Aq'wa 'water'
Everyone has used the root 'aqua' as in 'aquamarine' and aquarium in
Spanish the term is agua. In Latin aqua means water. There appears to be a
root akwa or aqua which appears over and over in language family after
language family with this sound associated with water, river/drink etc. I
must emphasize that the table below is phonetic not proper spelling. The
phonetic sounds are as follows x=ks or qs, the symbols ? , ) etc are my
best representations of the phonetic symbols used in Ruhlen's book. There
is a difference between a single ) and a () pair, the pair represents the
sound quality of the consonant.
Ruhlen postulates that the original word for water was aqwa. Some
languages lost the first part and the word became qwa or kua and some lost
the last part and the word became aq or ak. Some languages added parts. K's
changed to g's or x's according to normal rules of linguistic change. One
could postulate that the word water came from a variation on the Ainu word
for water Wakka, which then became watta or something like that. Anyway,
here is some of the evidence for an originally single language among
humans. Not all of the words make the case to this non-linguist, but there
is enough similarity to make me take notice of what Ruhlen is saying.
Afro-Asiatic family
language sound meaning
Janjero akka water
Kaffa aco water
Mocha ac'o water
Gofa hacca water
Shinasha ac'c'o water
Badditu wat'e water
Agaw aq water
biln ?aq water
Xamir aq(w) a drops of water
Quara axu water
Avia axu water
Damot ago water
Hadiyya wo?o water
Tamboaro waha water
Sidamo waho water
Iraqw aha drink
Khoisan family of southern Africa
!O !Kung kau rain
!Kung k''a drink
!Kung kau rain
!Naron k''a drink
|Kam-ka !ke k''wa drink
|Kam-ka !ke kau rain
||Ng!Ke k''a drink
||Ng!Ke kau to rain
Batwa k''a drink
|Auni k''a drink
Masarwa k''a drink
|Nu||en k''a drink
Nilo-Saharan Family
Fur k)I rain
Nyimang kwe water
So kwe? Water
Ik cue water
Mangbetu equo water
Berta k)I rain, cloud
Kwama uuku water
Anej agu-d cloud
Indo European
Latin ak(w)a water
Hittite eku water
Luwian aku water
Palaic ahu drink
Italian akkwa drink
Provencal aiga water
Catalan aigwa water
Spanish agwa water
Portuguese aqwa water
Rumanian ape water
Sardinian abba water
Germanic ahwa river earliest Germanic manuscripts-root lost in modern
German
Tocharian yok drink
Eurasiatic
Ainu Wakka water
Ainu ku drink
Japanese aka bilge water
Dene-Caucasian
Chechen aq suckle
Burushaski hagum wet
Newari kwo river
Khaling ku water
Kachin k(h)u water
Indo Pacific family
Awyu okho water/river
syiagha okho water
Yareba ogo water
Yonggom oq water
Ninggirum ok water
Amerind--native American
Yurok -'k(w) suffix indicating movement on water
Quileute kwaya water
Kwakwala yax thin liquid
Bella Bella yug(w)a rain
Snohomish q(w)a? water
Squamish q(w)u water
Squamish q(rw)et wet
Nbisqualli ko water
Nbisqualli okokwa drink
Lkungen kwa water
Lkungen q(w)aq(w)a? water
Twana q)? water
Twana yeq(rw) wash
Shuswap kwo water
Caddo koko water
Caddo yoyakka drink
Wichita kik'a drink
Penutian branch
Nass ak(j)-s water
Twsimshian aks drink
Tsimshian yaks wash
Takema ug(w) drink
Siuslaw inq'aa river
Nez Perce k'u drink
Molale ?uquns water
Klamath joq' wash
N. Sahaptin -tkwa go in water
Wintun wak'ai creek
Wintun yuqa? Wash
Rumsien uk drink
Yokuts ?ukun drink
Lake Miwok kiik water
Saclan kiko water
Miwok kiky water
Zuni k'a water
Zuni k'I become wet
Yuki uk' water
Chitmacha ?ak- water
Atakapa ak water
Chickasaw oka? Water
Hitchiti uki water
Tetontepec uu?k drink
Zoque ?uhk drink
Yucatec uk' be thirsty
Yucatec yok-ha river
Kekchi u?ka drink
Hokan branch
Chimariko aqa water
Kashaya ?ahq(h)a water
Kashaya q'o drink
North Pomo ?ahk(h)a water
North Pomo k'o drink
SE Pomo xa water
S. Pomo ?ahk(h)a water
East Pomo xak(h) wet
Shasta ?atta water
Washo asa water
Karok ?as water
Esselen asa(-nax) water
Chumash aho water
Seri ?ax water
Seri Kiihk wet
Yuma axa? Water
Mohave aha water
Yavapai ?aha? water
Diegueno ?axa water
Quinigua kwa water
Tonkawa ?ax water
Comecrudo ax water
Tequistlatec l-axa? Water
Central Amerind branch
Otomi nk'a wet
Cuicatec ku?u drinkl
Tewa pokwin lake
Tewa kwan rain
South America Amerind
Chibchan-Paezan branch
Shiriana koa drink
Chimila uk drink
Binticua agan drink
Allentiac aka water
Andean branc Amerind
Iquito aqua water
Quechua yaku water
Quechua hoq'o get wet
Aymara oqo swallow
Mapudungu ko water
Genneken iagup water
Yamana aku lake
Macro-Tucanoan brach
Cubeo oko water
Bahukiwa oko water
Bahukiwa uku-mi he is drinking
Bahukiwa okobo rain
Tucano axko water
Erulia oxko water rain
Barasano oko water
Wanana ko water
Yahuna okoa rain
Auake okoa water river
Equatorial branch
Esmeralda kebi-axa let's drink
Ayore oxi? Drink
Kabishana aku water
Amniape aku water
Wayoro uru water
Mekens iki water
Guarani aki wet
Guarani I?u drink
Kamayura ?akim wet
Kamayura I?u drink
Quitemo ako water
Uaraicu waka wash
Terena oko rain
Chipaya ax wash
Guana uko rain
Apurina iaka wet
Amarakaeri iyako lake
Macro-Carib branch
Witoto hoko wash
Yagua Xa water
Taulipang ai?ku wet
Macusi u-wuku my drink
Macusi Aiku wet
Waiwai woku drink
Macro-Panoan branch
Lule uk drink
Guachi euak water
Caduveo yakip(a) drink
Suhin I-yoke drink
Mayoruna waka water
Mayoruna oakanu drink
Culino Yaku water
Culino waka river
Amahuaco wakum water
Amahuaco aiyaki drink
Nocoman wakoja river
Huarayo hakua wash
Cavinena igi drink
Macro-Ge branch
Bororo ku drink
Koraveka ako drink
Fulnio waka lake
Caraja axu lake
Kamakan kwa drink
Palmas goi water
Apucarana (n)goyo water
Delbergia ng)yo water
Apinage inko water river
Crengez ko water
Cayapo ngo water
Cayapo ikon drink
Chavante ko water
Cherente ko water
Chicriaba ku water
Aponegicran waiko drink
Suya ikone drink
~Merritt Ruhlen, The Origin of Language, (New York: John Wiley and Sons,
1994), p. 107-115
glenn
Adam, Apes and Anthropology
Foundation, Fall and Flood
& lots of creation/evolution information
http://www.isource.net/~grmorton/dmd.htm