View source for Numidian language

{{Short description|Language spoken in ancient North Africa}}
{{Infobox language
| name             = Numidian
| altname		   = Old Libyan
| states           = ancient [[Numidia]]
| region           = Mainly modern day [[Algeria]], parts of [[Tunisia]] and parts of west Libya (as result of Numidian expansion but with  Libyan Berber languages)
| ethnicity        = [[Numidians]]
| era              = Unknown to the 3rd-4th century AD
| familycolor      = Afro-Asiatic
| fam2             = [[Berber languages|Berber]] ?
| script           = [[Libyco-Berber alphabet]] (Proto-Tifinagh)
| iso3             = nxm
| linglist         = nxm
| glotto           = numi1241
| glottorefname    = Numidian
| dia1             = East-Numidian †
| protoname        = [[Proto-Berber]] ?
| extinct          = Developed into, or replaced with various modern [[Berber languages]] in the 3rd century AD<ref>{{cite web|title=Berbère |url=http://multitree.org/codes/nxm|archive-url=https://archive.today/20150124231249/http://multitree.org/codes/nxm |url-status=dead|archive-date=24 January 2015|access-date=1 May 2024 |quote=c. 200 BC.}}</ref>
| dia2             = West-Numidian †
| dia3             = ? ''Mauretanian'' †
| dia4             = ? ''Gaetulian'' †
| image            = Numidjanska_stela3.jpg
| imagecaption     = Numidian stela with Libyc text in the [[Bardo National Museum (Tunis)|Bardo National Museum]]
}}

'''Numidian''' {{IPAc-en|n|(|j|)|uː|ˈ|m|ɪ|d|i|ən}} was a language spoken in ancient [[Numidia]]. The script in which it was written, the [[Libyco-Berber alphabet]] (from which [[Tifinagh]] descended), has been almost fully deciphered and most characters (apart from a few exceptions restricted to specific areas) have known values. Libyco-Berber inscriptions are attested from the 3rd century BC to the 3rd century AD. As most surviving inscriptions are funerary steles with a simple format, only a few words have known meanings. The language can be confidently identified only as belonging to the [[Afroasiatic languages|Afroasiatic]] family, although it was likely part of the [[Berber languages]], spoken at the start of the breakup of the [[Proto-Berber language]], or possibly a sister branch to the modern Berber languages.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Daniels |first1=Peter T. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ospMAgAAQBAJ&dq=Numidian+language+berber&pg=PA112 |title=The World's Writing Systems |last2=Bright |first2=William |date=1996 |publisher=Oxford University Press |isbn=978-0-19-507993-7 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Güldemann |first=Tom |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=uUeHDwAAQBAJ&dq=Numidian+language+berber&pg=PT42 |title=The Languages and Linguistics of Africa |date=2018-09-10 |publisher=Walter de Gruyter GmbH & Co KG |isbn=978-3-11-042175-0 |language=en}}</ref><ref>{{Cite book |last=Woodard |first=Roger D. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=vTrT-bZyuPcC&dq=Numidian+language+berber&pg=PA226 |title=The Ancient Languages of Syria-Palestine and Arabia |date=2008-04-10 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-139-46934-0 |language=en}}</ref>

