The Gafat language is an extinct Semitic language that was once spoken along the Abbay River in Ethiopia. The records of this language are extremely sparse: a translation of the Song of Songs written in the 17th or 18th Century at the Bodleian Library, and the reports of W. Leslau who visited the region in 1947 and after considerable work was able to find a total of four people who could still speak the language. Edward Ullendorff, in his brief exposition on Gafat, concludes that as of the time of his writing, "one may ... expect that it has now virtually breathed its last."1 The Semitic languages are the northeastern subfamily of the Afro-Asiatic languages, and the only family of this group spoken in Asia. ... The Abay River is a river in Ethiopia. ... Song of Solomon is also the title of a novel by Toni Morrison. ... Entrance to the Library, with the coats-of-arms of several Oxford colleges Oxford University Libraries Service (OULS) comprises over 30 of the University of Oxfords central and faculty libraries: from the world famous Bodleian Library, established 400 years ago, to the modern digital library ventures. ...
Notes
Edward Ullendorff, The Ethiopians: An Introduction to Country and People, second edition (London: Oxford University Press, 1965), p. 131.
The Cushitic languages are mostly spoken in central, southern and eastern Ethiopia (mainly in Afar, Oromia and Somali regions).
The Omotic languages are predominantly spoken between the Lakes of southern Rift Valley and the Omo River.
The Nilo-Saharan languages are largely spoken in the western part of the country along the border with Sudan (mainly in Gambella and Benshangul regions).
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