northern Ethiopia;  Arabic ;  Aramaic , still spoken in Iraq, Iran, Syria, Turkey and Armenia by  Assyrian - Chaldean Christians  and  Mandaeans ;  Canaanite ; Ge'ez , the ancient language of the  Eritrean  and  Ethiopian Orthodox  scriptures which originated in  Yemen ;  Hebrew ;  Maltese ;  Phoenician  or  Punic ;  Syriac