Reconstruction:Proto-Semitic/dibš-

This Proto-Semitic entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Semitic

Noun

*dibš- m

honey

Inflection

Declension of *dibš-
case	singular	dual	plural
nominative	*dibšum	*dibšāna	plural stem + *-ūna
accusative	*dibšam	*dibšayna	plural stem + *-īna
genitive	*dibšim	*dibšayna	plural stem + *-īna

possessive forms
1^st person	dibšī / dibšVya	—	*dibšVni
2^nd person m	*dibšVka	dibšVkumā / dibšVkumay	*dibšVkum(ū)
2^nd person f	*dibšVki	dibšVkumā / dibšVkumay	*dibšVkin(ā)
3^rd person m	*dibšVšu	dibšVšumā / dibšVšumay	*dibšVšum(ū)
3^rd person f	*dibšVša	dibšVšumā / dibšVšumay	*dibšVšin(ā)

the endings -m and -na are dropped in the bound form, which may also undergo syncopation of an unstressed final vowel where possible. Note: the ending -V before the possessive endings responds to case: *dibšuya for nom. case, *dibšiya for gen. case, *dibšaya for acc. case, etc.

Descendants

East Semitic:
- Akkadian: 𒋭 (dišpum)
West Semitic:
- Central Semitic:
  - Arabic: دِبْس (dibs, “syrup, molasses”)
    - ⇒ Maltese: dibsi
    - North Levantine Arabic: دبس (dibs)
    - → Classical Persian: دِبْس (dibs)
  - Northwest Semitic:
    - Aramaic: דבשא (diḇšā)
      - Eastern Aramaic:
        Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: ܕܸܒ݂ܫܵܐ (diḇšā)
        → Northern Kurdish: doşav, doşab (“syrup”)
        
        Classical Mandaic: ࡃࡅࡁࡔࡀ (dubša)
        
        Classical Syriac: ܕܒܫܐ (deḇšā)
        
        Jewish Babylonian Aramaic: דּוּבְשָׁא (dūḇšā)
      - Western Aramaic:
        Jewish Palestinian Aramaic: דּוּבְשָׁא (dūḇšā), דִּבְשָׁא (diḇšā)
    - Canaanite:
      - Hebrew: דְּבַשׁ (d'vásh, dəḇáš)
    - South Semitic:
      - Ethiopian Semitic:
        North Ethiopic:
        Ge'ez: ድብስ (dəbs)
        
        Tigrinya: ደበሰ (däbäsä)
        
        South Ethiopic:
        Argobba: ዲምስ (dims), ዱስ (dus)
        
        Gafat: ድብሰ (dəbsä)
        
        Harari: ዱ፞ስ (dûs)
      - Sayhadic:
        Sabaean: 𐩵𐩨𐩪 (dbs¹)
      - Southeast Semitic:
        Mehri: دبه (dabh)
        
        Shehri: dəbš

References

Kogan, Leonid (2011), “Proto-Semitic Lexicon”, in Weninger, Stefan, editor, The Semitic Languages. An International Handbook (Handbücher zur Sprach- und Kommunikationswissenschaft – Handbooks of Linguistics and Communication Science; 36), Berlin: De Gruyter, →ISBN, page 241
Klein, Ernest (1987), “דְּבַשׁ”, in A Comprehensive Etymological Dictionary of the Hebrew Language for Readers of English‎^[1], Jerusalem: Carta, →ISBN, page 114
Leslau, Wolf (1987), “dbs”, in Comparative Dictionary of Geʿez (Classical Ethiopic), Wiesbaden: Otto Harrassowitz, →ISBN, reprinted 1991, 1997 and 2006