Three scholars who agree on an early split between Omotic and the other subbranches, but little else, are Harold Fleming (1983), Christopher Ehret (1995), and Lionel Bender (1997).
θɹˈiː skˈɑːlɚz hˌuː ɐɡɹˈiː ˌɔn ɐn ˈɜːli splˈɪt bᵻtwˌiːn ɑːmˈɑːɾɪk ænd ðɪ ˈʌðɚ sˈʌbbɹæntʃᵻz, bˌʌt lˈɪɾəl ˈɛls, ɑːɹ hˈæɹəld flˈɛmɪŋ nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd ˈeɪɾi θɹˈiː, kɹˈɪstəfɚɹ ˈeɪɹɪt nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd nˈaɪnti fˈaɪv, ænd lˈaɪənəl bˈɛndɚ nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd nˈaɪnti sˈɛvən.