== Dialects and relation to other ancient languages ==

=== Dialects and foreign influences ===
It is known that there was an orthographical difference between the western and eastern Numidian language. Starting at [[Kabylia]], which was a kind of mixed region, the regions to the east all the way to what is east of modern-day [[Tunisia]] and western parts of [[Libya]] used the east Libyan writing system, while the regions to the west all the way to approximately the [[Moulouya River|Moulouya river]] in modern-day [[Morocco]] spoke the western Numidian dialect and used the larger and still undecoded west Libyan writing system.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Chaker |first=S. |date=2008-01-01 |title=Libyque : écriture et langue |url=https://journals.openedition.org/encyclopedieberbere/344 |journal=Encyclopédie berbère |language=fr |issue=28–29 |pages=4395–4409 |doi=10.4000/encyclopedieberbere.344 |s2cid=161729616 |issn=1015-7344|doi-access=free }}</ref> The East-Numidian dialect was much more influenced by the [[Punic language]] than the West-Numidian, and West-Numidian is thought to be more ancient than East-Numidian.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Chaker |first=Salem |date=2002 |title=Variétés des usages libyques : variations chronologiques, géographiques et sociales |url=https://www.persee.fr/doc/antaf_0066-4871_2002_num_38_1_1360 |journal=Antiquités africaines |volume=38 |issue=1 |pages=267–273 |doi=10.3406/antaf.2002.1360}}</ref> Numidian was influenced mostly by Punic and then [[Latin]], although Numidian and even some modern Berber vocabulary seem to have been also slightly influenced by the [[Paleohispanic languages]] and possibly by other [[Pre-Indo-European languages]].<ref name=":5">{{Cite book |last=Kossmann |first=Maarten |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Se-BAAAAQBAJ&dq=uzzal+iron&pg=PA61 |title=The Arabic Influence on Northern Berber |year=2013 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-25309-4}}</ref><ref>{{cite web | last=Iglesias | first=Hector | title=La parenté de la langue berbère et du basque: nouvelle approche | website=Archive ouverte HAL | date=2011 | url=https://hal.science/hal-00614290v2 | language=fr | access-date=15 November 2023}}</ref>

=== Other ancient Berber or Berber-like languages ===
Not much is known about the variations of the old Libyc language(s) as none of them have been fully deciphered, and outside of some east-Numidian [[steles]] none of the various Old Libyc writings have been interpreted. It may be possible that the language of the neighbouring [[Mauri]] people of modern-day Morocco may have been a dialect of the larger Numidian, although there are little to no sources or researches into the language.<ref name="auto">{{Cite book |last=Rask |first=Rasmus |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=F56evlhkUvkC&dq=gaetulian+language&pg=PA90 |title=Investigation of the Origin of the Old Norse or Icelandic Language: New edition of the 1993 English translation by Niels Ege |date=2013-04-15 |publisher=John Benjamins Publishing |isbn=978-90-272-7198-3 |language=en}}</ref> If Numidian was a Berber language then it is known that by that stage the breakup of [[Proto-Berber language|Proto-Berber]] into various [[Berber languages]] was still not fully complete, and thus the ancient Berber languages of the time were very similar to each other, even more so than the modern ones.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Blench |first=Roger |title=Reconciling archaeological and linguistic evidence for Berber prehistory |url=https://www.academia.edu/36664366 |website=Academia.edu |url-status=live |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20230507151750/https://www.academia.edu/36664366 |archive-date= May 7, 2023 }}</ref> In circa 500 B.C various nomadic Berber groups penetrated the Sahara from the north, corresponding the area of the later [[Gaetuli]]ans.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Gatto |first1=M. C. |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=FOeADwAAQBAJ&dq=gaetulian+language&pg=PA509 |title=Burials, Migration and Identity in the Ancient Sahara and Beyond |last2=Mattingly |first2=D. J. |last3=Ray |first3=N. |last4=Sterry |first4=M. |date=2019-02-14 |publisher=Cambridge University Press |isbn=978-1-108-47408-5 |language=en}}</ref> Although the area where these nomads lived yielded no writing and thus is incomparable to Numidian, it is known that [[Pliny the Elder]] described the Saharan Gaetulian language as very similar or the same as the Numidian one, implying that the Gaetulian language may have been a dialect of Numidian.<ref>{{Cite web |title=Pliny the Elder, The Natural History, BOOK I.1, DEDICATION. 1 Lemaire informs us, in his title-page, that the two first books of the Natural History are edited by M. Alexandre, in his edition. |url=http://www.perseus.tufts.edu/hopper/text?doc=Perseus:text:1999.02.0137 |access-date=2022-05-02 |website=www.perseus.tufts.edu}}</ref>

