Re: [tied] Path [was: Re: Gypsies again]

From: Piotr Gasiorowski
Message: 41051
Date: 2005-10-05

Piotr Gasiorowski wrote:

> Isn't that an argument in favour of the antiquity of *finþan?
> Semantically, it's easy to get from 'find (out)' to the meaning of a
> (resultative) root noun, 'a trail from A to B'. Especially as the noun,
> be it *pónto:h2s or *pónth2os, is not directly attested in Germanic. The
> closest thing we have there is *fanþjan- 'infantry' (OE fe:þa, perhaps a
> Hoffmann compound, *ponth2i-h3o:n).

I forgot *fanþija- '(power of) walking, pace' < *pont(h2)-jo-, as
reflected by OE fe:þe, OSax. fa:thi.

Piotr