This is a Swadesh list of words in English and Proto-Indo-European.
Presentation [edit]
At the end of the 1940s, new insights of radiocarbon dating became known to the public. Linguist Morris Swadesh believed that words decayed with age in a roughly similar way and therefore applied similar methods to determine the relationship of languages. To be able to compare languages from different cultures, he based his lists on meanings he presumed would be available in as many cultures as possible. He then used the fraction of agreeing cognates between any two related languages to compute their divergence time by some (still debated) algorithms. Starting in 1950 with 165 meanings, his list grew to 215 in 1952, which was so expansive that many languages lacked native vocabulary for some terms. Subsequently, it was reduced to 207, and reduced much further to 100 meanings in 1955. A reformulated list was published posthumously in 1971.
- For further information, including the full final version, read the Wikipedia article: Swadesh list.
| No. |
English |
Proto-Indo-European
|
| 1 |
I |
* *éǵh₂(om) ; *me- |
| 2 |
you (singular) |
*túh₂ |
| 3 |
he |
|
| 4 |
we |
*wéy |
| 5 |
you (plural) |
* *yū |
| 6 |
they |
|
| 7 |
this |
*kos, *koh₂, *kod |
| 8 |
that |
* *só, *séh₂, *tód |
| 9 |
here |
|
| 10 |
there |
|
| 11 |
who |
* *kʷis (pron.), *kʷod (adj.) |
| 12 |
what |
|
| 13 |
where |
|
| 14 |
when |
|
| 15 |
how |
|
| 16 |
not |
*ne, *ney |
| 17 |
all |
|
| 18 |
many |
|
| 19 |
some |
*kaylo-, *solwo- |
| 20 |
few |
|
| 21 |
other |
*h₂el-yó-, *h₂el-nó- |
| 22 |
one |
* *(H)óynos, *(H)óykos, *(H)óywos; *sḗm |
| 23 |
two |
* *dwóh₁; *dwó |
| 24 |
three |
*tréyes |
| 25 |
four |
*kʷetwóres |
| 26 |
five |
*pénkʷe |
| 27 |
big |
|
| 28 |
long |
*dluh₂gʰós |
| 29 |
wide |
|
| 30 |
thick |
*bʰenǵʰ |
| 31 |
heavy |
*gʷer(h₂)- |
| 32 |
small |
*mey- |
| 33 |
short |
*mreǵʰú- |
| 34 |
narrow |
*h₂enǵʰ- |
| 35 |
thin |
*ténh₂us |
| 36 |
woman |
*gʷḗn, h₁esor- |
| 37 |
man (adult male) |
*h₂nḗr, *wiHrós |
| 38 |
man (human being) |
*mánus |
| 39 |
child |
|
| 40 |
wife |
|
| 41 |
husband |
|
| 42 |
mother |
*méh₂tēr |
| 43 |
father |
*átta, *ph₂tḗr |
| 44 |
animal |
|
| 45 |
fish |
*dʰǵʰu- |
| 46 |
bird |
*h₂éwis |
| 47 |
dog |
*ḱwṓ |
| 48 |
louse |
*knid-, *luhs- |
| 49 |
snake |
*h₂engwi, *neh₁tr- |
| 50 |
worm |
*wr̥mi- |
| 51 |
tree |
*dóru (genitive *dréws) |
| 52 |
forest |
|
| 53 |
stick |
*ǵhasto-, *ǵhazdho- |
| 54 |
fruit |
|
| 55 |
seed |
|
| 56 |
leaf |
|
| 57 |
root |
*wréh₂ds |
| 58 |
bark (of a tree) |
|
| 59 |
flower |
|
| 60 |
grass |
*koino- |
| 61 |
rope |
|
| 62 |
skin |
*pel-, *twékos |
| 63 |
meat |
*mēms-, *kreuh₂- |
| 64 |
blood |
*krewh₂-, *h₁ésh₂r̥ |
| 65 |
bone |
*h₃ost-, *kost- |
| 66 |
fat (noun) |
*smeru- |
| 67 |
egg |
*h₂ōwyóm |
| 68 |
horn |
*keg-, *ḱer- |
| 69 |
tail |
|
| 70 |
feather |