Not much is known of the Numidian language, and even less of Berber or Proto-Berber languages and dialects at this time, although it is known that for example the language of the native Berbers of [[Cyrenaica]] contained many Greek [[loanwords]] according to [[Herodotus]].<ref>{{Cite web |title=Hérodote : livre IV : Melpomène (bilingue) |url=http://remacle.org/bloodwolf/historiens/herodote/melpomene.htm |access-date=2022-04-11 |website=remacle.org}}</ref> It is also unknown whether the language of the neighbouring [[Kingdom of Mauretania]] in what is approximately modern day [[Morocco]] formed a part of the Numidian language, or was a separate language from it, as there has been as of yet no major efforts into decoding it, and there are no known sources describing it.<ref name="auto"/>

== Classification and reconstruction ==
As the [[Massylii]], who spoke the language, were ethnically [[Berbers|Berber]],<ref name="Abun-Nasr1987">{{cite book|author=Jamil M. Abun-Nasr|title=A History of the Maghrib in the Islamic Period|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=_NDLCgAAQBAJ&pg=PA15|date=20 August 1987|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-316-58334-0|page=15}}</ref><ref name="Naylor2015">{{cite book|author=Phillip C. Naylor|title=Historical Dictionary of Algeria|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ftFbCQAAQBAJ&pg=PA132|date=7 May 2015|publisher=Rowman & Littlefield Publishers|isbn=978-0-8108-7919-5|page=132}}</ref> it is supposed that Numidian was therefore a [[Berber languages|Berber language]].<ref name="Fischer2004">{{cite book|author=Steven Roger Fischer|title=History of Writing|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=iYMXnSko5QwC&pg=PT104|date=4 April 2004|publisher=Reaktion Books|isbn=978-1-86189-588-2|page=104}}</ref> The Berber branch of Afro-Asiatic is sometimes called ''Libyco-Berber'' since it is not certain whether Numidian would fall within the modern Berber languages or form a sister branch to them. Some theorize that it constituted a group of its own, as there is no trace of the [[case (grammar)|noun-case]] system shared by the modern Berber languages.<ref name=":0">Robert Martin Kerr, 2010</ref> However, [[Proto-Berber]] is [[Proto-Berber#Grammar|theorized]] to have no grammatical case either, which would also imply a later addition of the system. The [[Tifinagh|Lybico-Berber]] tifinagh and the [[Phoenician alphabet]] being [[abjad]]s without vowels complicates the matter even more.<ref>{{Cite book|last=Pereltsvaig|first=Asya|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=lbH2DwAAQBAJ&dq=Libyco-berber+abjad&pg=PA203|title=Languages of the World|date=2020-09-03|publisher=Cambridge University Press|isbn=978-1-108-47932-5|language=en}}</ref>

