On Thu, 1 Nov 2001 20:53:01 -0000, "P&G" <
petegray@...>
wrote:
>There is, however, another question.
>If the vrddhi is due to loss of s after a resonant, why
>do we also find it after stop consonants?
> examples: stem rudh, aor 4 arautsam, arutsi (= 'obstruct')
> greek re:xa from *reg (short e) present re:gnumi ('break')
>
>I'm aware of the argument that this lengthening also affect nominatives such
>as Latin pe:s < *ped-s, but here the stop consonant is lost, not the -s.
>The other process would be bizzarre, surely? *peds > *pedd > *pe:d >
>pe:ds (s restored analogically) > *pe:s.
The lengthening is simply not due to los of /s/ after a resonant or a
stop, it is due to the /s/ itself, after any consonant, and
independently of whether it is lost itself subsequently. Think of the
other stem *reg- "king", nom.sg. *re:g-s > Lat. re:x (assuming the
lengthened stem has been carried over into the oblique: re:gis).
Also: Lat. <vo:x> < *wo:kw-s < *wokw-s.
In general, what we find is that the lengthening affects *all* animate
nominatives [originally in *-s], with further developments as follows:
Loss of -s (with *m, *n, *l, *r):
-oms > -o:ms > -o:m (e.g. Grk. khthó:n)
-ons > -o:ns > -o:n (e.g. Grk. dáimo:n)
-éns > -é:ns > -é:n (e.g. Grk. poimé:n)
-ols > -o:ls > -o:l (with -s: Latv. âbuõls [archaism or innovation?])
-ors > -o:rs > -o:r (e.g. Grk. éupato:r)
-érs > -é:rs > -é:r (e.g. Grk. paté:r)
-s Retained (with *y, *w, *k, *g, *kW, *gW, *p, [*b]):
-ois > -o:is (e.g. Hitt. zahha:is; Grk. Sappho: < *-o:is)
-ous > -o:us (e.g. Hitt. harna:us, Grk. patro:s)
-éus > -é:us (e.g. Grk. basileús, Zeús)
-egs > -e:ks (e.g. Lat. re:x)
-okWs > -o:kWs (e.g. Lat. vo:x)
-okWts > -o:kWts > -okWts > -okWs (e.g. Lat. nox [-V:CCC > -VCCC])
-ops > -o:ps (e.g. Lat. o:ps/ops)
Loss of -s / -s Retained? (with *s):
-oss > -o:s (e.g. Grk. e:o:s)
-éss > -é:s (e.g. Grk. eumené:s)
Loss of -C- (with *(n)t, *d):
-onts > -o:nts > -o:ns (with loss of -s: Grk. hekó:n)
-énts > -e:nts > -e:ns (e.g. Lat. de:ns)
-ots > -o:ts > -o:s (e.g. Lat nepo:s)
-eds > -e:ds > -e:s (e.g. Lat pe:s)
-ods > -o:ds > -o:s (e.g. Grk. po:s, pous)
The rule applies not just to *-s, but probably to any final fricative
before a consonant (cluster) [in practice, that means *-s and *-h2].