Re: Li

----- Original Message -----
From: "fournet.arnaud" <fournet.arnaud@...>
To: <cybalist@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Friday, February 01, 2008 12:31 AM
Subject: Re: [tied] Re: Li


>
> > the Skt.
> > compositional form <híri-> 'golden' (*g^Hl.h3i-)
> ======
> Why not gh_l_h3-
> with no -i- at all ?
> ================
> > You mean, why *h3? First and foremost, Gk. kHlo:rós
> > < *g^Hl.h3-ró-.
> > Secondly, the otherwise very rare *-wo- suffix (as
> > in Lat. helvus 'bay',
> > Lith. z^e~lvas 'greenish', Gmc. *Gelwa- 'yellow') is
> > for some reason
> > frequent after the third laryngeal. There seems to
> > be some poorly
> > understood allomorphy rule at work in those *-wo-
> > derivatives, but they
> > strongly suggest a root-final *h3 nevertheless.
> >
> > Piotr
> ==========
> What about an alternation H3 ~ w ?
>
> Arnaud
> ================


***

Piotr, I would like to offer my own explanation of these data but I am
hoping you will critique what I propose. We both know that we differ on this
subject but I am trying to see if I should revise my view.

I propose that the simplest form of the root is *g^héla:-, which the
stress-accent could shorten to *g^hél6/Ø-. This latter form + adjectival -*y
seems to me to be the explanation for Skt. híri- if we can explain the root
<i> as an assimilation to the final <i>.

I do not see where a "laryngal" is needed since I believe the final long
*-a(:) was part of the simple root form.

If we add adjectival -*y to the full form, -*a: + -*y combines to form
*g^hlé:-; if we add the color formant -*w(o) to the full form, -*a: + -*w
combines to form *g^hló:-.

Adding the intensifier -*ró to the latter gives us Greek khlo:ró-s.

Adding the color formant -*w(o) to the shortened form gives us Latin helvus,
Lithuanian z^e~lva-s and Gmc. *Gelwa-.

I used <6> for schwa since I was not sure if it would come through.


Patrick

***