Work on deciphering the language has not been decisive, although especially recently some tried to reconstruct words by comparing Numidian script to proto and modern Berber languages. Most remaining scripts are funerary, and follow the formula of "''X w-Y''" (X son of Y). BNS is also an often returning words in this script, which probably meant "tomb of". Many words had an H at the end of them, the function of which is unclear. A few gravestones show a different word between the two personal names, plausibly interpreted as a kinship term based on Berber comparisons: ''wlt'' "daughter (of)" (modern Berber ''wəltma'' meaning "sister" possibly compound of "daughter of mother"), and, more rarely, ''mt'' "mother (of)" (modern Tuareg ''ma''). Similar to the modern berber languages, the ta-...-t circumfix signified feminine version of the word with a silent h added to the end.<ref>{{Cite book |last1=Nehmé |first1=Laïla |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=0IJ1DwAAQBAJ&dq=uzzal+berber&pg=PA354 |title=To the Madbar and Back Again: Studies in the languages, archaeology, and cultures of Arabia dedicated to Michael C.A. Macdonald |last2=Al-Jallad |first2=Ahmad |date=2017-11-20 |publisher=BRILL |isbn=978-90-04-35761-7 |language=en}}</ref> In the [[Dougga|Dougga inscriptions]] some political positions are mentioned, such as "gld" (lord) which based on this technique, can be translated into the modern berber word "agellid"<ref>{{Cite book|last=Maddy-Weitzman|first=Bruce|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=xVpxZSTyhb0C&dq=agellid+amazigh&pg=PA216|title=The Berber Identity Movement and the Challenge to North African States|date=2011-05-01|publisher=University of Texas Press|isbn=978-0-292-74505-6|language=en}}</ref> which originates from the proto-berber word "''*a-gəllid".'' A few verbs have been unambiguously identified in the various inscriptions. Comparison with modern Berber suggests that ṣkn, probably read as "eṣ(ə)k-n based on modern berber comparison which means"built" is to be analysed as ṣk "build" plus -n, marking 3pl subject agreement (''-ən).''<ref>{{Cite web|title=Libyco-Berber|url=http://mnamon.sns.it/index.php?page=Lingua&id=65&lang=en|access-date=2022-02-12|website=mnamon.sns.it|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1">{{Cite book|last1=Daniels|first1=Peter T.|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=ospMAgAAQBAJ&dq=MSNSN+GLDT&pg=PA116|title=The World's Writing Systems|last2=Bright|first2=William|date=1996|publisher=Oxford University Press|isbn=978-0-19-507993-7|language=en}}</ref>

An example of translation using this method can be demonstrated on a part of a Numidian inscription which is read as "''Msnsn. gldt. w-gjj''."<ref>{{Cite book|last=Jensen|first=Hans|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=kEpQAAAAMAAJ&q=msnsn+gldt+gjj|title=Sign, Symbol, and Script: An Account of Man's Efforts to Write|date=1969|publisher=Putnam|language=en}}</ref> "Msnsn" is the name of king [[Masinissa|Massinissa]] while "gldt" is the word for king''.'' Finally, "w-gjj" means "son of [[Gala (king)|Gaia]]". Thus by attempting to translate the Numidian text through modern and proto-Berber the inscription would read "''Massinissa the king, son of Gaia''".<ref>{{Cite web|title=Libyan' Inscriptions in Numidia and Mauretania|url=https://www.worldhistory.org/article/252/libyan-inscriptions-in-numidia-and-mauretania/|access-date=2022-02-12|website=World History Encyclopedia|language=en}}</ref><ref name=":1" />

Numidian also featured and shared most or all of its prepositions "n" (of) and "d" (and) with modern Berber, along with various prefixes, such as "ta...-t", "m-" etc. with modern Berber.<ref name=":4">{{Cite book |last=Chaker |first=Salem |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=9EFYzJ8wAL4C&dq=MNKDH&pg=PA188 |title=Linguistique berbère: études de syntaxe et de diachronie |date=1995 |publisher=Peeters Publishers |isbn=978-2-87723-152-7 |language=fr}}</ref>

These facts would strongly suggest that Numidian is a now extinct branch of the [[Berber languages]], although some linguists believe that Numidian is not an ancestor but an extinct sister branch to the modern surviving Berber languages.<ref name=":0" />

If the translations of "SBS" (asebbas) in the Thugga inscription as "year" is correct then that would mean the [[Proto-Berber language|Proto-Berber]] form "ww" which evolved into "gg" or "gʷ" in most modern Berber languages was "bb" or "bʷ" in Numidian. This is only found in the [[Zenaga language]] of Mauritania and a few instances of [[Kabyle language|Kabyle]] in modern times.<ref>{{Cite web |title=porta |url=https://www.amazic.cat/dictionary/porta/ |access-date=2024-05-25 |website=Diccionari Amazic-Català |language=ca}}</ref> As Zenaga was one of the first Berber languages to split off from the Proto-Berber group and thus still possesses many ancient characteristics, along with the Numidian usage of this form, could suggest that in the evolution of Berber languages "ww" turned into "bʷ" and then into "gʷ".<ref>{{Cite web |title=Libyco-Berber |url=https://mnamon.sns.it/index.php?page=Lingua&id=65&lang=en |access-date=2025-06-24 |website=mnamon.sns.it |language=en}}</ref>