|
| 71 |
hair |
*pulh₂- |
| 72 |
head |
*kaput-, *gʰebʰelo- |
| 73 |
ear |
*h₂ows- |
| 74 |
eye |
*h₃okʷ-, *h₃ekʷ- |
| 75 |
nose |
*hnéh₂s, *nā́s |
| 76 |
mouth |
*h₁oh₁s- |
| 77 |
tooth |
*h₃dónts, *ǵembʰ- |
| 78 |
tongue (organ) |
*dn̥ǵʰwéh₂s |
| 79 |
fingernail |
*h₃nógʰ(r)o- |
| 80 |
foot |
*pṓds |
| 81 |
leg |
*kroksko |
| 82 |
knee |
*ǵónu ~ *ǵnéw-g |
| 83 |
hand |
*ǵʰés-ro-, *mar-, *man- |
| 84 |
wing |
|
| 85 |
belly |
*udero- |
| 86 |
guts |
*eh₁ter- |
| 87 |
neck |
*mon- |
| 88 |
back |
|
| 89 |
breast |
*peg-, *psten- |
| 90 |
heart |
*ḱḗr (genitive *ḱr̥dés) |
| 91 |
liver |
*yeh₁kwr̥- |
| 92 |
to drink |
*peh₃i-, *h₁egʷʰ- |
| 93 |
to eat |
*h₁ed- |
| 94 |
to bite |
*gʷruhǵʰ-, *denḱ-, *h₁ed- |
| 95 |
to suck |
*dʰeh₁(i)- |
| 96 |
to spit |
*sp(y)eu- |
| 97 |
to vomit |
*wem-, *h₁reug- |
| 98 |
to blow |
*wāt-, *weh₁- |
| 99 |
to breathe |
*pneu- |
| 100 |
to laugh |
*(s)mei- |
| 101 |
to see |
*derḱ-, *weyd- |
| 102 |
to hear |
*ḱlew- |
| 103 |
to know |
*ǵneh₃-, *weyd- |
| 104 |
to think |
*tong- |
| 105 |
to smell |
*h₃ed- |
| 106 |
to fear |
|
| 107 |
to sleep |
*drem- |
| 108 |
to live |
*gʷeiH₃w- |
| 109 |
to die |
*mer- |
| 110 |
to kill |
*gʷʰen- |
| 111 |
to fight |
|
| 112 |
to hunt |
|
| 113 |
to hit |
*pleh₂k- |
| 114 |
to cut |
|
| 115 |
to split |
|
| 116 |
to stab |
|
| 117 |
to scratch |
*gerbʰ- |
| 118 |
to dig |
|
| 119 |
to swim |
*néh₂-u- |
| 120 |
to fly |
*pet-, *gʷel- |
| 121 |
to walk |
*gʰredʰ- |
| 122 |
to come |
*gʷem-, *gʷeh₂- |
| 123 |
to lie (as in a bed) |
*legʰ-, *ḱey- |
| 124 |
to sit |
*sed- |
| 125 |
to stand |
*steh₂- |
| 126 |
to turn (intransitive) |
|
| 127 |
to fall |
|
| 128 |
to give |
*deh₃- |
| 129 |
to hold |
*segʰ- |
| 130 |
to squeeze |
|
| 131 |
to rub |
*melh₁- |
| 132 |
to wash |
*leh₂w-, *neygʷ- |
| 133 |
to wipe |
|
| 134 |
to pull |
|
| 135 |
to push |
|
| 136 |
to throw |
*swep- |
| 137 |
to tie |
|
| 138 |
to sew |
*syuh₁- |
| 139 |
to count |
|
| 140 |
to say |
|
| 141 |
to sing |
*kan- |
| 142 |
to play |
|
| 143 |
to float |
|
| 144 |
to flow |
|
| 145 |
to freeze |
|
| 146 |
to swell |
|
| 147 |
sun |
*sóh₂wl̥ |
| 148 |
moon |
*mḗh₁n̥s |
| 149 |
star |
*h₂stḗr |
| 150 |
water |
*h₂ekʷeh₂, *h₂ep- |
| 151 |
rain |
h₂ekmon- |
| 152 |
river |
*h₂ekw-eh₂- |
| 153 |
lake |
*h₂ep- |
| 154 |
sea |
|
| 155 |
salt |
*sal- |
| 156 |
stone |
*h₂ekmon |
| 157 |
sand |
|
| 158 |
dust |
*pers- |
| 159 |
earth |
*dʰéǵʰōm |
| 160 |
cloud |
*nébʰos |
| 161 |
fog |
*sneudh- |
| 162 |
sky |
|
| 163 |
wind |
*ḱewero- |
| 164 |
snow |
*sneigwh- |
| 165 |
ice |
*yeg- |
| 166 |
smoke |
*dʰuh₁mós |
| 167 |
fire |
*h₁eh₂ter-, *h₁égnis |
| 168 |
ash |
*h₃és-no-, *h₃és-i- |
| 169 |
to burn |
*dʰegʷh-, *swel-, *h₁ews- |
| 170 |
road |
*pent- |
| 171 |
mountain |
*gʷerh₃- |
| 172 |
red |
*h₁rewdʰós |
| 173 |
green |
|
| 174 |
yellow |
*k(e)nhkos |
| 175 |
white |
