Re: Are *dHeg^Hom and adamah cognates?

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "Etherman23" <etherman23@...> wrote:

>
> > Could we assume that PIE *dHeg^Hom "earth" and Semitic 'DM "earth are cognates? Could we infer a common Nostratic source? Or some mutual influence? In both languages there's the pair earthly being (human)/earth, cf. homo/humus and adam/adamah. Is there another language where the word for "man" mean "earthly"?
> >
> > Joao S. Lopes
>
> Doesn't seem likely. Semitic lacks anything corresponding to *g^H.
>

That's right, as the IE and Semitic words don't match phonetically (IE *-m is the accusative ending). Orel & Stolbova (HSED 16) reconstruct an Afrasian root *?adam- 'earth, field', where *?a- is most likely a prefix.

On the other hand, the relationship between 'earth' and 'man' in Semitic is linked to the Creation Myth.

> Starostin suggests cognation with:
>
> Semitic: de&#7731;a&#7731;-h&#257;n (pl.) 'mud' Soqotri
> Berber: *dV&#7731;(&#7731;)- 'clay'
> Western Chadic: *da&#7731;- 'clay soil'
> Be&#7693;auye (Beja): dek&#695;a 'dust'
> Central Cushitic (Agaw): *da&#7731;u- 'clay '
>

This is actually Militarev's (not all DBs found in Starostin's website are his). On the other hand, Orel & Stolbova (HSED 634) reconstruct an Afrasian root *dak'- 'clay, sand', although no Semitic data is included.

This is a widespread Eurasian root with cognates in many language families:
Kartvelian *diq- 'clay, earth'
Altaic *tHà:go 'dirt (sut, clay)'
Sino-Tibetan *dh@... 'clay, mire'
Yeniseian *t@... 'clay, mud'
Burushaski *toq 'mud'

In addition to the "official" *dheg^hom, IE has also *dheig^h- 'to work clay'.