Is Hebrew an African Language?

Alice C. Linsley

I believe the evidence supports the view that many of the languages in the Afro-Asiatic family have words that can be traced back to biliteral roots found in Africa. Some of the figures or marks found in later scripts are found on Proto-Saharan pottery and on petroglyphs in Sudan and Somalia.

Before the Old Testament books - originally all separate clay tablets or scrolls - there were Paleo-Hebrew writings found in the region of Judah and Edom. Mostly these were commercial records, trade agreements, and political records. They were sealed with Paleo-Hebrew bullae/seals, many of which used the Holy Name or variants of the Holy Name like Yah or Yahu. This name was known in ancient Nubia.

The Hebrew Bible has many non-Hebrew words that are derived from proto-languages of peoples who migrated out of the Nile Valley and the Sahara. Hebrew relies on Proto-Canaanite and ancient Egyptian and Proto-Saharan words. The ancient Egyptian signs (hieroglyphs) provide valuable clues to understanding many of the non-Hebrew words that appear in the Old Testament that have a Nilo-Saharan origin. Egyptian hieroglyphs were widely used among the early Semites because Egypt had become very powerful and exercised great influence in Canaan as evidenced by the Egyptian shrines on the ancient Horus road.

Proto-Sinaitic inscriptions have been found in the region of ancient Nubia that date to 1900 BC. Descendants of Proto-Canaanite writing systems include Ugaritic, Phoenician, South Arabian and North Arabian scripts.

Another writing system that is important for understanding non-Hebrew words in the Old Testament is Sumerian. Some Sumerian words like: sahar (sand, dust, black, ashes); eden (steppe land, watered plain), and harran (route, roadway) appear in the oldest material in the Old Testament. Sahar שחר is the Hebrew word for black.

Sumerian marks resemble those of the Nilotic cattle-herding peoples. Here we will find some very ancient marks: V, T, X and the solar symbols O and Y. Many of these appear in the old Oasis North Arabian scripts like Thamudic, Dumaitic, and Taymanitic. The urheimat of the Canaanite Y is the Proto-Saharan cattle herding and boating populations. They are among Abraham's ancestors.

The Akkadian language of Nimrod's empire in the Tigris-Euphrates region, is also important when it comes to understanding material in the Old Testament. Nimrod was the sent-away son of Kush. He represents the Kushite dispersion out of the Nile Valley into Canaan and beyond. It is not surprising that there is an affinity between Akkadian and Proto-Hebrew.

Arabic, Aramaic and Hebrew share a common proto-system. Some of the oldest Arabic scripts are called "Dedanite" because the highest concentration of these scripts has been found in the region of Dedan. The Ainu script shares signs with these proto-scripts because the point of origin of the Ainu was the Nile Valley.

All of the scripts I have mentioned are in the same Afro-Asiatic language family, except the Ainu, the origin of which is still disputed. The evidence suggests that it may be related to proto-languages of Turkey and Hungary. The Hungarians called themselves "Magyar" and claim to be descendants of Noah, a Nilo-Saharan ruler. It is also known that the archaic Nilotic rulers moved into Turkey because they built the shrine city Meroe on Mount Silpius overlooking the Orontes River. The fortress on the spur of Mount Silpius was named IO, which means “pillared place dedicated to the Creator.” The O was a solar image. The sun was the Creator's symbol or emblem. Heliopolis (Biblical On) was called “Iunu” which means "place of pillars" because it was constructed with many pillars.

The earliest paleo scripts were used to communicate things like directions for people migrating, forks in trails, bend in rivers, mountains, caves, crossings, direction to go, feeding grounds for herds, etc. Many of the figures used in the later writing systems are derived from these symbols that appear on the walls of caves. See Symbols of Archaic Rock Shelters.


Words related to Horite religion

In ancient Egypt, the three superior planets Mars, Jupiter and Saturn were associated with Horus. Mars was named "Horus of the Horizon" or "Horus the Red." Jupiter was called "Horus Who Illuminates the Two Lands." Saturn was named "Horus, Bull of the Sky." These three superior planets were always depicted with the falcon-head of Horus (Krupp 1979).

The association of the falcon or owl with Horus is the likely source of the Semitic malk or melek, meaning king. In ancient Egyptian the owl was called m-l-k (See Gabor Takacs, Etymological Dictionary of Egyptian, p. 1).

In Hausa, a type of owl is called bambani. The word is related to ba-na, horni and hanu. Here we have a suggestion of the connection between Horus and Hanu or Ainu. (See Dictionary of Hausa, p. 19) Abraham's father bore an Ainu title- Terah, meaning priest.

