On Fri, 31 Jan 2003 14:03:17 +0000, "Glen Gordon"
<
glengordon01@...> wrote:
>
>Miguel, concerning the nasal broohaha:
>>The rule does not apply to *men-. It applies to *mo(n)- > *ma(n)-.
>
>Which, as usual, is senseless. How would a nasal cause *o to
>become *a?
*o < *a:
*a < *a:~
>Why are there instances of *mo-? Are you suggesting
>that all roots with *-a- and neighbouring nasal derive from
>*-o-?
I'm suggesting that a number of cases of unexplained *a in the
neighbourhood of a nasal derive from nasalized long **a:.
>>No way, because of Sanskrit mádati/-te: (and mándati). The only laryngeal
>>solution would be full-grade *mh2ad-.
>
>Regardless, you thus admit it _can_ be solved by a laryngeal.
>So why side _against_ Occam's Razor by proposing a trigger
>different from the one already proven to have operated in IE?
Because none of the roots in question beginning with, say, *ma- show
any evidence of ever having had a laryngeal (none of them have zero
grade forms with /i/ in Indo-Iranian). On the other hand, for some of
them it's easy to identify an e-grade counterpart:
*mad- "wet, fat, food, full" ~ 2. *med- "full, food, male genitalia"
(cf. OHG. mast "Futter, Mästung, Eichelmast" from *mad- with MIr. mess
"Eicheln, Eichelmast, Fruchternte").
*manus "man" ~ 3. *men- "to think"
*mend- "to suck" ~ *mandos "calf"
*mer-k- "flimmern, funkeln" ~ *markos "horse"
I don't think we want or need to reconstruct *mh2ad- "wet", *mh2ag^-
"knead", *mh2ag^h- "fight", *mh2andos "calf", *mh2anus "man",
*mh2arkos "horse", *mh2ath2- "moth", *mh2at- "hook", *mh2auwro- "dark,
weak", *mh2asdos "mast", *mh2ari "sea", etc., when a better
alternative is at hand.
=======================
Miguel Carrasquer Vidal
mcv@...