Eblaitic:ì-ba-ù-um = AMA.MUS̆ [MEE IV 034] (identified with this root in [Civil Ebla 91]).
Ugaritic:ʔapʕ 'víbora' [DLU 43]. // A Hapax in the difficult passage KTU 1.19 I 13: kʔapʕ ʔil bgdrt // klb l h̊ṭh ʔimh̊ṣh 'like a divine viper at the fence // [like] a dog [fastened] to its pole have I smitten him' (after [Del Olmo Mitos 387]).
Hebrew:ʔäpʕǟ 'a snake' [KB 79]. // In a limited number of poetic passages (Is 30.6, Is 59.5, Jb 20.16).
Tigrai (Tigriñña):ʔafʕut 'specie di vipera assai velenosa; è molto corta e nericcia' [Bass. 582].
Amharic:ǝffuññǝt 'viper' [K 1358], также fuññǝt (fǝññǝt) id. [ibid. 2327], ǝmfut 'a short-tailed, blunt-nosed viper' [ibid. 1140].
Harari:ḥiffiñ 'viper' [LHar. 80].
Notes: Akk. uppūtu (upputtu) 'eine Blindschlange' SB [AHw. 1425] does not belong here (according to [Farber Blind 215], to be read as uppuṭu, an adjective meaning 'blind'; cf. its Sum. correspondence MUS̆.IGI.NU.GÁL/TUK 'a snake which has no eyes'). // [KB 79]: Hbr., Gez., Arb.; [DLU 43]: Ugr., Hbr., Ebl., Arb.; [LGz. 9]: Gez., Eth., Arb., Hbr., Ugr.
Number:2321
Proto-Semitic:*ʔarbay-
Meaning:locust
Akkadian:erbu (erebu, aribu), pl. erbû, erebû, arabû 'locust' OB on [CAD e 256], [AHw. 234]. // Only forms with the cluster -rb- are typical of early periods so that -е-/-i- in later forms may be secondary (comparable phenomena are treated in [GAG 22]; an influence of the st. constr. ereb should also be taken into consideration). In early periods, forms written plene are without mimation and usually denote a mass of locust, not an individual insect, i.e. are to be regarded as plurals (er-bi-i tí-a-am-tí...šēbilam 'send me "see locusts"' OIP 27 6:5, OA; er-bi-i mali ša ibārūnim ana ṣēr bēliya ušābilam 'all the locusts which were caught for me I sent to my lord' ARM 3 62:15, OB Mari). Contrast such examples with those denoting a single insect like YOS 10 31 XII 49: šumma ... ubānum ḳaḳḳad er-bi-im ibtani 'if the "finger" has the shape of a locust's head'. Note, however, that in a group of Mari letters from ARMT XXVII er-bu-um/er-bi-im is obviously applied to groups of insects (cf. [Lion-Michel 708]). Finally, an extremely unusual form e-er-bu-ú-um from an unpublished Mari letter is quoted [ibid.]. // Many compound terms with the first element erib are used to denote various kinds of locust (see [Landsberger 121ff.]). Of special interest are erib nāri 'a crustacean' SB [CAD e 289] and erib tâmti 'shrimp' OA, OB on [ibid. 290] (literally 'river locust' and 'sea locust').
Ugaritic:ʔirby 'langosta' [DLU 48]. // Attested with and without the plural marker -m: km ʔirby tškn šd // kḥṣn pʔat mdbr 'like the locust they spread over the field // like grasshoppers - on the edge of the steppe' 1.14 IV 29 and ʕlh kʔirbym kp // kḳṣm ɣrmn kp mhr 'above her hands are like locusts // like grasshoppers in a herd (?) - hands of the warriors' 1.3 II 10.
Aramaic: Anc. ʔrbh 'locust' [HJ 101]. // In KAI 222A 27: šbʕ šnn yʔkl ʔrbh 'seven years the locust will eat' (v. [Fitzmyer 85]).
