Re: [tied] PIE *CVC roots as Punctual (Aorist)

----- Original Message -----

From: elmeras2000

To: cybalist@yahoogroups.com

Sent: Sunday, June 05, 2005 8:35 AM

Subject: Re: [tied] PIE *CVC roots as Punctual (Aorist)

--- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "Patrick Ryan" <proto-
language@......> wrote:

>   >     The total number of roots in Rix is, according to our
count:
>   1138.
>   >
>   >     The total number of *CVC verbal roots that do not
terminate in
>   *-H, *-y, or *-w, is, according to our count: 212, or 18.6% of
the
>   total number of roots.
>   >
>   >     Of the counted *CVC verbal roots, 184 form presents by
>   additions to the root in order to obtain a durative meaning;
that is
>   86.7%.
>   >
>   >     Of the counted *CVC verbal roots, 72 form root aorists;
that
>   is 33.9%.
>   >
>   >     On the basis of the figures compiled here, the proposition
>   that any PIE *CVC-root that did not terminate in *-H, *-y, or *-
w
>   was inherently punctual, is supported.

The total number of roots forming root aorists is 405 as shown by
the index of thee book. That is 35.6% of the total number of roots
as per your count. Therefore, if you limit your scope to CVC roots
not ending in -y/w/H (for whatever reason you may have to do such a
funny thing), the chance that it forms a root aorist apparently
drops an insignificant bit rather than increase significantly as
your grand theory predicts. Fine theory this is.

Jens

Well, your understanding of the _la grande illusion_ and mine is somewhat different.

 

I wanted to initially exclude *CVC roots ending in -*y/*w/*H to determine whether this would affect the statistics in any significant way; it appears that their inclusion does not significantly raise or lower the numbers.

I hypothesized that, e.g. *CVy would show a bias towards durative though you will remember my use of the word lexicalized to suggest that, in many cases, the hypothesized durative effect of -*y would have been lost. That bias cannot be demonstrated; and I withdraw the hypothesis.

 

Whether *w and *H similarly show no effects on *CVC verbs ending in them is yet to be determined.

 

Patrick

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