Re: Greek psephas/knephas/dnophos/zophos: linked?

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "Joao S. Lopes" <josimo70@...> wrote:

>
> According to R.S.P. BEEKES "PRE-GREEK. A LANGUAGE RECONSTRUCTED",
> there seems to be a relationship between many Greek words meaning
> "darkness":
> psephas
> knephas
> dnophos
> zophos

also gnophos

> Beekes tried to relate knephas/dnophos < *kdnophos, but he couldnt
> connect all four names.
>
> psephas, cf. Sansk ksap- < *kWseph-
>
> pkdnYophos? cf. posis/potis/potnia/poina
>

How about modifying Pokorny's *nebh- etc

'2. (enebh-): nebh-, embh-, m.bh- (Kontaminationsform nembh-);
z.T. emb-, omb- aus embh-, ombh- ,feucht, Wasser',
daraus ,Dampf, Dunst, Nebel, Wolke'.'


to

*dhnebh- < *dhnembh- < *tŋ-áN- < *taŋ´-aN-? [Pokorny's *tem- "darkness"]
(*nembh- is then no 'Kontaminationsform')

and derive it from that?

which also takes care of the odd Lithuanian form with d-


'zum i-St. umgebildet in
lit. debesìs f. und m. ,Wolke'
(aber alter konson. Pl., z. B. Gen. Pl. debesų~!
d für n durch Ein­fluß von dangùs ,Himmel');'


Semantically "darkness" and "cloud" match.

Pokorny's
'dhem-, dhemə- ,stieben, rauchen (Rauch, Dunst, Nebel; nebelgrau, rauchfärben = düster, dunkel), wehen, blasen (hauchen = riechen)'; dhengwo-, dhengwī- ,neblig'.'

is then a back-formation from the zero grade *dhné(m)bh-.


Torsten