Epigraphic South Arabian: Sab. ʔrby 'locusts' [SD 7]. // In Ja 610/7: whwfywhmw ʔlmḳh bn brdm wʔrbym wʕrglm wbn kl ḳlmtm bhyt brḳn 'ʔlmḳh preserved them from the cold, the locusts, the harmful insects as well as from all kind of lice in this rainy season'. See further [Sima 24-5].
Mehri:ḥarbyēt 'locusts, cicads (coll.)' [JM 7].
Jibbali:ʔírbɔ́t 'locust; cicada (s. and coll.)' [JJ 4].
Harsusi:harbēt (pl. hárbi, rebáyten) 'cicada, locust' [JH 3].
Soqotri:ʔerbhíyoh 'sauterelle' [LS 73].
Notes: Most probably to be connected with this root is Syr. ʔarbītā 'cancer maritimus' [Brock. 45] (cf. [Löw Fischnamen 551]); for the semantic development see Akk. above as well as Lat. locusta 'Heuschrecke; eine Art Meerkrebs' [WH I 818] (semantic discussion, more examples of this semantic shift). See further Arb. ʔirbiyān- 'locusta marina, i.q. ǯarādu l-baḥri' [Fr. I 24], 'Seekrebs' [Nöldeke BW 17] ('a species of fish resembling worms' according to [Lane 1024], [LA XIV 307]). // Less convincing parallels see in Amh. arabo 'tick afflicting cattle, small wood-eating worm, chicken louse' [K 1149], Cha. Eža Muh. wäräba, Enm. Gyt. wäräba, Sod. woraba 'kind of of cockroach' [LGur. 661]. // [Fron. 296]: *ʔarbay- 'locusta' (Soq., Mhr., Anc., Hbr., Ugr., Akk.); [DRS 31]: Akk., Ugr., Hbr., Arm., MSA; [KB 83]: Hbr., Anc., Akk., Eth. (with a reference to [Leslau Contributions 11], obviously an error for MSA).; [Sima 24-5]: Sab., Hbr., Akk., Ugr., Anc., MSA; [DLU 48]: Ugr., Hbr., Anc., Akk.; [LS 73]: Sok., Mhr., Akk., Hbr.
Number:2322
Number:2323
Proto-Semitic:*ʔarnab(-at)-
Meaning:hare
Akkadian:arnabu (annabu) OAkk. on [CAD a2 294], [AHw. 70]. // In OAkk. as PN only, the oldest textual attestation is OB Mari (ša ar-na-ba-tim ina GN ibāru 'who hunted hares in GN' Syria 20 107:3). Relatively poorly attested in later periods (but see additionar references in [AHw. 1544]). The fem. form arnabtu is attested as PN only (from OB on).
Hebrew:ʔarnäbät 'hare' [KB 90], pB. [Ja. 123]. // Only in the dietary laws Lv 11.6 and Dt 14.7.
Aramaic: Anc. ʔrnb 'hare' [HJ 110]. // In KAI 222 A 33 (among animals inhabiting ruined cities). // D.-Alla ʔrnbn (pl.) id. [HJ 110]. // In I.9: ʔrnbn ʔklw [z]ʔ̣ḅ 'hares ate a wolf' (reconstruction and translation after [Hackett 49]).
