Proto-Semitic: *nVpVš 1, *nap(i)š- 2
Afroasiatic etymology:
Afroasiatic etymology
Meaning: to breathe 1,
soul; vitality, life; person, personality; self' 2
Akkadian: napāšu (u/u) '
to breathe freely' OA, OB on [CAD n1 288], [AHw 736]; napištu (napuštu, napaštu, napšatu) '
life, vigor, vitality; breath; throat, neck' OAkk on [CAD n1 296], [AHw 738]
Eblaitic: na-pu-uš-tu-um [KB 711, apud Pettinato] ('soul' ?)
Ugaritic: npš '
Appetit, Begehren; Seele; Lebewesen, Mensch; 'Rachen, Kehle, Schlund' [Aist 211]
Phoenician: npš '
self, desire, person, gravestone' [T 218]
Hebrew: npš (nipʕ) '
to breathe freely, recover' [KB 711]; näpäš '
throat, neck; breath; soul; life; living being' [KB 711-2]
Aramaic: SAMAL OLD OFF NAB PLM HTR npš '
life, person, funerary monument' [HJ 744-9]
Judaic Aramaic: nǝpaš, napšā '
soul; will' [Ja 927] (cf. npš '
rest' [Sok 358])
Syrian Aramaic: npš (Etpe.) '
respiravit' [Brock 441]; napšā '
animus, persona; pyramis funeraria' [Brock 441]
Mandaic Aramaic: NPS̆ '
to breathe, refresh, give life' [DM 304]; napša '
soul, personality, self'; many [ibid. 285]
Arabic: nfs V '
respirer' [BK 2 1310]; nafs- '
âme, principe vital; sang; personne' [BK 2 1310]
Epigraphic South Arabian: SAB nfs1 '
soul, life, person, self, etc.' [SD 93], QAT nfs1 do. [Ricks 109], MIN nfs1 '
âme, personne, soi-même' [LM 66] (cf. also SAB mnfs1 '
water distributor or distribution system' [Biella 310] translated as '
sluice? settling basin' in [SD 93] and MIN mnfs1 '
installation destinée à reporter et conduire l'eau provenant d'une grande citerne' [LM 66]; for the semantic shift cf. SAB mnfh_t '
water-distributor' in *nph_ '
to blow, breath, inflate', No. )
Geʕez (Ethiopian): nafsa (ǝ) '
to blow (wind, spirit)' [LGz 389]; nafs '
soul, spirit, breath, life, etc.' [LGz 389]
Tigre: näfsä '
to blow (wind)', tǝnäffäsä '
to breathe, to have a soul' [LH 346]; näfs '
soul, life' [LH 346]
Tigrai (Tigriñña): näfäsä '
soffiare vento; evaporare liquore ecc.' [Bass 468]; näfsi '
anima' [Bass 468]
Amharic: näffäsä '
to blow (wind)' [K 1082]; näfs '
soul, spirit, life' [K 1083]
East Ethiopic: SEL WOL ZWY näfäsä '
to blow (wind)' [LGur 452]; SEL WOL näfs, ZWY näfis '
soul' [LGur 452]
Gurage: CHA END ENN GYE näfäsä, EZHA MUH MAS GOG SOD näffäsä do. [ibid.]; CHA EZHA END ENN GYE MUH MAS GOG SOD näfs do. [ibid.]
Mehri: (?) šǝnfūs '
to welcome' (caus.) [JM 285]; cf. also nǝfh '
to recover from a faint' [JM 284] (< *npš?).
Both verbs are likely related with plausible meaning shifts; nǝfsēt '
individual, soul'
Jibbali: ǝnfés '
to sigh' [JJ 182]; nǝfsɛ́t '
soul' [JJ 182]
Harsusi: nefesét '
soul' [JH 94]
Soqotri: néfoš '
respirer, vivre, se ranimer' [LS 271]; nófoš, pl. of nafh- '
âme; pronom réfléchi de la 1re personne' [LS 271, 260], nefs '
âme' [ibid. 270] (looks very much like an Arabism; cf. also fonŝ '
souffle, âme, vent' [ibid. 338]: a variant root with metathesis?)
