Re: [tied] god

From: Piotr Gasiorowski
Message: 13948
Date: 2002-06-30

Pokorny's reconstruction cannot be maintained in this particular case. The root was *g^Heuh2- 'call, invoke', represented mainly in Indo-Iranian and Slavic, but with marginal attestation in a few other branches as well. Gmc. *guda- (with nice derivatives: cf. Goth. gudja, Old Runic gudija 'priest' < *gud-j-o:n-, Eng. giddy < *gud-iga-) is more likely a "clipped" variant of *gHuh2-tó- (cf. Gk. pHuton, Lith. butas < *bHuh2-tó-, with sporadic branch-specific shortening) than a regular reflex of (otherwise unknown) *g^Hu-tó-. In Indic the quasi-participle *g^Huh2-tó- is reflected as Old Indo-Aryan <hu:tá->, as in the epithet <puru-hu:tá-> 'much invoked' (of Indra), obviously unrelated to the Panjabi word.
 
Piotr
 
 
----- Original Message -----
From: Danny Wier
To: cybalist@yahoogroups.com
Sent: Saturday, June 29, 2002 7:21 AM
Subject: Re: [tied] god

According to the American Heritage Dictionary (online): English "god" and German "Gott" came from IE *gheu(@)-, "to call, invoke", suffixed zero-grade form *ghu-to-, "the invoked (one)". Pokorny's root is *g^hau- (#413). ~DaW~