Re: PIE -*C-presents

On 2008-02-22 00:07, Miguel Carrasquer Vidal wrote:

> Since we have no non-Indo-Iranian data to go by, the origin
> of this formation is far from clear. The ending -i can
> indeed represent a neuter i-stem, but another possibility
> would be *-h2 (or *-h1, *-h3). The root vocalism perhaps
> favours Burrows' hypothesis: we seem to have PIE *o, rather
> than lengthened grade caused *-H (*bhoudhi > bodhi, *kori >
> ka:ri, *g^onh1i > jani).

Just a thought: what about a pattern like armus/inermis? One could
imagine a perfect-like (but unreduplicated) "proto-middle" root aorist
like *g^ónh1-e realised as *é g^onh1i in combination with the accented
augment. I suppose you know Jasnoff's explanation (an inner IIr.
analogical generalisation of *i from the final laryngeal of set. roots
before consonantal endings, replacing 3sg. *-a < *-o); I don't find it
particularly convincing, especially as no forms like 2sg. *g^én&1-th2a >
+janitHa (as posited by Jasanoff) are attested.

Piotr