Notes: According to Leslau, all Eth. forms may be Arabisms which looks highly improbable, especially for the Har. and Gur. forms with their peculiar phonetic shape. The meaning of Ugr. ʔanhb (often compared to this root, cf. [LGz.], [Salonen Jagd] etc.) is obscure but the translation 'hare' hardly suitable in any case (cf. its rendering as 'caracol marino' in [DLU 38]). // Cf. forms with ḳ- instead of ʔ- in Arb. ḳarnab- 'ʔal-yarbūʕ-, waḳīla ʔal-faʔratu' [LA I 671] (with a semantic discussion) and Gez. ḳarnab 'hare' [LGz. 442]. Note that according to [GD 2489] Arb. Dat_. ḳarnab means 'lièvre'. // Сf. Syr. ʔarnāʕā (aut ʔarnāgā) 'mus magnus' [Brock. 50], [PS 393]. // [Fron. 294]: *ʔarnab- 'lepre' (Mhr., Arb., Syr., Hbr., Akk.); [DRS 33]: *ʔarnab- 'lièvre' (Akk., Hbr., Arm., Har., Arb., Ugr. (?); [Brock. 50]: Syr., Hbr., Arb., Akk.; [KB 90]: Hbr., Arm., Arb., Gez., Akk.; [Salonen Jagd 181]: Akk., Hbr., Arm., Arb., Ugr. (?); [Hommel 321]: Arb., Hbr., Akk., Arb.; [LGz. 38]: Gez., Eth., Arb., Hbr., Arm., Ugr. (ʔanhb), Akk.; [Firmage 1154]: Akk., Hbr., Arm., Arb.
Ugaritic:ʔarw 'león' [DLU 53]. // Only in 6.62:2: pn ʔarw 'a lions' face' (inscribed on a votive figure of the head of a lion).
Canaanite:Eg.-Syll. ʔa=-r [*ʔarê] 'lion (?)' [Hoch 28]. // Not quite certain since the context is problematic; can also be understood as reflecting PS *ʔayl- 'lamb, ram' (v. [ibid. 20-21]).
Phoenician:ʔrw 'lion' [T 29], [Krah. 71]. // Only in KAI 32/3 (ʔrwm ʔšnm 'two lion figures'), cf. discussion in KAI II 50-51 (with an alternative interpretation).
Hebrew:ʔaryē 'lion' [KB 87], ʔărī id. [ibid.]. // One hesitates to agree with [M.Wagner 29-30] in qualifying ʔ. as an early Aramaism on the sole reason of having the atypical -ē (< *-ayu-) instead of the expected -ǟ: the present word is unique in Hbr. as having two weak consonants in Auslaut (< *ʔaryay- < *ʔarway, cf. Gez.) and need not follow the standard rules of contraction.
Aramaic: Anc. ʔryh 'lion' [HJ 107]. // In the fragmentary passage KAI 223 A 9 (pm ʔryh 'a lion's mouth'). // Off. ʔry 'lion' [HJ 107]. // In the animal proverbs (Aḥiq 89, 110, 117), cf. [PY 36, 46, 48], [Kott. 191]. // Plm. ʔry 'lion' [HJ 107]. // In PNO 61:1 (ʔryʔ dnh ʕbd PN 'PN made this lion', on a votive statue of a lion), v. [PAT 343].
Biblical Aramaic:ʔaryē (pl. ʔaryāwātā) 'lion' [KB 1824]. // In Dan 7.4 (the winged lion) and 6.8-28 (the lions' pit).
Notes: Cf. Tgr. ʔǝrwät 'female elephant' [LH 359] and ʔǝrawito 'chameleon' [ibid.]. // On Gez. ʔarwe mǝdr and Tgr. ʔarwe 'snake' v. No. ... . // On the possibility of relating the present root with forms meaning 'wild goat' (Arb. ʔurwiyyat- etc.) and 'eagle' (Akk. erû) cf. No. ... and ... . Cf. comments in the preceding item. // [DLU 53]: Ugr., Hbr., Arm., Eg.-Syll., Akk. (arwium, armû); [Fron. 292]: *ʔarw-(ay)- 'animale selvatico' (Gez., Arb. /ʔarwā 'stambecchi'/, Syr., Hbr., Akk. /erû, armû/); [KB 87]: Hbr., Har., Gez., Tgr., Arb. (ʔarwīyat- 'wild sheep'), Akk. (armū 'male mountain goat'), ESA (ʔrw 'ibex'), Akk. (e/arū 'eagle').
