hæmˈɪɾɪk wʌz fˈɜːst jˈuːzd baɪ ˈɜːnɪst ɹᵻnˈæn ɪn wˈʌn θˈaʊzənd ˈeɪthˈʌndɹɪd fˈɪfti fˈaɪv tə ɹᵻfˈɜː tə lˈæŋɡwɪdʒᵻz ðæt ɐpˈɪɹd sˈɪmɪlɚ tə ðə sɛmˈɪɾɪk lˈæŋɡwɪdʒᵻz, bˌʌt wɜː nˌɑːt ðɛmsˈɛlvz pɹˈuːvəbli ɐ pˈɑːɹt ʌvðə fˈæmɪli.
Hamitic was first used by Ernest Renan in 1855 to refer to languages that appeared similar to the Semitic languages, but were not themselves provably a part of the family.