Eblaite

Overview

Eblaite is by far the earliest attested Semitic language (2400–2300 BCE). Genealogically, Eblaite is a sister tongue of Mesopotamian Akkadian and, together with it, forms the Eastern branch of Semitic (ES). Geographically, however, it is far removed from Sumer and Akkad, being located in North-Western Syria and testifying to the early presence of the ES language tipe in this area, otherwise known to be home to West Semitic (WS) tongues. The past decade has witnessed a renewed interest towards the grammatical and lexical heritage of Ebla (notably, its comparative dimension).