Re: [tied] Re: Fricative-less languages?

Well,

A couple of the "laryngeals" probaly were fricatives (Velar, uvular,
pharyngeal)

Hawaian has the sound "h". In languages that do not distincguish
between several laryngeal sounds, the "h" is often pronounced as an
phfaryngeal fricative.

--- In cybalist@... s.com, Piotr Gasiorowski <gpiotr@...> wrote:
>
> On 2006-07-23 21:23, Richard Wordingham wrote:
>
> > --- In cybalist@... s.com, Andrew Jarrette <anjarrette@ >
wrote:
> >> A question arising out of mere curiosity: Recognizing that IE had
> > but a single fricative, /s/, I wonder whether there are any
existing
> > or former languages that have no fricatives at all. Does anyone
know
_______________________________

 

Indeed, I forgot the laryngeals.  So I guess IE had three or four fricatives when these are included.  By the way, I saw in "Encyclopedia of Indo-European Language and Culture" that a fourth laryngeal *h4 is posited, and the book lists many words held to have had this.  I had never heard of this laryngeal until I saw it in that book.  How is it believed to have been pronounced, and why the need for a fourth laryngeal?  I think it's posited to account for Hittite words with initial vowel (without laryngeal in this language) which correspond to words in other languages that have evidence of some laryngeal, if I remember aright.  But how accepted is this idea of *h4?  The encyclopedia treats it as though it is standard.

Andrew