Geʽez

Geʽez is an ancient <a href="/facts/South_Semitic_languages/LstwCa17">South Semitic language</a>. The language originates from what is now <a href="/facts/Ethiopia/LVujNp5v">Ethiopia</a> and <a href="/facts/Eritrea/tuhgQTdR">Eritrea</a>.
Today, Geʽez is used as the main <a href="/facts/Liturgical_language/557K2NXD">liturgical language</a> of the <a href="/facts/Ethiopian_Orthodox_Tewahedo_Church/l46wvlRq">Ethiopian Orthodox Tewahedo Church</a>, the <a href="/facts/Eritrean_Orthodox_Tewahedo_Church/zJPygneW">Eritrean Orthodox Tewahedo Church</a>, the <a href="/facts/Ethiopian_Catholic_Church/RW2d1Qvy">Ethiopian Catholic Church</a>, the <a href="/facts/Eritrean_Catholic_Church/PYHVDG1q">Eritrean Catholic Church</a>, and the <a href="/facts/Beta_Israel/KINATX1J">Beta Israel</a> Jewish community.
<a href="/facts/Hawulti_(monument)/dC5jXf0M">Hawulti Obelisk</a> is an ancient pre-Aksumite Obelisk located in <a href="/facts/Matara%2c_Eritrea/lqnC0yXo">Matara</a>, Eritrea. The monument dates to the early Aksumite period and bears an example of the ancient Geʽez script.
In one study, <a href="/facts/Tigre_language/fMU0xPUP">Tigre</a> was found to have a 71% lexical similarity to Geʽez, while <a href="/facts/Tigrinya_language/KjCdk0vI">Tigrinya</a> had a 68% lexical similarity to Geʽez, followed by <a href="/facts/Amharic/zVHLsajh">Amharic</a> at 62%. Most linguists believe that Geʽez does not constitute a common ancestor of modern <a href="/facts/Ethio-Semitic_languages/1psvCDav">Ethio-Semitic languages</a> but became a separate language early on from another hypothetical unattested common language.

Geʽez open-in-new

Geʽez