In Hausa the word for king or ruler is sarki (See Charles Henry Robinson, Dictionary of Hausa, XXIV Preface). Auran saraki refers to the king's minister and is usually rendered chief. The word auran is related to Harun and Aaron, and to the Greek and Latin word for gold which is aurum. Aaron was asked by the Hebrews to fabricate a golden calf. The calf was the totem of Hathor-Meri, the mother of Horus. The oldest know site of Horus worship is Nekhen in Sudan. This appears to be the area where Abraham's ancestors listed in Genesis 4 and 5 originated.

Moses had a Kushite wife, probably his half-sister since Zipporah was his cousin bride.The Kushites were descended from Noah, a great Proto-Saharan chief. His grandson was name Kush and his great grandson Nimrod was a Kushite kingdom builder.

Kush was famous for gold, a fact to which Genesis alludes when speaking of the river Pishon that flowed through the land of Ha'vilah, where there is gold (Gen. 2:11). Another African river is the Gihon which wound through the land of Kush (Gen. 2:13). The high quality of Kushite gold is seen at Nekhen, the oldest known shrine city of Horus. An example is this gold plumed falcon representing Horus.

During his stay in Kano (1895), Henry Robinson persuaded a classical Arabic scholar to translate the Gospels of St. John and St. Luke from Arabic into Hausa, the scholar's first language. Here are some more interesting connections between Hausa, Hebrew and Ancient Egyptian.

The Hausa word for day  is rana. The root is ra, which is the Ancient Egyptian name for the Creator whose emblem was the Sun.

Al and El are synonyms for God. The plural form Allohi in Arabic is also found in Hausa and is equivalent to the Hebrew Elohim.

Atvali - ancestors in Hausa is related to the Hindi sm-atvali. Vali is related to the Arabic Wali, meaning guardian or protector.

Azvha - dawn in Hausa, related to Adah, wife of Lamech (Gen. 4)

Amaria refers to lawful wife, as opposed to a concubine. There may be a relationship to the Amari speakers of Papua New Guinea. The Amari dialect is spoken in 14 villages from the Umi River to the Markham- Ramu Divide, with about 5,300 speakers remaining.

Baban kai - great head in Hausa. Baba is father in Yoruba. The Dravidian word for great head or father is appa. Har-appa means Horus is head or father. The chief priest is sometime referred to as Babalawo. Baba is father and awo means he is a prophet who can see a vision of the future.


Related reading:  Recovering the African Background of Genesis; Abraham's Kushite Ancestors; Fascinating Conversation with Laouali Yahaya; Twin Pyramids and Sphinx in Zinder; Kushite Wives; Hebrew, Israelite or Jew?; Early Written Signs

The Shock of Muhammad Atta's Afterlife

Alice C. Linsley

Who are the houris mentioned in the Qur'an?

Many Muslims believe that there are buxom maidens to be enjoyed by martyrs in the afterlife. In a note to his fellow hijackers, September 11 ringleader Muhammad Atta reminded them of their impending "marriage in Paradise" to the 72 virgins mentioned in the Quran. Islamic extremists refer to suicide bombing as a "wedding to the black-eyed in eternal Paradise."

The German scholar Christoph Luxenberg says the "houris" with "swelling breasts" refers instead to "white raisins" and "juicy fruits" and are symbolic of the restoration of the lushness of Paradise. Luxenberg's research was featured in a Newsweek article titled "Challenging the Quran" on July 28, 2003.

However, Luxenberg mistakenly argues that Arabic was not a written language until 150 years after Muhammad's death. In reality, Arabic is older than Hebrew and both languages have common roots in the Proto-Afro-Arabian languages. Many of those ancient roots are found in Aramaic and ancient Akkadian.

The Danish linguist Holger Pedersen (1867-1953) explained in The Discovery of Language that “Hebrew, Aramaic and Accadian languages had all undergone significant linguistic degeneration. Only Old Arabic, due to its relative isolation in the Arabian peninsula, remained closer to the old stratum of the ‘Semitic’ form of the language.” Old Arabic is sometimes called "Dedanite" because that is where the largest concentration of old Arabic scripts has been found. Further, the oldest mosques were aligned to a site in Dedan.

Dedan the Elder was a grandson of Kush by his son Ramah (Gen. 10:7).  Dedan the Younger was the son of Joktan, Abraham's firstborn son (Gen. 25:3). The Dedanites were Afro-Arabian kin to the other Hebrew clans.

Dr. Maher Hathout argues that Luxenberg is wrong about the Houris being raisins and fruits. Hathout explains, "It is his [Luxenberg's] prerogative but this does not provide anything supernatural to look forward to the life of eternity. It seems that what he was referring to as raisins is 'kawaib.' Dr. Hathout argues that the Arabic meaning of "beings with swollen breasts" refers to "beings of distinction."

These beings of distinction are the early Hebrew who were influential as priests, rulers over territories, prophets, seers, commercial giants, and judges whose deeds are recorded in Scripture and described in Sirach 44:1-14.

