Word Order Facts
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The Afro-Asiatic languages

Language family · Africa, Eurasia

WALS includes 145 Afro-Asiatic languages in 16 branches; 118 of them are in Africa.

Basic word order: SVO in 33 of the 69 members coded, then SOV in 21, VSO in 9, no dominant order in 6.

The most solid shared trait: all 29 members coded for Front Rounded Vowels have none.

Of these, 20 have a full page on this site.

Every Afro-Asiatic language in WALS, placed at the point the atlas gives for it.

Word order against the world

Members with at least 30 coded features, compared with every language WALS codes for each pairing.

dependent before the headboth or otherafter the head

  • Subject and verb
    Afro-Asiaticbefore: 21both or other: 3after: 378% · 11% of 27
    All WALSbefore: 1192both or other: 110after: 19480% · 13% of 1,496
  • Object and verb
    Afro-Asiaticbefore: 6after: 2122% · 78% of 27
    All WALSbefore: 712both or other: 101after: 70547% · 46% of 1,518
  • Noun phrase and adposition
    Afro-Asiaticbefore: 2both or other: 3after: 218% · 81% of 26
    All WALSbefore: 577both or other: 96after: 51149% · 43% of 1,184
  • Genitive and noun
    Afro-Asiaticbefore: 2both or other: 2after: 237% · 85% of 27
    All WALSbefore: 685both or other: 96after: 46855% · 37% of 1,249
  • Adjective and noun
    Afro-Asiaticbefore: 4both or other: 2after: 2015% · 77% of 26
    All WALSbefore: 373both or other: 115after: 87927% · 64% of 1,367
  • Demonstrative and noun
    Afro-Asiaticbefore: 3both or other: 7after: 1612% · 62% of 26
    All WALSbefore: 551both or other: 84after: 59045% · 48% of 1,225
  • Numeral and noun
    Afro-Asiaticbefore: 8both or other: 2after: 1532% · 60% of 25
    All WALSbefore: 479both or other: 67after: 60842% · 53% of 1,154
  • Relative clause and noun
    Afro-Asiaticbefore: 2after: 248% · 92% of 26
    All WALSbefore: 141both or other: 104after: 57917% · 70% of 824
  • Degree word and adjective
    Afro-Asiaticbefore: 3both or other: 3after: 625% · 50% of 12
    All WALSbefore: 227both or other: 62after: 19247% · 40% of 481

Shared and split traits

Where the family agrees most
FeatureMost frequent valueMembers
Front Rounded VowelsNone29 of 29
Absence of Common ConsonantsAll present29 of 29
Number of GendersTwo20 of 20
Sex-based and Non-sex-based Gender SystemsSex-based gender system20 of 20
Numeral ClassifiersNumeral classifiers are absent19 of 19
ReduplicationProductive full and partial reduplication17 of 17
Situational PossibilityVerbal constructions15 of 15
Relativization on SubjectsGap14 of 14
Where it is most divided
FeatureLargest groupMembers
Number of CasesNo morphological case-marking3 of 11
Indefinite ArticlesNo indefinite article but definite article12 of 39
Glottalized ConsonantsNo glottalized consonants9 of 29
Action Nominal ConstructionsMixed: Several patterns in the same language3 of 9
Verbal Person MarkingPerson marking of only the A argument6 of 17

Members

LanguageBranchBasic orderFeatures coded
AmharicSemiticSOV83
AngasWest ChadicSVO33
Arabic (Egyptian)SemiticSVO128
Arabic (Gulf)SemiticSVO47
Arabic (Iraqi)Semiticnot coded20
Arabic (Moroccan)Semiticnot coded43
Arabic (Syrian)Semiticno dominant order31
AwngiCentral Cushiticnot coded21
BejaBejaSOV91
Berber (Figuig)Berbernot coded28
Berber (Middle Atlas)BerberVSO115
Berber (Rif)Berbernot coded23
BilinCentral Cushiticnot coded27
BudumaBiu-Mandaranot coded29
BurungeSouthern CushiticSVO31
ChahaSemiticnot coded26
CopticEgyptian-CopticSVO41
DiziDizoidnot coded40
GimiraTa-Ne-Omoticnot coded26
GudeBiu-MandaraVSO33
HamerSouth Omoticnot coded25
HausaWest ChadicSVO131
Hebrew (Modern)SemiticSVO126
IraqwSouthern CushiticSOV104
KabyleBerbernot coded21
KanakuruWest ChadicSVO44
KemantCentral Cushiticnot coded23
KeraEast ChadicSVO74
LamangBiu-Mandaranot coded23
LeleEast ChadicSVO43
MalgwaBiu-Mandaranot coded21
MalteseSemiticnot coded41
MargiBiu-MandaraSVO62
MehriSemiticnot coded27
MiyaWest Chadicno dominant order49
MupunWest ChadicSVO49
MusguBiu-Mandaranot coded25
Neo-Aramaic (Arbel Jewish)Semiticnot coded29
NgizimWest ChadicSVO49
Oromo (Harar)Lowland East CushiticSOV126
Pa'aWest Chadicnot coded20
PeroWest ChadicSVO36
QafarLowland East Cushiticnot coded24
SidaamaHighland East Cushiticnot coded20
SomaliLowland East CushiticSOV72
TamashekBerbernot coded20
TashlhiytBerberno dominant order44
TeraBiu-MandaraSVO47
TigrinyaSemiticnot coded22
TigréSemiticSOV51
Tuareg (Ahaggar)Berbernot coded24
UldemeBiu-Mandaranot coded21
WolayttaTa-Ne-Omoticnot coded26
ZayseTa-Ne-Omoticnot coded21

Not listed: 91 further Afro-Asiatic languages with fewer than 20 coded features.