Number:2326
Number:2327
Proto-Semitic:*ʔatān-
Meaning:donkey mare
Akkadian:atānu 'mare; she-ass, donkey mare' OAkk. on [AHw. 86], [CAD a2 481]. // The earliest attestation is the OAkk. incantation MAD V 8:24 (a-da-núm mūraš '(as) the (donkey-)mare [around] her foal'). Note that Akk. is the only Sem. language where this root is applied not only to donkeys but also to horses (MB, SB, rather often in Nuzi) though one can hardly consider the meaning 'mare, jenny' to be the primary one (cf. [CAD] above). In some cases (as e.g. in the OAkk. passage quoted) the choice between the two meanings is difficult.
Ugaritic:ʔatnt (pl.) 'borrica, asna' [DLU 59]. // In 1.4 IV 12 (ʕdb gpn ʔatnth 'they prepared the harness of her donkey mares').
Tigrai (Tigriñña):ʔasälät, ʔashalät 'animale favoloso, di smisurata grandezza e della specie del coccodrilla' [Bass. 493].
Notes:The Arm. forms are commonly thought to be borrowed from Akk. attalû 'solar or lunar eclipse' (v., e.g., [Kaufman 40]). While almost certainly correct in what concerns the meaning 'eclipse', this suggestion does not explain how the meaning 'mythical reptile, dragon' emerged in Arm. since no similar allusion seems to be known from Akk. texts connected with attalû. A secondary contamination of an original faunal term and the Akk. loan with the astronomic meaning is entirely plausible in view of a perfect semantic and phonetic coincidence between Arm. and Eth. Cf. Gez. nestāli (nesātāli, nǝstāle) 'serpent-idol of bronze; field snake' [LGz. 403], according to Leslau, "a transcription of Greek neesthan (< Hbr. nǝḥuštān)". This interpretation, plausible as such, does not account for the word-final -le/-li which can be hypothetically explained by the influence of the present root, otherwise lost in Gez. Note, on the other hand, Tgr. näsälät 'serpent boa' [LH 235].
Notes: Somehow related must be Gez. zǝy 'goose' [LGz. 646] (according to Leslau, an Amharism) and Amh. zǝyy (zǝyyi, zǝyye) id. [K 1671] though the phonetic developments implying this relationship are totally obscure. Akk. za-a-ú-um in the OB list of birds may also belong here (v. [Black-Rawi 124, III 16]). Akk. ūsu 'Ente' OA, OB on [AHw. 1438] is thought to be borrowed from Sum. UZ, but the Sum. term itself is most probably and early Semitism (as suggested in [Landsberger Kurkû 257], cf. also [Salonen Vögel 288-9]). OA spelling of ūsu 'duck-figure' as ú-ús-e-en and h̊u-us is unusual and deserves further investigation. // Two bird names comparable phonetically but having unclear or unknown meanings are attested: Akk. wazwazu listed among other bird names in the OB lexical list IM 90646 IV 2 is compared to the present root in [Black-Rawi 122]; Eža wizännä, Cha. wizänä, Gyt. wizäñä, Enm. wīzäñä, End. wīzäññä 'kind of a bird' [LGur. 675] (also Amh. wiza quoted [ibid.] apud d'Abbadie, not in [K]). // [DLU 66]: Ugr., Arb., Akk. (ūsu); [Brock. 184]: Syr., Jud., Arb. (all < Akk. < Sum.).
Number:2330
Number:2331
Proto-Semitic:*ʔayyal-
Meaning:stag, deer
Akkadian:ayalu (jalu, julu) 'stag, deer' OB on [CAD a1 225], [AHw. 24]. // For more details v. [Salonen Jagd 159ff.], [Landsberger Fauna 98] (in particular on the Assyrian forms without a-). As an Akkadism in Sum. a. is found in JAOS 77 75 Coll. 4.50 (A.A.LUM.ÀM). The fem. form ayalatu 'hind' is known as an OB personal name only (according to [CAD a1 225], a "WSem. fem. formation").
