Re: Vocalic Theory ('Laryngeal' Theory)

----- Original Message -----
From: "Brian M. Scott" <BMScott@...>
To: "Patrick Ryan" <cybalist@yahoogroups.com>
Sent: Wednesday, June 11, 2008 10:55 PM
Subject: Re: [tied] RE: Vocalic Theory ('Laryngeal' Theory)


> At 10:11:29 AM on Wednesday, June 11, 2008, Patrick Ryan
> wrote:
>
> > I have made several additions to
>
> > http://geocities.com/proto-language/OneLaryngealVocalicTheory.htm
>
> > of a minor variety.
>

<. . .>

> I did happen to notice this bit of fudge:
>
> > Thus, a PIE root like *pel-, which appears in these
> > different forms: *ple:-, *pla:-, *plo:- — these forms are
> > presumed by the 'laryngealists' to be caused by the
> > addition of a following H1, H2, or H3 to *plé.
>
> > This seems a real oddity: the addition of the 'laryngeals'
> > under apparently identical phonotaxis produces three
> > lexically different roots: *1. ple:-, 'pour'; *2. a.
> > pla:-, 'put in motion by pushing or beating'; and *9.
> > plo:-, 'burn'.
>
> It is clearly inaccurate to speak of *pel- as a single root
> appearing in different forms. It's also incorrect to speak
> of *adding* the laryngeals: they are intrinsic parts of the
> roots reconstructed with them.

***

I never seem to be able to communicate this very simple principle to some
people:

PIE roots are either CV or CVC(V). There are no exceptions.

*ple:- is *C(V)CVH. *C(V)CV is the root. *H is obviously an additional
formant forming a stem.

If the laryngealists are right...

I believe, instead, that the three came into PIE as *pAle:-, *pAla:-, and
*pAlo:-, with _naturally long_ final vowels which Piotr assures me occurred
in PIE (if not in these words).


***




> > How much more straightforward it seems to assume that we
> > are dealing with three different roots, which in pre-PIE
> > had the forms: *pÁle:-/*pAlé:-, *pÁla:-/*pAlá:-, and
> > *pÁlo:-/*pAló:-; and that the final vowel differentiated
> > them lexically.
>
> This is obviously no more straightforward than assuming
> three distinct roots, *pleh1-, *pleh2-, and *pleh3-,
> differentiated by distinct final consonants.
>
> Brian

***

*pA-le:, two syllables, vs. *p(V)-le-H1(V), three syllables.



***