Re: [tied] five and four [was: celtic]

From: Miguel Carrasquer
Message: 26248
Date: 2003-10-04

On Sat, 04 Oct 2003 20:56:49 +0200, Davius Sanctex <gruposdavius@...>
wrote:

>Just a question:
>Can be the germanic forms /*fimf/ and /*feDwor/ loanwords from p-celtic forms
>/*pemp-/ and /*petuora/? [rather than a remodelled forms?]

Phonetically, I can't think of a reason why not. However, it doesn't seem
compatible with Gmc. finger < *penkWró-, and the NWGmc. words for "4" going
back to *figwar- (ON fio:rer, fio:rar, fiogor etc.), for which there is no
Celtic prototype that I know of.

An interesting word is Dutch/Frisian/English pink (pinkie) "little finger",
the fifth finger (depending on how you count): if this has to do with
*penkWe, then it can't be Germanic, nor Celtic, nor Latin/Romance in
origin.

=======================
Miguel Carrasquer Vidal
mcv@...