On 2006-01-19 14:15, tgpedersen wrote:
> Would such a solution work for Nordwestblock placenames in -st ?
At any rate, it's clear that the "suffix *-st-" in many cases reflects
*-sth2-o- (Skt. -stHa-), i.e. a thematicisation of a compound with
*stah2- as the second member. Given the meaning of words like Skt.
dvis.t.Ha- 'staying in two places', duh.stHa- 'unsteady, unhappy,
wretched' ("badly situated"), and the relationship between such pairs as
Skt. nis.t.Ha:- (f.) 'state, condition' and nis.t.Ha- (adj.) 'situated,
grounded on', I think we are probably dealing with endocentric
descriptive compounds (the "sunrise" type) involving a root noun
corresponding to *stah2- 'stand', with the meaning 'standing-place,
location, condition'. The respective thematic adjectives mean
'pertaining to, remaining in a given place or condition' (the type of
Skt. dvi:pá- 'island, peninsula' < *[dwi- + h2ap-]-ó-). I would not be
surprised to find *-sth2o- in IE placenames anywhere, added to an
element characterising the location in question.
Piotr