=== Naming conventions ===
Numidian names generally often followed a complicated, but well documented naming convention of Berber antiquity and medieval times. While this wasn't always the case, this was especially true for nobles or higher leaders. The way it worked was simple: Verb in the 3rd person + personal pronouns as an affix (direct or indirect) in 3rd person plural form (he/she-X-they/of them).<ref>{{Cite journal |last1=Camps |first1=G. |last2=Chaker |first2=S. |date=2004-05-01 |title=Jugurtha |url=https://journals.openedition.org/encyclopedieberbere/1377?lang=en |journal=Encyclopédie berbère |language=fr |issue=26 |pages=3975–3979 |doi=10.4000/encyclopedieberbere.1377 |issn=1015-7344|doi-access=free }}</ref>

For example, the actual name of [[Jugurtha|Jughurta]] most likely sounded as "''y-uger-ten''" (he who surpasses them), while the name of king [[Masinissa|Massinissa]] (MSNSN in Libyco-Berber)<ref>{{Cite book |last=Jongeling |first=Karel |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=27Q5AAAAIAAJ&q=MSNSN |title=Names in Neo-Punic Inscriptions |date=1984 |publisher=Rijksuniversiteit te Groningen |language=en}}</ref> was "''mas-nsen''" (their seignor). Much  of the [[Onomastics|onomastic]] work on the Numidian language was done by [[Salem Chaker]], who through his work also help in decoding a few words in the language through dissecting known names.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Chaker |first=Salem |date=2013-06-01 |title=Onomastique libyco-berbère (Anthroponymie) |url=https://journals.openedition.org/encyclopedieberbere/2816?gathStatIcon=true&lang=en |journal=Encyclopédie berbère |language=fr |issue=35 |pages=5760–5779 |doi=10.4000/encyclopedieberbere.2816 |issn=1015-7344|doi-access=free }}</ref>

