Proto–Afroasiatic is the hypothetical proto-language from which modern Afroasiatic languages are descended.
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The following table shows consonant correspondences in Afroasiatic languages, along with some reconstructed consonants for Proto-Afroasiatic.
| Proto-Afroasiatic | Proto-Semitic | Egyptian | Berber | East Cushitic | West Chadic |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| *b | *b | b | *β, ? *b, *-∅- | *b | *b, *ḅ1 |
| *p | *p | p | *f, ? *b | *p | *p, *f, *ḅ1 |
| *f | f | f | |||
| *d | *d | d | *d | *d | *d, *ḍ1 |
| *t | *t | t | *t | *t | *t |
| *ṭ | *ṭ | d(~t) | *ḍ [dˁ] / *ṭ (→ *ṭṭ [tˁː]) | *ṭ (→ *ḍ) | *ḍ |
| *ð | ?? d | *z | *z | *dʒ | |
| *θ | ś, ?? š | *s | *s1(=*s) | ||
| *θ̣ | dz- | *ẓ [zˁ] | South Cushitic *c̣ |
||
| *z | s | *z | *z | *dz | |
| *s | *s | ś | *s- ? | s2- | *c |
| *c̣ | dz | *ẓ [zˤ] | *c̣ | *c̣ | |
| *š | ś | *s | *s2(=*š) | s, Central Chadic: *s, *ŝ |
|
| *ŝ | š, ? ś | *s, *z- | *l, SCush. *ŝ |
*ŝ, *ẑ | |
| *ṣ̂ | dz, ? d- | *s1 ?, SCush. *ĉ̣ |
-*ĉ̣- | ||
| *g | g, dz | *g | *g | *g | |
| *k | k, c | *k, ? *ɣ | *k | *k | |
| *ḳ | ḳ, dz | *ɣ, ? *ḳ (→ *ḳḳ [kˤː]) | |||
| *ɣ | χ-, ʕ- ? | *h2 | *ʕ | ||
| *χ | χ, ẖ, ħ | *H- | *h-, *-Ø- | *-H-? | |
| *ʕ | ʕ | *H- | *ʕ-, *-Ø-ʔ | ||
| *ħ | ħ | *H- | *ħ-, *-Øː- | ||
| *h | ı͗- | *h1, *h2 | *ʔ- | ||
| *ʔ | ı͗, ? ꜣ | *ʔ | *ʔ, -Ø- | *ʔ | |
| *r | ꜣ, r | *r | -*r- | *r | |
| *l | n-, [l-], r, ꜣ | *l | -*l- | *l | |
| *w | w-, ı͗, y | *w, *Ø | *w, *Ø | *w-? | |
| *y | ı͗-, y-, -Ø- | *y, *i, *Ø | *y, *i, *Ø | *y, *Ø | |
| Proto-Afroasiatic | PS | Egyptian | Berber | East Cushitic | West Chadic |
The limited size of the Afro-Asiatic language area (prior to its expansion in the historic era) has limited the potential areas where that language family's original homeland or Urheimat could be. Generally speaking, two proposals have been developed: that Afro-Asiatic arose in a Semitic Urheimat in the Middle East aka Southwest Asia, or that Afro-Asiatic languages arose in northeast Africa (generally, either between Darfur and Tibesti or in Ethiopia and the other countries of the Horn of Africa). The African hypothesis is considered to be rather more likely at the present time, because of the greater diversity of languages with more distant relationships to each other there.