Re: Theoretical synopsis of Etruscan verbs

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, enlil@... wrote:

>
> Okay, I have thanksgiving turkey to eat pretty soon so I'll be brief
> about this and we can ask questions after the holidays :)
>
> Basically this is my current view of Etruscan verbs based on the
> scanty ideas presented by the Bonfantes' books and after getting my
> hands dirty to try and identify my own patterns. If you find my

account

> absolutely sickening, I shall expect to enjoy the angry email that
> follows.
>
> I'm thinkin' something to the effect of:
>
> VERB (+ MOOD) (+ ASPECT) (+ TENSE)
> ZERO (act) ZERO (dur) a (pres-fut)
> an (mid) as (aor) e (past)
> acH (pas) ac (per)
>
> Get it? Good. There are _no_ personal endings whatsoever as we
> might see in IE. This makes me disappointed but what can you do, eh?
> So this explains EVERYTHING, I dare say:
>
> /eca tva/ "this shows, this will show"
> (tva- "to show" + -a [present-future])
> ACTIVE DURATIVE PRESENT-FUTURE
>
> /Hercle Unial tHra sce/ "Heracles suckled Uni's breast"
> (sca- "to suckle" + -e [past])
> ACTIVE DURATIVE PAST
>
> /mi ama/ "I am, I will be"
> (am- "to be" + -a [present-future])
> ACTIVE DURATIVE PRESENT-FUTURE
>
> /an ame/ "he was"
> (am- "to be" + -e [past])
> ACTIVE DURATIVE PAST
>
> /an turuce/ "she has given"
> (tur- "to give" + -uc- [perfect] + -e [past])
> ACTIVE PERFECT PAST
>
> /avil eniaca pulumcHva/
> "[its] age shall outnumber the stars"
> (en- "to outnumber" + -ac- [perfect] + -a [pres-fut])
> ACTIVE PERFECT PRESENT-FUTURE
>
> /vinum trin/ "wine is given, one gives wine"
> (tur- "to give" + -in- [middle] + (-a [pres-fut]))
> MIDDLE DURATIVE PRESENT-FUTURE
>
> /s'utHi cericHunce/ "the tomb was built"
> (*cericH "something built" + -un- [middle] + -c- [perfect]
> + -e [past])
> MIDDLE PERFECT PAST
>
> /zilcHnce/ "he led, he was a zilch"
> (zilcH "leader" + -n- [middle] + -c [perfect] + -e [past])
> MIDDLE PERFECT PAST
>
> /tHemiasa/ "he builds, his having built"
> (tHem- "to build" + -as- [aorist] + -a [pres-fut])
> ACTIVE AORIST PRESENT-FUTURE
>
>
> Further, the passive ending that was identified as -cHe is not only
> in theory -cH-e, but also would form nouns on its own without the
> tense marker (zil-cH "leader, one who governs", ruma-cH "Roman, one
> from Rome").
>
> Oh yeah, and you can forget those crackpots claiming that /-ne/ is
> the "future tense". I've found no support for that apparently random
> interpretation. I say it's the 'middle past'. So /tur-un-e/ actually
> probably means "[it] was given", not "[he] will give". Argh!
>
> There are also participle endings:
>
> *-tH (active)
> *-u (passive)
>
> They may be used on there own without an implied /ama/ "is".

Examples:

>
> caru (ama) "(is) created"
> nuntHentH "having been offered" (note middle -en-)
> *multH "having blessed"
>
> That should get everybody's goat now :) Let the flames begin!
>
>
> = gLeN

Hello, Glen.

Your synopsis is really interesting. I arrived to quite similar
conclusions, and so did many etruscanists. I don't agree with some
translations: I prefer to considet /thra/ as "milk", and /eniac-/
as "to be equal" (considering the Punic text and the occurrence
of /enach/, /enac/ in Liber Linteus). Other roots like /trin-/
and /nunthen-/are still exceedingly THORNY. Also Minoan /KANA-/ is
difficult, and I think it's not related at all with
Etr. /cana/ "beautiful gift" nor to Etr. /cen-/, often translated
as "to buy" (I'm trying to validate some translations, but it's still
hard). I agree that /-ne/ translated as future is crackpot.

Marco