=== Proposed words, cognates, and meanings ===
Here is a comparison of the few known Numidian words to modern [[Northern Berber languages]] and the [[Tamashek]] language. Normalized words with vowels added are written in the brackets. Underlined words are based on etymologic or onomastic reconstructions from Numidian names.
{| class="wikitable"
|+
!Numidian
![[Northern Berber languages]]
![[Tuareg languages]]
!English
|-
| colspan="4" |'''Political positions and jobs'''
|-
|GLD (''a-gəllid'')
|agellid or a-žellid
|amănokal
|chief or king
|-
|TGLT(H) (''Ta-gəllit'')
|Tagellidt or Tagellit
|tamănokalt
|queen
|-
|MNKD(H) (''amenkad'')
|amenkad
|
|Possibly emperor
|-
|MSWH (''amsiweɣ?'')
|aserdas
|əssărdasi
|Possibly soldier or guard based on linguistic reconstruction
|-
|GLDMṢK (''a-gellid imeṣka'')
|agellid imeska
|amănokal ălbănna
|Unknown, corresponds with Punic "chief of fifty", may be reconstructed as "chief of the builders/masons"
|-
|NBBN (''inababen?'')
|imahalen, yixeddamen
|imǝsɡuyya
|workers
|-
|MWSN(H) (amawsan)
|amussnaw
|amûssen
|Possibly sage or wise man
|-
|GẒB (''agẓab'')
| colspan="2" |
|Unknown, possibly "inspector of construction"
|-
|MṢṢKW (''amṣeṣkaw)''
|amasgad, ameṣkad
|
|possibly architect
|-
|MS ''<u>(mass)</u>''
|mass
|măss
|honorary title for men. May be translated as "sir" or "seignor", (From name [[Masinissa]])
|-
|MSTN ''<u>(amastan)</u>''
|amastan
|amastan
|defender/protector (from name [[Mastanabal]])
|-
| colspan="4" |'''Verbs'''
|-
|RN ''<u>(rna</u>'' or ''<u>erna)</u>''
|ernu, erna, or erni
|ernu
|achieve victory, inflict defeat upon someone (from name: Yernaten)
|-
|ṢK ''(eṣk)''
|eṣk or bnu
|kann or dăy
|build
|-
|YS (''yusa'')
|yusa or as-d
|ǝqqăl
|come or came
|-
|DR ''<u>(idir)</u>''
|idir
|
|to live
|-
|BDD ''<u>(bded)</u>''
|bded
|
|to stand
|-
|FL (''<u>afel?)</u>''
|zger
|
|to cross
|-
| colspan="4" |'''Materials'''
|-
|ZLH (''uzzal'')
|uzzal
|tăzoli
|iron<ref name=":5" />
|-
|Š?RH  (''a-šɣarh?)''
|a-sɣar
|esăɣer
|wood
|-
| colspan="4" |'''Affixes and prepositions'''
|-
| NS (-''ennes'')
| -nnes, -is or -es
| -ənnes
|its
|-
|N (''n'')
|n 
|n
|of (pertaining to something)
|-
|D (''d'')
|d
|d
|and
|-
| -TN <u>''(-ten)''</u>
| -ten
| -san
|them
|-
| -NSN (''<u>-nsen)</u>''
| -nsen
| -nesǝn
|their
|-
|y-
|y-
|y-
|he (third person masculine singular verb subject affix)
|-
|t-
|t-
|t-
|she (third person feminine singular verb subject affix)
|-
|WR (''<u>war)</u>''
|ur
|wǝr
|not
|-
| colspan="4" |'''Kinship terms'''
|-
|W (''u-'' or ''w-'')
|u-
|ăw-
|son of 
|-
|WLT (''wəlt-'')
|wəlt
|wălăt
|daughter of
|-
|MT (''mat?)''
|yimma, yemma
|ma
|mother of
|-
| colspan="4" |'''Others'''
|-
|SBS (''asəbbas'')
|assewas, assegwas or asseggas
|awăṭay
|Possibly year, although Numidian translation is unsure
|-
|ẒK ''(aẓekka)''
|aẓekka
|aẓəkka
|tomb
|-
|''<u>ugər</u>'' or ''<u>agər</u>''
|uger or agar 
|agǝr
|to surpass (from name [[Jugurtha]])
|-
|''<u>yif</u>'' or ''<u>if</u>''
|if or af
|uf
|to be superior (from name Yiften)
|-
|MSKR or MSKRH (''ameskar'' or ''miskiri'')
| colspan="2" |
|Unsure, either cognate to Kabyle and Tuareg word ameskar,{{ref label|id1|Note 1|none}} or denoting the Misciri tribe
|}
This comparison suggests that Numidian may be closest to the modern [[Northern Berber languages]] such as the [[Zenati languages]], [[Shilha language]], and the [[Kabyle language]] although the modern northern Berber languages have gone through grammatical changes, and they have also taken loanwords from Arabic, Latin, and French. Kabyle may be the closest to Numidian, but has absorbed loanwords and phrases from the other languages mentioned.<ref>{{Cite book |last=Cust |first=Robert Needham |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=zeNYAQAAQBAJ&dq=numidian+language&pg=PA106 |title=A Sketch of the Modern Languages of Africa: Volume I |date=2013-10-15 |publisher=Routledge |isbn=978-1-136-37237-7 |language=en}}</ref>

According to many linguists the H at the end of many numidian words were either silent or disappeared by modern times,<ref name=":3" /> or that in many cases such as MSWH or MWSNH was possibly used as a replacement for, or possibly was the ancestor of the modern berber ''[[Voiced velar fricative|ɣ]] sound.''<ref name=":4" />

== Thugga inscription ==
The Thugga inscription is the longest known Numidian inscription as of yet, and has served with the most clues regarding the language.

