What does it sound like to you

[John Michael]

Those are the consonants I keep picking up. Maybe because we dont have 'ch' in our language

I said that as well everything is chew new lew

Funnily enough Tigrinya sounds completely different to me, how they're related I still don't get.

 

[McLovin]

I said that as well everything is chew new lew

Funnily enough Tigrinya sounds completely different to me, how they're related I still don't get.

That must be their favourite suffix. That and rolling r's

 

[ሕጊ።።]

I said that as well everything is chew new lew

Funnily enough Tigrinya sounds completely different to me, how they're related I still don't get.

Chew new means 'it is salt', I am sure the safety video did not say that.
And they are very close apart from some sounds Amharic didn't retain.

That must be their favourite suffix. That and rolling r's

'näw' mean's he is/it is that's probably why you hear it a lot. I always feel like I hear the word 'merka' constantly when Somali's speak, and I still don't know what it means so enlighten me.....

 

[adaharari]

The click you hear is Qaf, and it's more of a sharp 'k'

I dont even know what the alphabets are called unless its the same as arabic

 

[McLovin]

'näw' mean's he is/it is that's probably why you hear it a lot. I always feel like I hear the word 'merka' constantly when Somali's speak, and I still don't know what it means so enlighten me.....

Marka is a common connector word used before you are about to add information or continue an idea. The closest english equivalent would be, 'as a result' or 'consequently'

 

[John Michael]

Chew new means 'it is salt', I am sure the safety video did not say that.
And they are very close apart from some sounds Amharic didn't retain.


'näw' mean's he is/it is that's probably why you hear it a lot. I always feel like I hear the word 'merka' constantly when Somali's speak, and I still don't know what it means so enlighten me.....

Marka- because.

Chew new I just put random sounds that I've heard together, I didn't realise it meant something.


To me Tigrinya sound the most similar to Hebrew but you're bilingual so I'll take your word for it.

 

[ሕጊ።።]

Marka is a common connector word used before you are about to add information or continue an idea. The closest english equivalent would be, 'as a result' or 'consequently'

Ah right.
It is silezi/silezih in Tigrinya/Amharic

 

[ሕጊ።።]

Marka- because.

Chew new I just put random sounds that I've heard together, I didn't realise it meant something.


To me Tigrinya sound the most similar to Hebrew but you're bilingual so I'll take your word for it.

Lol
When you speak a language it doesn't really sound like anything to you, and it depends on what people speak too. Amharic and Tigrinya are easy to tell apart when spoken if you know the sounds one doesn't have and the other does.
I've never been told it sounds like Hebrew though so that's new

 

[adaharari]

White people say it sounds like arabic and somalis say it doesnt?
Why is this the case?

 

[ሕጊ።።]

White people say it sounds like arabic and somalis say it doesnt?
Why is this the case?

Somalis hear Arabic more that's probably why, whereas white people don't...

 

[DuctTape]

White people say it sounds like arabic and somalis say it doesnt?
Why is this the case?

Probably because all white people need to hear is the hard "kh" or "x" sound to claim something sounds like Arabic. It's the "tastes like chicken" of the language world

 

[adaharari]

Probably because all white people need to hear is the hard "kh" or "x" sound to claim something sounds like Arabic. It's the "tastes like chicken" of the language world

But there is none of these in amharic but they still say, i think its the deepness that amharic sometimes is spoken

 

[DuctTape]

But there is none of these in amharic but they still say, i think its the deepness that amharic sometimes is spoken

No idea.
I actually think even Somali as a language sounds more similar to Arabic than Amharic does, even excluding loanwords. Strange how a language in the same language family as Arabic can sound so different from it.

 

[adaharari]

No idea.
I actually think even Somali as a language sounds more similar to Arabic than Amharic does, even excluding loanwords. Strange how a language in the same language family as Arabic can sound so different from it.

I think when spoken they both sound similar but somali more because of some similar sounds

 

[ሕጊ።።]

No idea.
I actually think even Somali as a language sounds more similar to Arabic than Amharic does, even excluding loanwords. Strange how a language in the same language family as Arabic can sound so different from it.

Most the Semitic languages do not sound alike. It doesn't take a genius for example to distinguish Hebrew from Arabic. Somali has some shared sounds with Arabic that Amharic doesn't but in terms of vocabulary, grammar etc. it definitely isn't as close.

 

[DuctTape]

Most the Semitic languages do not sound alike. It doesn't take a genius for example to distinguish Hebrew from Arabic. Somali has some shared sounds with Arabic that Amharic doesn't but in terms of vocabulary, grammar etc. it definitely isn't as close.

I wonder if those shared sounds are elements from Proto-Afroasiatic that were left over in both languages or they were obtained through contact with other languages
Also does Amharic have the hard "c" sound?

 

[ሕጊ።።]

@DuctTape Also forgot to say, languages are not grouped just on the basis of how similar they sound when spoken

 

[ሕጊ።።]

I wonder if those shared sounds are elements from Proto-Afroasiatic that were left over in both languages or they were obtained through contact with other languages
Also does Amharic have the hard "c" sound?

Could be both, I think someone said 'kh' was borrowed of Arabic though in Somali.

What's the hard c sound?

 

[DuctTape]

Could be both, I think someone said 'kh' was borrowed of Arabic though in Somali.

What's the hard c sound?

Oh right, "c" in the Somali alphabet is "ayn" in Arabic. That guttural throat sound.

 

[ሕጊ።።]

Oh right, "c" in the Somali alphabet is "ayn" in Arabic. That guttural throat sound.

Oh no, that's just pronounced as Alif in Amharic, Gurage etc. and as Ayn in Ge'ez, Tigrigna and Tigre. It's still called Ayn though, but with their own pronunciation. The letter also looks like one ዐ