--- In
cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "Arnaud Fournet"
<fournet.arnaud@...> wrote:
>
>
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Brian M. Scott" <BMScott@...>
> To: "Andrew Jarrette" <cybalist@yahoogroups.com>
> Sent: Thursday, September 25, 2008 9:17 PM
> Subject: Re: [tied] Re: Comparative Notes on Hurro-Urartian,
Northern
> Caucasian and Indo-European
>
>
> >
> > At 2:19:15 PM on Thursday, September 25, 2008, Andrew
> > Jarrette wrote:
> >
> > [...]
> >
> >> An aside: The words for "axle" in many IE languages,
> >> including the English word and Latin <axis> among others,
> >> I assume derives from the root *ag^- "to drive".
> >
> > Watkins, at least, derives <axis> and <axle> from a
> > different root, *ak^s-. Also Latin <a:la> 'wing, upper arm'
> > (< *axla).
> >
> > Brian
> >
> ===========
>
> Pokorny does the same
> from *ag^ with phonotactical *ag^-s > ak^-s-
>
> Arnaud
>
It may be of note that the Sanskrit roots <aks.-> and <aç-> have
chiefly the meanings "reach, attain, come to, get" etc. in Vedic, and
the meaning "pass through, penetrate, pervade" is found in
lexicographers' lists and in the Naighantuka, some later text.
Monier-Williams and Pokorny connect these two Sanskrit roots to the
roots <naç-> and <naks.-> which mean primarily "reach, attain, find,
get, etc.". So the connection of these Sanskrit roots to *ak^s-
"axle" is not fully clear, in my opinion. On the other hand,
connection to *ag^- "drive" is predicated on the idea that it could
mean "drive a vehicle" as exclusively does ON <aka> from this root.
Is the meaning "drive a vehicle" at all attested for this root in
Latin or Greek <ago:>? It would greatly increase the credibility of
the connection of *ak^s- to this root. Note that names for other
vehicle parts, "wheel", "oar", "rudder", often go back to verbal
roots in the various IE descendant languages. However, an axle
doesn't do any "driving", so perhaps Watkins is the most right of all
in supposing an entirely independent root *ak^s- "axle".
AJ