From: tgpedersen
Message: 46146
Date: 2006-09-20
>The pattern in the sg., which obviously is a calque of Sanskrit,
> On 2006-09-19 17:55, tgpedersen wrote:
>
> > since this might offer an explanation of where the n-infix
> > came from. Now, Jens has shown that Winter takes place
> > only in syllables immediately preceding the stress. As far
> > as I can tell, n-infixes happen only in thematic stems.
> > Thematic stem were originally stressed on the thematic vowel.
> > Therefore, if Winter-lengthening is caused by voiced
> > unaspirated stops being prenasalized, and n-infix is caused
> > by prenasalized stops, it is only right that they occur in
> > the same environment, namely before the stressed syllable.
>
> The nasal infix, at least in verbs, originally occurred
> exclusively in _athematic_ stems, e.g.
>
> *linékW-ti, *linkW-énti (from *leikW- 'abandon')
> *str.nóh3-ti, *str.nh3-énti (from *sterh3- 'spread')
> *k^lnéu-ti, *k^l.nw-énti (from *k^leu- 'hear')
> *kWrináh2-ti, *kWrinh2-énti (from *kWreih2- 'buy')
>
> etc.
>
> It appears before all kinds of final consonants (including glides),
> not necessarily stops, aspirated or otherwise.
>
> The infixed presents arose probably as follows: if the root
> was of the form CeRC, the athematic stem with a nasal suffix,
> e.g. *léjkW-n-, was metathesised to *léjnkW-. As there seems
> to have been a tendency in pre-PIE to avoid stem-forms ending
> in more than two consonants, an anaptyctic vowel was inserted
> between the nasal and the root-final consonant, yielding
> *léjnekW-. The new vowel stole the accent from the old one,
> and the accented form of the stem became *leinékW- > PIE
> *linékW-. The addition of a personal ending with a full
> vowel produced the weak form, PIE *linkW-'. The pattern was
> then generalised, so that we find in in a number of *CReC
> roots as well (*pleh1-, *k^leu-, etc.).
>