Re: [tied] The fate of pre-PIE **i and **u.

[Miguel}: PIE as a one-vowel language.

There has been a lot of discussion of this in the list, but I think it's
worth repeating that there is a difference between a language analysed as
"one-vowel" at some deeper abstract level, and a language which actually
shows and uses only one vowel.

You are right, Miguel, the second type of one-vowel language is either
extremely rare or non-existent; but no one should be actually claiming this
for PIE. The most that can be claimed for PIE is that it was a one-vowel
language of the first type, but in actual practice having the short vowel
phonemes: /i, e, a, o, u, r. n. m. l./. That's a nine-vowel language, even
without the long vowels, and not really all that exceptional. The only
oddity is that in most cases the vowels can be analysed as phonetically
conditioned reflexes of semi-vowels.

Peter