	*šuršayki	plural stem + *-īki

Reconstruction notes

As the non-Sabaean-Old South Arabian and Ethiopian Semitic descendants of of *ṯalāṯ- (“three”), here too, against some voices, which posit *śurš-,[1] South Semitic exposes dissimilation, with the original identity of the first and third radical being preferredly reconstructed due to the rarity of this constellation in Proto-Semitic overall.[2]

Descendants

East Semitic:
- Akkadian: 𒁼 (šuršum)
West Semitic:
- Central Semitic:
  - Northwest Semitic:
    - Aramaic:
      Old Aramaic: 𐤔𐤓𐤔‎
      
      Imperial Aramaic: 𐡔𐡓𐡔‎ (šrš)
      
      Jewish Palestinian Aramaic: שֻׁרְשׁ‎
      
      Christian Palestinian Aramaic: ܫܘܪܫ‎ (/šurš/)
      
      Jewish Literary Aramaic: שֻׁרְשׁא‎ (šuršā), שֻׁורְשׁא‎ (šuršā)
      
      Classical Syriac: ܫܽܪܫܳܐ‎ (šeršā)
      - → Arabic: شِرْش‎ (širš), شُرْش‎ (šurš) (mostly dialectal)
    - Canaanite:
      - Hebrew: שֹׁרֶשׁ‎ (shóresh, šṓreš)
      - Phoenician: 𐤔𐤓𐤔‎ (šrš)
        Punic: 𐤔𐤓‎ (šr)
        →? Proto-Berber:
        Central Atlas Tamazight: ⴰⵥⵓⵔ (aẓur)
    - Ugaritic: 𐎌𐎗𐎌 (šrš /šuršu/)
  - Old South Arabian: (“base, foundation”)
    - Minaean: 𐩦𐩧𐩪‎ (s²rs¹)
    - Qatabanian: 𐩦𐩧𐩪‎ (s²rs¹)
    - Sabaean: 𐩦𐩧𐩪‎ (s²rs¹)
- Ethiopian Semitic:
  - North Ethiopian:
    - Ge'ez: ሥርው (śərw), also ስርዌ (sərw), ሥር (sər), ሡር (sur), and distinguished ሠርዌ (śärw)
    - Tigre: ሥር (sər)
    - Tigrinya: ሥር (sər), ሡር (sur)
  - South Ethiopian:
    - Amharic: ሥር (sər)
    - Argobba: ሥሬድ (səred)
    - Gafat: ሥር (sər), ሥሬት (səret)
    - Sebat Bet Gurage: ሥር (sər)
    - Harari: ሥር (sər)
- Modern South Arabian:
  - Shehri: ŝírɔ́ḫ
  - Soqotri: ŝeraḥ

References

Kogan, Leonid (2011), “Proto-Semitic Lexicon”, in Weninger, Stefan, editor, The Semitic Languages. An International Handbook (Handbücher zur Sprach- und Kommunikationswissenschaft – Handbooks of Linguistics and Communication Science; 36), Berlin: De Gruyter, →ISBN, page 200 has *ŝVrš-, calling this reconstruction “conventional”. But Arabic شِرْس‎ (širs, “thornbush”), with its root related to harshness and rare as it is, is likely an independent formation, for which the vowel variant شَرَس‎ (šaras) is added evidence. Likely an extension of ش رر‎ (š-r-r) “evil”, as also recognized by Růžička, Rudolf (1909), “Konsonantische Dissimilation in den semitischen Sprachen”, in Beiträge zur Assyriologie und semitischen Sprachwissenschaft‎ (in German), volume VI, issue 4, Leipzig · Baltimore: J.C. Hinrichs’sche Buchhandlung · The Johns Hopkins Press, page 13. Confer also the variation of سَرِيش‎ (sarīš, “kingspear”), with which there might have been contamination, as a “gluey” plant “clings” like a thornbush, and note شَرْشَر‎ (šaršar), شَرْشِير‎ (šaršīr, “caltrop”).
Vernet i Pons, Eulàlia (2016), “Etymologischer Ursprung der reduplizierten und geminierten Wurzeln im Proto-Semitischen”, in Proceedings of the 6th Biennial Meeting of the International Association for Comparative Semitics and Other Studies (Babel und Bibel; 9)‎, Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns, →DOI, →ISBN, page 193. And not even the نُون‎ (nūn) and بَاب‎ (bāb) therein are Proto-Semitic.

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[1] Kogan, Leonid (2011), “Proto-Semitic Lexicon”, in Weninger, Stefan, editor, The Semitic Languages. An International Handbook (Handbücher zur Sprach- und Kommunikationswissenschaft – Handbooks of Linguistics and Communication Science; 36), Berlin: De Gruyter, →ISBN, page 200 has *ŝVrš-, calling this reconstruction “conventional”. But Arabic شِرْس‎ (širs, “thornbush”), with its root related to harshness and rare as it is, is likely an independent formation, for which the vowel variant شَرَس‎ (šaras) is added evidence. Likely an extension of ش رر‎ (š-r-r) “evil”, as also recognized by Růžička, Rudolf (1909), “Konsonantische Dissimilation in den semitischen Sprachen”, in Beiträge zur Assyriologie und semitischen Sprachwissenschaft‎ (in German), volume VI, issue 4, Leipzig · Baltimore: J.C. Hinrichs’sche Buchhandlung · The Johns Hopkins Press, page 13. Confer also the variation of سَرِيش‎ (sarīš, “kingspear”), with which there might have been contamination, as a “gluey” plant “clings” like a thornbush, and note شَرْشَر‎ (šaršar), شَرْشِير‎ (šaršīr, “caltrop”).

[2] Vernet i Pons, Eulàlia (2016), “Etymologischer Ursprung der reduplizierten und geminierten Wurzeln im Proto-Semitischen”, in Proceedings of the 6th Biennial Meeting of the International Association for Comparative Semitics and Other Studies (Babel und Bibel; 9)‎, Winona Lake, Indiana: Eisenbrauns, →DOI, →ISBN, page 193. And not even the نُون‎ (nūn) and بَاب‎ (bāb) therein are Proto-Semitic.