Notes: For *-i- see AKK and ZWY. Unseparated from a common SEM noun *nap(i)š- '
soul; vitality, life; person, personality; self' (for *-i- see AKK and ZWY): AKK napištu (napuštu, napaštu, napšatu) '
life, vigor, vitality; breath; throat, neck' OAkk on [CAD n1 296], [AHw 738]; EBLA na-pu-uš-tu-um [KB 711, apud Pettinato] ('soul' ?); UGR npš '
Appetit, Begehren; Seele; Lebewesen, Mensch; 'Rachen, Kehle, Schlund' [Aist 211]; CAN: PHO npš '
self, desire, person, gravestone' [T 218], HBR näpäš '
throat, neck; breath; soul; life; living being' [KB 711-2]; ARM: SAMAL OLD OFF NAB PLM HTR npš '
life, person, funerary monument' [HJ 744-9], JUD nǝpaš, napšā '
soul; will' [Ja 927] (cf. npš '
rest' [Sok 358]), SYR napšā '
animus, persona; pyramis funeraria' [Brock 441], MND napša '
soul, personality, self' [ibid. 285]; ARB nafs- '
âme, principe vital; sang; personne' [BK 2 1310]; ESA: SAB nfs1 '
soul, life, person, self, etc.' [SD 93], QAT nfs1 do. [Ricks 109], MIN nfs1 '
âme, personne, soi-même' [LM 66] (cf. also SAB mnfs1 '
water distributor or distribution system' [Biella 310] translated as '
sluice? settling basin' in [SD 93] and MIN mnfs1 '
installation destinée à reporter et conduire l'eau provenant d'une grande citerne' [LM 66]; for the semantic shift cf. SAB mnfh_t '
water-distributor' in *nph_ '
to blow, breath, inflate', No. ); ETH: GEZ nafs '
soul, spirit, breath, life, etc.' [LGz 389], TGR näfs '
soul, life' [LH 346], TNA näfsi '
anima' [Bass 468], AMH näfs '
soul, spirit, life' [K 1083], EAST: SEL WOL näfs, ZWY näfis '
soul' [LGur 452], GUR: CHA EZHA END ENN GYE MUH MAS GOG SOD näfs do. [ibid.]; MSA (possibly Arabisms): MHR nǝfsēt '
individual, soul', HRS nefesét '
soul' [JH 94], JIB nǝfsɛ́t '
soul' [JJ 182], SOQ nófoš, pl. of nafh- '
âme; pronom réfléchi de la 1re personne' [LS 271, 260], nefs '
âme' [ibid. 270] (looks very much like an Arabism; cf. also fonŝ '
souffle, âme, vent' [ibid. 338]: a variant root with metathesis?).
Cf. forms with -b- in various SEM, probably making a variant nominal root *nabš- {} *nabs- (see also *nšb {} *nsb '
to breathe', with metathesis): CAN: PHO nbš '
self, desire, person, gravestone' [T 218]; ARM: SAMAL OLD nbš '
life, person, funerary monument' [HJ 744-9]; ETH GUR: MAS GOG SOD näbs '
soul' [LGur 452].
Cf. *nšp (No. ). Cf. *pšw (1) '
to break wind silently' (No. ) and *pšw (2) '
to breathe, blow' (No. ).
[Maizel 176]; [Fr 38]: *napiš- '
energia vitale' (GEZ, ARB, SYR, HBR, UGR, AKK); [KB 711] verb: HBR, ARM, ARB, AKK, SAB, GEZ, TGR; noun: HBR, EBLA, UGR, ARM, ARB, SAB, GEZ, TGR, AKK; [LGz 389]: GEZ, ARB, HBR, SAB, ARM, UGR, AKK (metathetic nšp in HBR, ARM, AKK and SOQ is also considered)