Ugaritic:ʔayl 'ciervo' [DLU 65], ʔaylt 'cierva' [ibid.]. // The masc. form is known from 1.6 I 24: [tṭ]bh̊ šbʕm ʔaylm 'she slaughtered seventy stags' (alongside with other terms for wild and domestic animals: rʔumm, ʔalpm, ṣʔin, yʕlm, [y]ḥmrm). The fem. form is more widely attested: 1.5 I 17(ʕn kd_d ʔaylt 'a water-source which a herd of hinds [tries to reach ?]') and 1.92.11 (ʔaylt tɣpy t_r 'una cierva espiaba (?) a un toro' according to [DLU 65]). Both forms certainly belong to the present root and not to *ʔayl- 'ram' since only geminated -y- can be preserved in word-middle position.
Phoenician:ʔyl 'stag' [T 14]. // In KAI 69.5,9 among sacrificial animals. The meaning 'stag' (not 'ram') is justified phonologically (while -ayya- is preserved in Pho., -ay- must yield -ē-, orthographically defective, v. [Friedrich-Röllig 44]). Nevertheless, the translation 'ram' is preserved in both [Krah. 47] and [HJ 45] (cf. [KAI II 85] where it is stressed that a wild animal is unlikely in this context). Also in the fragmentary passages KAI 74.5 and CIS I 3915.1.
Hebrew:ʔayyāl 'fallow deer' [KB 40], ʔayyālā (ʔayyälät) 'doe of a fallow deer' [ibid.]; pB [Ja. 48].
Aramaic: Off. ʔyl 'deer, stag' [HJ 45], ʔylth 'hind' [ibid.]. // In Aḥiq 87, 88 (damaged context), v. ...................
Arabic:ʔiyyal-, ʔayyal- 'bouquetin, bouc de montagnes; cerf' [BK 1 74], [Fr. I 76] (тж. ʔuyyal-, ʔayyil-, ʔayyul-), [Lane 128], [LA XI 33]. // More details on this term v. in [Hommel 279-80]. Hommel notes that all the attestations of the present term are very late which may point to a foreign (Aramaic) origin. This opinion is reproduced in [Lansberger Fauna 98], but cf. references to early poetic works in [Blachère 329] and [Polosin 44].
Epigraphic South Arabian: Sab. ʔyl 'mountain goat, ibex' [SD 10]. // A Hapax in Zayd ʕInān 11: hḳnyw ... t_wrnhn wʔyln d_hbn 'they dedicated ... two bulls and one stag of bronze'. // Min. ʔyl 'bélier, bouquetin' [LM 9]. // A Hapax in MAFRAY-Darb aṣ-Ṣabī 1/13: wl ygb ...btys1 wʔyl 'let him be bound by an obligation ... concerning a goat and a stag'. // Both attestations are discussed in [Sima 27] who notes correctly that neither the etymological nor the textual arguments are helpful for establishing the meaning of the term(s) in both of the above contexts. In Sima's opinion, palaeozoological and archaeological considerations totally exlude the meaning 'stag' for the Min. passage while for the Sab. one it remains a possible alternative to the otherwise more plausible meaning 'ram'.
Jibbali:ayyól 'Steinbock' [Bittner 29] (not in [JJ]).