Dr. Hathout is Correct

The Houris are Horite beings of distinction or deified ruler-priests and the number 72 further establishes the connection to the Horites. The ancient ruler-priests were aware of the precession of the equinoxes. The number 72 represents the number of years it takes for the constellations to move one degree due to precession. The Great Pyramid and Angkor Wat are nearly 72° apart, along the circle's circumference (diagram below).  It has been noted also that Angkor Wat is located 72° of longitude east of the Pyramids of Giza. The name Angkor correlates with the ancient Egyptian Anhk-Hor, meaning "Long live Horus."

Point A represents the Angkor Wat complex of 72 shrines and G represents the Great Pyramid of Egypt.
Point I represents Har-Appa in the Indus valley. Har-Appa means "Horus is Father." 
Point M is the pyramid at Machupicchu with 72 steps. Point E is Easter Island.
Credit: Jim Alison

Apparently the Horites believed that each year of the precession is represented by a deified ruler and the Heavenly Council is comprised of these 72 rulers. To enter heaven is to come before this Council.

The Egyptians marked time by 36 ten-day increments (half of 72) and each increment was ruled by a different righteous ruler or rising star. This is based on the number of "decan" stars which were seen to rise during summer nights in Ancient Egypt. A "decan" star was a star that rose just before sunrise at the beginning of a 10-day "decade" in Ancient Egypt. The Egyptian year was marked by 36 decan stars or 36 ten-day periods. During summer nights, 12 decan stars rose; one for each hour. This is the apparent basis for the appointment of the 12 Apostles as rulers. Jesus said to them, "I tell you the truth, at the renewal of all things, when the Son of Man sits on his glorious throne, you who have followed me will also sit on twelve thrones, judging the twelve tribes of Israel." (Matt.19:28)

The coincidence of celestial events and deified rulers is evident in Job 38:4-7, where God asks Job the Horite Hebrew of the clan of Uz:

 "Where were you when I laid the earth’s foundation?
    Tell me, if you understand.
⁵ Who marked off its dimensions? Surely you know!
    Who stretched a measuring line across it?
⁶ On what were its footings set,
    or who laid its cornerstone —
⁷ while the morning stars sang together
    and all the sons of God shouted for joy?"

This appears to be a reference to January 2, 2900 BC when Mercury, Venus, Mars, Jupiter, and Saturn visibly aligned within a few degrees of one another and appeared as morning "stars." This event is described from the point of reference of a surveyor at the Great Pyramid, and the Pyramid's structure serves as a memorial to this celestial event. As Bernard I. Pietsch had written, "Its shape, dimensions, and internal design communicate very specific information about where it is located on the earth and in the cosmos as well in one single moment."

In ancient Egypt, the superior planets Mars, Jupiter and Saturn were associated with Horus. Mars was named "Horus of the Horizon" or "Horus the Red." Jupiter was called "Horus Who Illuminates the Two Lands" and Saturn was named "Horus, Bull of the Sky." These three planets were always depicted with the falcon-head of Horus (Krupp 1979).

Messianic texts speaks of the Son of God, a title given to Horus, the archetype of Jesus the Messiah. Jesus is called the Messiah eleven times in the Qur'an. It is not a coincidence that Psalm 72 is a Messianic text.

Psalm 72

1 Endow the king with your justice, O God,
the royal son with your righteousness.
2 He will judge your people in righteousness,
your afflicted ones with justice.
3 The mountains will bring prosperity to the people,
the hills the fruit of righteousness.
4 He will defend the afflicted among the people
and save the children of the needy;
he will crush the oppressor.

5 He will endure as long as the sun,
as long as the moon, through all generations.
6 He will be like rain falling on a mown field,
like showers watering the earth.
7 In his days the righteous will flourish;
prosperity will abound till the moon is no more.

8 He will rule from sea to sea
and from the River to the ends of the earth.
9 The desert tribes will bow before him
and his enemies will lick the dust.
10 The kings of Tarshish and of distant shores
will bring tribute to him;
the kings of Sheba and Seba
will present him gifts.
11 All kings will bow down to him
and all nations will serve him.

12 For he will deliver the needy who cry out,
the afflicted who have no one to help.
13 He will take pity on the weak and the needy
and save the needy from death.
14 He will rescue them from oppression and violence,
for precious is their blood in his sight.

15 Long may he live!
May gold from Sheba be given him.
May people ever pray for him
and bless him all day long.
16 Let grain abound throughout the land;
on the tops of the hills may it sway.
Let its fruit flourish like Lebanon;
let it thrive like the grass of the field.
17 May his name endure forever;
may it continue as long as the sun.

All nations will be blessed through him,
and they will call him blessed.