*h₂elbʰós |
| 176 |
black |
*swordós, *h₂ems- |
| 177 |
night |
*nókʷts |
| 178 |
day |
*h₂eǵh-, *dei-n- |
| 179 |
year |
*yeHr-, *wet- |
| 180 |
warm |
*tep-, *gʷʰer- |
| 181 |
cold |
*gel-, *ǵel- |
| 182 |
full |
*pl̥h₁nós |
| 183 |
new |
*néwos |
| 184 |
old |
*senh₁ó- |
| 185 |
good |
*bʰed-, *h₁su- |
| 186 |
bad |
*h₂wap- |
| 187 |
rotten |
|
| 188 |
dirty |
|
| 189 |
straight |
|
| 190 |
round |
|
| 191 |
sharp (as a knife) |
*h₁edʰ-, *h₂eḱ- |
| 192 |
dull (as a knife) |
|
| 193 |
smooth |
|
| 194 |
wet |
*wed |
| 195 |
dry |
*ters- |
| 196 |
correct |
|
| 197 |
near |
|
| 198 |
far |
*wi |
| 199 |
right |
*deḱs- |
| 200 |
left |
*sewyós |
| 201 |
at |
*epi, *opi, *h₁ad |
| 202 |
in |
*(h₁?)en, *(h₁?)en-ter |
| 203 |
with |
*kom, *pe |
| 204 |
and |
*kʷe, *de, *nu |
| 205 |
if |
|
| 206 |
because |
|
| 207 |
name |
*h₁nḗh₃mn̥ |
See also [edit]
| Swadesh lists |
| Individual languages |
|
Afrikaans – Albanian – Antillean Creole – Arabic (standard) (p), Egyptian Arabic (p), Palestinian Arabic (p), Tunisian Arabic (t) – Armenian (t,p) – Aromanian – Bangala – Bashkir – Basque – Belarusian – Breton – Bulgarian (t) – Burmese (t,p) – Catalan – Chechen – Chinese: Cantonese, Gan (p), Mandarin (t,p), Min Nan (Amoy) (p), Old Chinese (p) – Croatian – Czech – Danish – Dutch (p) – Egyptian (Middle) – Esperanto – Estonian – Finnish – Fiji Hindi – Fijian – French (p) – Frisian (West) – Friulian – Georgian (t,p) – German (p) – Greek (modern) (p), Greek (ancient) – Guaraní – Haida – Haitian Creole – Hausa – Hawaiian – Hindi (t) – Hittite – Hmong (White) (p) – Hungarian – Icelandic – Indonesian – Irish (p) – Istro-Romanian – Italian (p) – Japanese (t) – Kashubian – Khmer (p) – Korean (t) – Kurdish – Latin – Latvian – Lingala – Lingua Franca Nova – Lithuanian – Luwian – Macedonian (t) – Malagasy – Malay – Maltese – Megleno-Romanian – Mongolian (t) – Old Portuguese (p) – Ossetian (p) – Polish (p) – Portuguese (p) – Proto-Indo-European – Purepecha – Quechua – Romani – Romanian – Russian (p) – Sanskrit (t) – Scottish Gaelic – Serbo-Croatian – Sinhalese – Slovenian – Spanish (p) – Sranan – Swahili – Swedish – Tagalog – Tajik (t) – Tahitian – Thai (t) – Tocharian B – Tok Pisin – Turkish – Ukrainian – Vietnamese – Walloon – Zulu
|
| Language families and family branches |
|
Afro-Asiatic – Algonquian – Altaic – Araucanian – Austro-Asiatic – Australian – Austronesian – Baltic-Finnic – Bantu – Celtic – Dené–Yeniseian – Dravidian – Finno-Ugric – Frisian – Germanic – Hokan – Iberian – Italian – Indo-Iranian – Indo-Iranian (extended) – Mayan – Muskogean – Niger–Congo – Oto-Manguean – Paleosiberian – Penutian – Romance – Sino-Tibetan – Slavic – Siouan – Tai–Kadai – Tibeto-Burman – Tupi–Guarani – Turkic – Uto-Aztecan
|
| The list may also include: (t) the transcription in Latin characters; (p) the phonetic transcription |