Notes: Usually compared to this root are Eth. forms with word-initial ḥ-/h- of obscure origin: Gez. hayyal 'ibex, mountain goat' [LGz. 221], Tna. ḥayäl 'cervo' [Bass. 63], Amh. hayäl 'large antilope' [K 25] (< Gez.). // According to [Bonechi-Conti 10], Ebl. a-wa-um (= Sum. DÀRA.DÀ [MEE IV 1251'] belongs to the present root ("une variante avec w intervocalique pour l'accadien ayyalu"). Since such a variant appears rather improbable in view of all the parallels quoted, another interpretation of the Ebl. term seems preferable (cf. No. ...). // One can hardly agree with [Landsberger Fauna 99] where parallels forming the present root are thought to be borrowed from a non-Semitic source ("Die Etymologie von ayalu ist dunkel. Akk., Hebr., Aram. stimmen genau überein, obgleich wir sicher annehmen dürfen, dass der Name des Hirsches nicht zum ursemitischen Bestand gehört hat"). Especially puzzling seems Landsberger's hypothesis according to which a "Proto-Hebrew" *yaʕil was borrowed into Akkadian to be then reborrowed into Hbr. and Arm.! // [Fron. 294]: *ʔayyal- 'cervo' (Gez., Syr., Hbr., Ugr., Akk.); [DRS 17]: *ʔ/hayal- (Akk., Ugr., Hbr., Pho., Arm., Gez., Arb.); [DLU 65]: Ugr., Hbr., Pho., Arm., Akk., Ebl., Arb.; [KB 40]: Hbr., Ugr., Arm., Arb., Gez., Akk.; [LGz. 221]: Gez., Eth., Arb., Jid. (hayyol, instead of ʔayyol ?), ESA, Hbr., Arm., Ugr., Akk.; [Firmage 1153]: Akk., Hbr., Ugr., Arm., Gez., Arb.
Hebrew:ʔayyā 'black kite' [KB 39], pB. 'name of an unclean bird' [Ja. 1707]. // In the dietary percepts Lv 11.14 (between dāʔā and ʕōrēb) and Dt 14.13 (between rāʔā and dayyā) as well as in Jb 28.7 (nātīb lō(ʔ) yǝdāʕō ʕāyiṭ // wǝlō(ʔ) šǝzapattū ʕēn ʔayyā 'a path which birds of prey do not know // and the eye of a kite does not perceive').
Arabic:yuʔyuʔ- 'émérillon (oiseau de proie)' [BK 2 1621], [LA I 202] (metathesis and reduplication).
Notes: Cf. Tgr. ʕaya 'falcon' [LH 480] with ʕ- instead of ʔ-. As for End. ayä 'kind of bird of prey' [LGur. 116], the quality of the original word-initial laryngeal is unknown. // Sam. hʔy 'a bird' [Tal 198] is certainly related. // [KB 39]: Hbr., Arb., Akk., Tgr.; [LGur. 116]: End., Tgr., Hbr. (wrongly quoted as ʕayyā). СТОИТ ПОСМОТРЕТЬ Salonen Orient. 19:407 и Yeivin ArOr 4.71.
Arabic:ʔibl-, ʔibil- 'chameaux, race de chameaux' [BK 1 5], [Lane 8], [LA XI 3] (cf. [Hommel 139ff.]).
Epigraphic South Arabian: Sab. ʔbl (f. ʔblt) 'camel' [SD 1]. // Qat. ʔbl 'male camel' [Ricks 3], ʔblt 'female camel' [ibid.]. // Evidence from both ESA languages amply discussed in [Sima 11ff.].
Mehri:ḥǝ-ybīt 'she-camel' [JM 2].
Jibbali:yǝt 'she-camel' [JJ 1].
Harsusi:ḥǝ-ybīt id. [JH 1].
Notes: An areal Arabian term, a Common Semitic origin is unlikely (but see [DRS 3] where *ʔ/hibil- 'chameau, troupe de chameaux', peut-être 'bête de somme' is apparently reconstucted as PS). According to [Sima 18], possibly borrowed from a non-Semitic source. // Cf. Syr. hǝbālǝtā 'grex (camelorum)' [Brock. 170], habbālā 'pastor camelorum' [ibid.], with a rarer variant ʔebālǝtā 'grex camelorum' [ibid. 3-4] (according to [Nöldeke 1879 1268], the Syr. forms are a decisive argument in favour of the Common Semitic backround of the present root). // Akk. ibilu 'Arabian camel, dromedary' SB [CAD i 2], [AHw. 363] is a late literary term of limited frequency (though, pace [Sima 18], attested not only in lexical lists) and is hardly genuine in Akkadian (cf. discussion in [CAD] s.v.). // [DRS 3-4]: Akk., Arb. (also ʔlb 'rassembler les chameaux'), ESA, Syr., Jib. // + [Johnstone Definite Article p. 300]!
