Proto-Basque: *aṅai- / *ne-
Meaning: 1 brother (general) 2 brother (of a male) 3 brother (of a female)
Bizkaian: anai, anaie, anae 2, ne-ba 3
Gipuzkoan: anai 1
High Navarrese: anaie 1
Low Navarrese: anaie 1
Salazarese: anaxe 1
Lapurdian: anaie 1
Zuberoan: anáie 1
Roncalese: anaxe 1
Comments: The distinction between 'brother (of a male)' and 'brother (of a female)' is only Bizkaian: elsewhere *aṅai- serves for both meanings. The Bsq root *aṅai- ‘brother’ closely matches PNC *ʔānV(jV) ‘mother’ (phonetically). The explanation could be that this word was originally a descriptive attached to the original word for ‘brother’ (now lost), i.e. ‘brother (from the same mother)’, as opposed to a half-brother (brother with the same father but different mother). Cf. Greek ἀδεʎφός ‘brother’ / ἀδεʎφή ‘sister’, orig. ‘of the same womb’ = Old Indic sa-garbhya-. Typologically cf. also Lahndā matreā ‘half-brother’, matriā ‘half-brother or -sister’, Panjabi matreā, mateā ‘half-brother’ < OI *mātrēya ‘maternal’ (T 10024). The element *an- also seems to be present in Bsq *an-his-ba 'sister (of female)', q.v.
