Germanic Origin of English Final /g/ (was: Horse Sense)

From: Richard Wordingham
Message: 57264
Date: 2008-04-14

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, Rick McCallister <gabaroo6958@...> wrote:

> > Have you got a cognate for English _dog_? Note that
> > the final /g/
> > cannot regularly derive from Proto-Germanic.
> >
> > Richard.
>
> And dig? dug? tug? twig?

_Dig_ is first attested in the 13th century.

_Dug_ is first attested in the 16th century.

_Tug_ is first attested in the 13th century.

_Twig_ is later Northumbrian (_twigge_), apparently of Scandinavian
origin. The native OE form is spelt <twig> and <twi>.

> zweig?

Is this word English? :)

You can add _drag_ to the list - it's obviously related to thoroughly
native _draw_, but again it seems to be derived from the Scandavian
cognate.

The only regular final /g/ I know of is after /n/, but that's not
standard English - the standard pronunciation of <ring> is /riN/.

Richard.