Akkadian:mīrānu (mūrānu) 'young dog, puppy; cub of a wild animal' OAkk. on [CAD m2 105], [AHw. 658]. // Forms in -ū- are rarer than those in -ī- (as rightly observed in [AHw.], they are present only in later texts) and may be secondary. The main meaning of m. being 'young dog', it is only rarely applied to wild animals (lion, hyaena). Found almost exclusively in literary texts (the earliest occurrence is in the OAkk. incantation MAD 3 182: aṣbassu ... kī me-ra-ni-im ina pērtišu 'I seized him ... by its hair like a puppy') and lexical lists (= Sum. UR.TUR). The only exception seems to be the famous passage dealing with the sacrifice of a puppy in ARM 2 37:8, 10: mērānam u h̊azzam iššûnimma bēlī aplah̊ma mērānam u h̊assam ul addin 'they brought to me a puppy and a goat; I was afraid of my lord and did not permit the puppy and the goat' (cf. [Durand III 443]). Interestingly enough, in a similar text recently edited in [Charpin 185-] one finds me-ra-am instead of me-ra-nam (according to the editor, either a scribal error or a different lexeme meaning 'calf').
Ugaritic:ʔinr 'can, perro' [DLU 40], also a metathetic form ʔirn 'cachorro de perro, gozquejo' [ibid. 50]. // The meaning 'dog' for ʔinr is obvious in both passages where it is found: 1.16 I 2 (kklb bbtk nʕtḳ // kʔinr ʔap h̊štk 'like a dog which became old in your house // like a hound at the entrance of your portico' according to [Del Olmo Mitos 309]) and 1.114.13 (lm k!lb tʕdbn nšb // lʔinr tʕdbn ktp 'for a dog they prepare a cut of meat (?) // for a hound they prepare the shoulder'). It seems less certain for ʔirn, a hapax in the divinatory text 1.103+.33: pnh pn ʔirn 'his face is the face of a dog (?)'.
Notes: In Arb. cf. ʔirān-, miʔrān- 'repaire d'une bête feroce' [BK 1 27], [Fr. I 29], [LA XIII 14] as well as ʔrn 'mordre, saisir avec les dents' [BK 1 27], [Fr. I 29]. // The PS reconstruction is not very solid as it presupposes at the same time (1) metathetic developments in more than one language, (2) a secondary morphological formation in Akk. (*mi/u-ʔrān-), quite uncommon for animal nouns, (3) a relatively unusual semantic development in Amh. None of these objections is fatal, however. Thus, metathesis is not unfrequent in animal names as well as in roots with two sonorants (see Introduction). // In Akk., a rare non-prefixal by-form ú-ra-nu is attested (equated with mīrānu in Malku V 43, but probably not a genuine Akk. term it is typical of the words found in this word-list). // Ugr. ʔinr was carefully studied in [Aartun] where most of the above quoted Sem. parallels are listed and discussed (Ugr., Amh., Akk., Arb.).
Akkadian:abūtu 'a fish' OB on [CAD a1 93], [AHw. 9]. // For a detailed discussion v. [Salonen Fischerei 150]. According to Salonen, a. denoted two different fish species, a sea fish (Polydactylus tetradactylus) and a freshwater one (Barbus Xanthopterus). The Akk. word is thought to be borrowed from its Sum. designation UBI which needs to be proved in view of the Soq. parallel below. // According to [AHw.], another fish name abūtānu (OB on) is derived from the present term whereas in [CAD a1 48] this word is rendered as abbuttānu and derived from abbuttu 'a characteristic hair style' (v. discussion in [Salonen 1970 149], supporting the latter approach).
