Re: PIE Ablaut

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

> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Jens Elmegård Rasmussen" <jer@...>
> To: <cybalist@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Monday, October 10, 2005 7:57 AM
> Subject: [tied] Re: PIE Ablaut

> > OE efnan 'accomplish' is a class I weak verb, i.e. with umlaut of /a/.
> > The PGmc. stem was *abnia- (or *afnia-?).
> >
> > Jens

> Is there any direct proof of *ab/fnia or do we assume a-umlaut merely
> because of the OE <e>?

'Class I weak' is pretty good evidence in itself. The overwhelming
majority of OE weak verbs would have had infinitives in -jan (Class I)
or -o:jan (Class II) (> OE infinitive -ian). Class I verbs show
umlaut in the present stem; Class II don't. There's also a rarer,
mixed type known as Class III.

Richard.