In a message dated 04/01/04 00:50:53 GMT Standard Time,
etherman23@... writes:

[Isoglosses for IE, Afroasiatic and Etruscan]
> 1) abha     ?ab    apa    father

This is a nursery word; it cannot be used to indicate
genetic relationship.

> 2) horos    Hrt    arac    bird

The word <arac> is not attested in any Etruscan
inscription. It only appears as a gloss by a Greek
writer. Even if we could be sure that the word really
existed in Etruscan (and not, e.g. some dialect of
Greek, or some other Mediterranean language), it would
quite possibly be a borrowing from Greek <hierax>.

> 3) atta    Hit    ati    father/mother

Another nursery word.

> 4) aiwon    h-ayw    avil    life/time

In Etruscan <avil> specifically means "year".

> 5) k'o (?)    kaa    ca    this

There is a universal tendency to use short segments
like this as deictics (especially /k/ and /t/!), so
they cannot be used to prove a specific genetic
relationship. See also (14).

> 6) kap/ghabh/kabh    k'ab/gaf    cap    to take
> (hold of)

This is possible, but the IE parallel cited is only
one of many used by IE for this concept. No Etruscan
parallels for the others have been shown.

> 7) ker    kur (to dig out, to cultivate)    car,
> cer    to make (grow)

IE parallel is only one of a number of possibilities
with similar meanings for this root, and I cannot
find this one used anywhere other than in
Indo-Iranian, so it is highly dubious. Some
Etruscologists link <cer-> with Latin <curare> which
has no known IE etymology.

> 8) g'hau (to cry out) (> Eng. god)   ghaaH   cautha
> (sun-god) to cry out

The much more common form in Etruscan is <catha>
rather than <cautha>. It is highly questionable trying
to link a generic word for "god" with a very specific
god in a polytheistic system. There is also no
evidence for relating <catha> to "to cry out".

> 9) kwel(?)   xwayl   clan   offspring

<clan> (also <clante>) in Etruscan is specifically
"son". As you indicate, an IE link would be
questionable even if the semantics were right.

> 10) keup ghwib   cupe   hollowed out container
> ... Cupe might be a borrowing from Greek.

I think that, like many other containers in Etruscan,
it is highly likely that it is borrowed from the Greek
(/kype/ in this case).

11) par   fir   fir, farth   to bring, to bear

The Etruscan is probably linked to Greek /parthenos/,
which has no known IE etymology. This root (always
with an -n-) if used verbally in Etruscan is always
used to indicate "was (unmarried) son or daughter of".
It's the "unmarried" bit that's important here. The
normal root for "to bear (give birth to)" in Etruscan
is <acn->.

12) hanti   h-ant   hanthin   front
13) ndheri   naj   hinthin   below

No regular phonological change here! Also, *hinthin
doesn't actually exist. <hinththin> is attested, but
once only. <hanthin> occurs only twice and these are
both in the same column in the Zagreb mummy. We
really can't be very sure of the meanings with these
Etruscan words.

14) tos, tod, ta:   -d- (here, there)   ta   this

See (5).

15) leit   laas   lein, lup   to die

Etruscan <leine> is less secure than <lupu>. While
<lupu> is definitely "to die" (or perhaps "to cease",
cf. Greek /lophan/, no known IE etymology), <leine>
may be "at peace" or "at rest" or some similar
euphemism, cf. Etruscan god of tranquility <leinth>.

16) medhu   ma(a)d (to flow)   math   mead

If the Etruscan word refers to a specific beverage,
then it is most likely borrowed.  If it refers to the
general term "drink" (more likely) then it has no
reflex in IE or AA. (But it does in NEC).

> 17) nepo:t   naf (breathe, >living relative),ngaan
> (boy)   nefts   descendant
> This seems pretty weak even to me. Lemnian, IIRC,
> also has nafoths.

Yes, I think this is a borrowing.

> 18) po:   pah-, peh-(to take into the mouth)   puth
> (well)   to drink

There is no Etruscan word *puth. There are three
different words beginning <puth-> but they're all
hapax legomena. There are words beginning with <put->
but they're all terms for containers borrowed from
Latin and Greek.

> 19) sen   shan   san   old

Etruscan *san is not attested. There are several words
beginning with <san-> or <s'an-> but they are all
either hapax legomena or if they appear more than once
it is only in the same inscription. These are normally
glossed with meanings like "to bless" or "holy".

> 20) septm   saf   semph   seven

IMO this is a borrowing from Semitic into Etruscan,
and probably into IE too.

> 21) do:   dar(to grasp, to handle)   tur, tuthi  
> to give

Etruscan <tuthi> is a hapax legomenon and it and its
possible derivatives are usually glossed as "town" and
linked with the Umbrian word /tuta/ or /tota/. <tur->
is o.k. but you'll have difficulty justifying an -r in
the IE.

22) tauros   tsawr, cawr(?)   theuru   bull

Generally acknowledged as a borrowing from Semitic
in both IE and Etruscan.

23) dwo    tsan, can   thu   two

<thu> is not "two" in Etruscan, it is definitely "one".

I have mostly restricted my remarks to considerations
from the Etruscan end of things. Sorry to be negative,
but I am convinced of the need to concentrate on the
core vocabulary of Etruscan such as numbers and family
members in order to establish the affinities of
Etruscan. This bears least resemblance to IE. (Although
it is reminiscent of NEC). I say "affinity" rather than
"relationship" because it is quite possible that we are
not dealing with a language inherited in the normal way.
The circumstances of Etruscan's birth certainly involve
intense language contact, of perhaps creolising
proportions, IMO.

Regards

Ed.