The Common Horite Ancestry of Some Jews and Arabs

As many Arab Muslims and Jews have a common Horite ancestry, it seems more likely that the houris are their Horite ancestors who have entered into Paradise or the "lap of the Houris." This appears to be equivalent to the Bosom of Abraham, the Horite Hebrew. This is suggested by the fact that Abraham's bosom in the Greek text is kolpos, which means lap. So righteous Arabs and righteous Jews will be in the same lap in the afterlife where they will await judgment.

Jews call their ancestors "horim" and the Arab Kohanan recognize Aram, Shem and Noah as their ancestors. The Horim of Jews and Arabs are traced differently in the Torah and the Qur'an, but there are clear connections showing their common Horite ancestors.  Consider ʿĀd, who according to Arab tradition was the son of Uz. Uz the Elder is mentioned in Genesis 10:23. His grandson was Uz, the son of Dishan (I Chron. 1:42). Dishan was a son of Seir the Horite Hebrew and the brother-in-law of Esau the Younger. Uz the Younger was Seir's grandson.

Abraham's ruler-priest caste is traced back to the Nile Valley where the oldest known site of Hebrew worship was at Nekhen. The Horite Hebrew were devotees of Horus, Re, and Hathor. HR in the Proto-Egyptian which means "Most High One". In Greek he was called Horus. Horus was believed to be the co-equal, co-eternal son of the High God who was said to be virginally conceived by divine overshadowing/ Jesus was born of Mary, a woman of the Horite Hebrew ancestry. She conceived by the overshadowing of the Holy Spirit (Luke 1:35). She brought forth the Seed who would crush the serpent's head and restore Paradise. 

The early Messianic expectation was expressed in the 6000-year-old Pyramid Texts: "HR has shattered the mouth of the serpent with the sole of his foot" (Utterance 388). This came to be expressed in Genesis 3:15 where we read that the Seed of the Woman would crush the serpent's head.

Belief in God Father and God Son existed among the early Hebrew (4000-2000 BC). They believed that the Son would be virginally conceived by divine overshadowing (Luke 1:35). They recognized the son as being co-equal with the father, and they spoke of the son as his father's advocate (1 John 2:1). The Egyptian Book of the Dead speaks of the Son as the "advocate of his father".

Abraham the Horite Hebrew had 9 sons. The firstborn sons ruled among Abraham’s people. However, the first-born sons of wives were ranked above the firstborn sons of concubines. This means that Joktan (Qahtan in Arabic) ranked over Eliezar, and Yitzak ranked over Yishmael. Joktan ruled over the southern settlements of his maternal grandfather (Dedan, Ramaah and Beersheba) and Yitzak ruled the northern settlements of his father Abraham (Hebron, Bethel and Shechem). To this day the Joktanite tribes live in southern Arabia.

The Joktanite tribes of Southern Arabia are descendants of Abraham by Keturah

Genesis 10: 26 tells us that Joktan had 13 sons. Almodad appears to be the first-born, as his name is listed first. If Joktan followed the pattern of his fathers, his two wives would have maintained separate households on a north-south axis. The sons of his concubines would have been sent away to the east and to the west. This may be the meaning of Gen. 10:30 which describes the Joktanite territory as extending "from Mesha [Mecca?] all the way to Sephar in the eastern mountains [Mount Zafari on the Indian Ocean?]."

Some of the descendants of Joktan and Sheba hold an annual autumn feast at an oasis in the wilderness to celebrate the date harvest. This is the one time of the year that women and men may dance together. The date palm (tamar) is a symbol of prosperity and fertility. The ‘Id el-Tamar is a festival when the unmarried check out the pool of available matches. As is the custom from time immemorial, wife selection takes place at a well or an oasis. Abraham met Keturah at the well of Sheba (Beersheba). Moses met Zipporah at the well of her father, the priest of Midian. Midian was another of Abraham's sons, born to Abraham by his second wife Keturah. Jacob met Rebekah at a well in Paddan-Aram.

Some of Abraham's descendants are Jews and some are Arabs. Both Arabs and Jews have Horite Hebrew ancestors because the Hebrew clans intermarried (caste endogamy). Mt-DNA studies confirm that the Horite ancestors of the priests among Abraham's people did marry exclusively within the priestly lines. This is why the Kohan genetic marker is found among Arabs and Jews. Both Arabs and Jews are descendants of Ham and Shem whose lines intermarried, as did the lines of Cain and Seth before them. The distinctive Kohan DNA or "priest marker" is identifiable because Hebrew priests married daughters of Hebrew priests who maintained flocks and herds at wells and river shrines. They selected animals for sacrifice from these flocks and herds. Joachim, the Virgin Mary's father, was a shepherd priest.

Related reading:  Fruit, Not Females Promised in Islam Afterlife; Some Jews and Arabs have Common Horite Ancestry;  Geographic Geometry by Jim Alison; The Curious Number 72; Why Nekhen is Anthropologically Significant; The Afro-Arabian Dedanites