On Mon, 9 Feb 2004, tgpedersen wrote:
>
> Might the *o- once have been an article?
I really think it might. I have guessed at a linking particle like the
Albanian Gelenkartikel or the Persian izafet. The words containing the
funny o-element appear to be originally adjectives (a magnificent example
being Gk. ou^los 'woolly' from IE *wo'l-no-s, not showing any of the
laryngeals of the presumed *H2wl'H1-na-H2 'wool' from which it derives an
adjective). The same function can apparently be expressed without the
o-element (even with root structures that do not regularly eject it). And
its original position is certainly that of an element preceding the word
to which it has later been drawn. The old adjectival function would also
explain why all forms made with this /o/ are thematic. I find the
agreement really gratifying, thank you.
Jens