Afrasian

English

WOTD – 21 May 2025

Etymology

Blend of Afro- (prefix meaning ‘Africa’) +‎ Asian,[1] possibly a calque of Russian афрази́йский (afrazíjskij, “of, pertaining to, or being a language family spoken in northern Africa and southwest Asia”).

Pronunciation

  • (Received Pronunciation) IPA(key): /æˈfɹeɪ.ʒn̩/, /æˈfɹeɪ.ʒi.ən/
  • Audio (Southern England):(file)
  • (General American) IPA(key): /æˈfɹeɪʒ(ə)n/
  • Audio (General American):(file)
  • Rhymes: -eɪʒən
  • Hyphenation: Afr‧a‧si‧an

Adjective

Afrasian (not comparable)

  2. Of or relating to both Africa and Asia. [from early 20th c.]
    Synonym: Afro-Asian
  3. (linguistics, specifically) Synonym of Afroasiatic (“of, pertaining to, or being a language family spoken in northern Africa and southwest Asia, and including Berber, Chadic, Cushitic, Egyptian, Semitic, and possibly Omotic languages”). [from late 20th c.]
    Synonyms: (dated) Hamito-Semitic, (dated) Semito-Hamitic

Derived terms

Translations

Noun

Afrasian (plural Afrasians)

  1. A thing that relates to both Africa and Asia. [from mid 20th c.]
  2. (linguistics) A person who comes from a region where Afroasiatic languages are spoken.
    Synonym: Afro-Asian

Translations

Proper noun

Afrasian

  1. (linguistics, uncommon) Synonym of Afroasiatic (“the language family spoken in northern Africa and southwest Asia, and including Berber, Chadic, Cushitic, Egyptian, Semitic, and possibly Omotic languages”). [from late 20th c.]
    Synonym: (dated) Hamito-Semitic

Derived terms

Translations

References

  1. ^ “Afrasian, adj. and n.”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford: Oxford University Press, July 2023; “Afrasian, adj. and n.”, in Lexico, Dictionary.com; Oxford University Press, 2019–2022.

Further reading

Anagrams

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