Re: -s -> -i

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "tgpedersen" <tgpedersen@...> wrote:

> > 1) -s > -i as in Italian (doi, trei)
> >
> > =======================
> > Miguel Carrasquer Vidal
> > mcv@...
>
> A nice chance to push my shibboleth theory
> 1) General confusion between nom. and acc. pl. in provincial

dialects.

> 2) East Rome (incl. Italy) opts for generalizing the nom: -i, -e
> 3) West Rome therefore opts for generalizing the acc. -s
> 4) because of this -i/-s shibboleth East Rome further generalizes -

i

> for -s everywhere (eg 2 sg)
>
> Or we might argue Greek and Germanic influence, respectively. In

any

> case a development -s -> -i is not phonetically plausible.
>
> Torsten

If one considers the inscriptions of other IE languages found in
Italy , one will mean that this final "s" was more a influence of
Greek on Latin. I mean, the oscan, umbrian, volscian, etc
inscriptions shows not the well presented "s" at thee end of the
words as Latin does. So far I remember the final "s" is hardly
represented in these inscriptions.

Alex