Soqotri:ʕāba 'a carp-like fish' [NP 52], ʕába 'a small blue and red fish' [ibid. 53].
Number:2339
Proto-Semitic:*ʕakbar-
Meaning:mouse, jerboa
Akkadian:akbaru (akkabaru) 'jerboa' OB on [CAD a1 265], [AHw. 28]. // In OB as PN only (also the fem. form. akbartum). More details on later occurrences v. in [Landsberger Fauna 109], [Salonen Jagd 237]. According to Landsberger and von Soden, the NA proper name written a-ga-bu-ru points to a variant agbaru comparable to Syr. ʔagbǝrā (v. below).
Hebrew:ʕakbār 'mouse' [KB 823], pB. [Ja. 1078]. // Unclean according to Lv 11.29 (between ḥōläd 'mole' and ṣāb 'lizard') but eatable (Is 66.17: ʔōkǝlē bǝŝar ...hāʕakbār).
Arabic:ʕakābir- 'mares murum, quibus yarbūʕ- nomen est' [Fr. III 199], [TA XIII 122], [Q II 95] (the sing. form ʕikbār- is found in [Hommel 338], [GD 2315]).
Notes: Cf. several terms with semantic shifts and/or phonetic deviations: // 1. Tgr. ʕekrib 'badger' [LH 476] (metathesis). // 2. Akk. arkabu, irkabu 'kind of bat' (metathesis). The present phonetic shape of the term as well as its meaning were convincingly established in a special study [Civil Bat] (contrast 'a bird' in [CAD i 177], 'Taube' in [AHw. 67]; note that the translation 'bat' is present in some earlier studies, e.g. [Landsberger Fauna 97], [Biggs 25]). According to Civil, forms with -k- are common in the earliest lexical lists while the unique variant with -g- is clearly innovative (so that comparison to Gez. rǝgb 'dove' underlying the tranlation of [AHw.] is hardly tenable). Civil was able to establish the reading ARKAB or IRKAB for the Sum. correspondence of a. (GAR.IBmušen). One wonders whether this is an early borrowing from the present Sem. root. // 3. Syr. ʕuḳbǝrā, ʕuḳbartā 'mus' [Brock. 542], [PS 2962] (secondary emphatization of -k-). // 4. Common MSA *ʕarḳīb- (sharing the irregularities listed above under 2 and 3): Mhr. ʔārḳáyb 'mouse; rat' [JM 28], Hrs. ʔarḳáyb, ʔarḳōb 'mouse' [JH 10], Jib. ʕarḳéb 'rat' [JJ 15]. On the contamination of this root with PS *ʕarḳūb- 'Achilles' tendon' see [SED I 23]. // 5. Syr. ʔagbǝrā 'mus' [Brock. 542], [PS 22] (with ʔ- instead of ʕ- and -g- instead of -k-). // In [DM 10] and [KB 823] Mnd. aubra, ʕubra 'mouse, porcupine' is compared to the present root (phonetically difficult, cf. rather Arb. wabr- 'petit quadrupède sans queue, au poil gris, et qui vit dans les maisons' [BK 2 1476], [Fr. IV 429], [LA V 272]). // [Fron. 296]: *ʔakbar- 'topo' (Syr. /ʕuḳbǝrā/, Hbr., Akk.); [KB 823]: Hbr., Arm. (Syr. ʕagbǝrā mistakenly for ʔagbǝrā), Arb. (Dat_. erroneusly quoted as Mhr.), Akk.; [Brock. 542]: Syr., Arm., Hbr., Arb.; [GD 2315]: Arb., Hbr., Jib.; [Firmage 1154]: Akk., Hbr., Arm.