'''Numidian script'''

''ṢKN•TBGG•BNYFŠ•MSNSN•GLDṮ•WGYY•GLDṮ•WZLLSN•ŠFṬ''

''SBSNDH•GLDṮ•SYSH•GLD•MKWSN''

''ŠFṬ•GLDṮ•WFŠN•MWSNG•ŠNK•WBNY•WŠNK•DŠFṬ•WM''

''WTNKW•MṢṢKW•MGN•WYRŠTB•WSDYLN•GẒB•MGN•WŠFṬ•MW''

''WŠMN•GLDṮ•GLDGMYL•ZMR•WMSNF•WŠMN•GLDMṢK•M''

''WŠYN•GLDṮ•WMGN•GLDṮ•ṬNYN•ŠYN•WNKKN•WFṬŠ•DR''

''ŠFṬ•WŠNK•''

<ref name=":3"/>

'''Possible vocalization'''

''əṣk(ə)-n Tubgag BNYFŠ[?] Masnsen a-gəllidṯ u-Gayya a-gəllidṯ u-Zelalsen šufeṭ''

''Asəbbas NDH a-gəllidṯ(?) s-yusa a-gəllid Mikiwsan''<ref name=":3">{{Cite book |last=Souag|first=Lameen|url=http://mnamon.sns.it/index.php?page=Seminari&id=549&lang=en|title=Re-examining Libyco-Berber: how much do we know, and how does it fit into the family's subclassification?|date=2011|publisher=Lameen Souag|language=en}}</ref>

'''Translation from Punic'''

The people of Thugga built this temple for Masinissa the King son of Gaia the King son of Zilalsan the Judge, in the tenth year since Micipsa ruled, in the year of Shufet the King son of Afshan the King, The Centurion: Shanok son of Banay and Shufet son of Magon son of Tanaku. The ''ms s kwy'' Magon son of Yirashtan son of Sadyalan, and ''gzby'': Magon son of Shufet the Centurion son of Abdeshmun the King. Erectors of this property: Ashyan son of Ankikan son of Patash and Arash son of Shufet son of Shanok.

== Example texts ==
These texts are examples of bilingual inscriptions with known meanings, most of which are funerary texts
[[File:The first published sketch of the Bilingual inscription of Dougga (Jean Emile Humbert).jpg|thumb|The first published sketch of the Ateban inscription]]

=== Bilingual texts ===

==== Cenotaph inscription ====
'''Punic'''

''[mn]ṣbt š'ṭbn bn ypmṭt bn plw''

''hbnm š'bnm ʕb'rš bn ʕbdštrt''

''zmr bn 'ṭbn bn ypmṭt bn plw''

''mngy bn wrsbn''

''wb'zrt šl' **t* zzy wṭmn wwrskn''

''hḥršm šyr msdl bn nnpsn w'nkn b[n] 'šy''

''hnskm šbrzl špṭ bll wppy bn bby''

'''Punic to English translation'''

''The monument of 'ṭbn son of Ypmṭt son of Plw. ''

''Builders of the stones: ʕb'rš son of ʕbdštrt;''

''Zmr son of 'ṭbn son of Ypmṭt son of Plw;''

''Mngy son of Wrsbn. ''

''And for its ???, Zzy son of Ṭmn and Wrskn. ''

''Workers of the wood: Msdl son of Nnpsn and 'nkn son of 'šy.''

''Casters of the iron: Šfṭ son of Bll and Ppy son of Bby.''

'''Numidian'''

''****N WYFMṬT W*******DRŠ WWDŠTR''

''*****BN WYFMṬṮ WFLW''

''MNGY WWRSKN''

''KSLNS ŻŻY WṬMN WRSKN''

''NBBN NŠ[Q]RH MSDL WNNFSN NKN WŠY''

''NB*N NZLH ŠFṬ WBLL FFY WBBY''

'''Possible vocalization'''

''Aṭeban w-Yefmaṭat w-Falu****D'rš w-Wadaštar''

''Zamir w-Aṭeban w-Yefmaṭat w-Falu''

''Mangy w-Wareskan''

''KSLNS Żaży w-Ṭaman w-Raskn''

''inababen n a-šɣarh Masdil w-Nanafsen Naken w-šy''

''inababen (?) n uzzal Šufeṭ w-Balil Fafy W-Beby''<ref name=":2">{{Cite web |title=Libyco-Berber - Examples of writing |url=http://mnamon.sns.it/index.php?page=Esempi&id=47&lang=en |access-date=2022-03-14 |website=mnamon.sns.it |language=en}}</ref>

==== Kef Beni Fredj inscriptions ====
'''Latin'''

''SACTUT•IHIMIR F•VIXIT•ANORVM•LXX H[SE]''

'''Latin to English'''

Sactut son of Ihimir lived 70 years. [He is buried here.]

'''Numidian'''

''ZKTT WYMR MTYBLH MSWH MNKDH''

'''Normalization and adding of known or possible vowels'''

''Zaktut w-Iymir MTYBLH amsiweɣ amenkad''

'''Possible vocalization'''

Zaktut son of Iyimir MTYBLH soldier of the emperor.<ref name=":4" />

=== Monolingual texts ===
Monolingual texts have no known meaning, and all translations are purely speculative and based on contextual clues alongside comparison with known grammar, vocabulary and possible links to modern or proto-berber cognates.

==== Kerfala stele ====
The Kerfala stele originates from possibly the late Numidian or early Roman periods. Written in the eastern Libyco-Berber script, it was found near the village of [[Kerfala]] near [[Lakhdaria]], in what is considered the western parts of Numidia, making it an unusual find. Whether it was written in the same dialect as the other Numidian texts which mostly originate from eastern Algeria, or western Tunisia is unknown. The stele was analyzed by Salem Chaker who proposed the following interpretation.<ref>{{Cite journal |last=Salama |first=P. |date=2005-08-01 |title=Kerfala |url=https://journals.openedition.org/encyclopedieberbere/1335 |journal=Encyclopédie berbère |language=fr |issue=27 |pages=4148–4157 |doi=10.4000/encyclopedieberbere.1335 |issn=1015-7344}}</ref><ref>{{Cite web |title=Stèle Kerfala |url=https://musee-antiquites.art.dz/portfolio/stele-kerfala/ |access-date=2025-06-30 |language=fr-FR}}</ref>

'''Original text'''

SLMDNKZWSKDBṮN  

GLDMṢKMSKSBN  

MZRMṮR  

WRBY WMSWH

'''Possible vocalization'''

''Salmedenkez w-Sakedbaten'' 

''a-gellid imeṣka Mesekesben''

'' mazar mutar''

'' ur-ibbiy wemsiw''

'''Proposed interpretation'''

Salmedenkez son of Sakedbaten

Chief of fifty/builders Mesekesben{{ref label|id2|Note 2|none}}

the tomb that they built, that it does not deteriorate or age

== See also ==
* [[Punic-Libyan Inscription]], which helped decoding the Libyco-Berber script
* [[Kehek language]]

== Notes ==
{{note label|id1||none}}Meaning either "the good one" or the "resting one".

{{note label|id2||none}}MSKSBN might be potentially identified with "Masacesbenorum" a tribe mentioned in an inscription elsewhere (likely vocalization would be "Imeskesben"), or might possibly be the personal name of the person bearing the title of GLDMṢK ("Meskesben"). The unclear nature of the title GLDMṢK complicates identification more. Whether GLDMṢK as a title pertains to SLMDNKZ or MSKSKBN is hard to decide.

==References==
<references/>
*Aikhenvald & Militarev, 1991. 'Livijsko-guanchskie jazyki', ''Jazyki Azii i Afriki'', vol. 4, pp.&nbsp;148–266.

{{Berber languages}}
{{Languages of Tunisia}}

[[Category:Extinct languages of Africa]]
[[Category:Languages of Africa]]
[[Category:Languages of Algeria]]
[[Category:Languages of Morocco]]
[[Category:Languages of Tunisia]]
[[Category:Numidia]]
[[Category:Unclassified languages of Africa]]