From: oalexandre
Message: 71449
Date: 2013-10-20
Summing up earlier posts, Basque trill /r/ <rr> can be either reflect a genuine rhotic, as in e.g. harri 'stone' < substratal *kar- 'hard', or a geminated tap /RR/ as in e.g. larre 'meadow; heath; uncultivated land, desert', ultimately from Gaulish *landa: 'heath, moor'.
In other words, /r/ and /RR/ are etymologically distinct although phonetically undistinguishable. Also /r/ <rr> and /R/ <r> didn't form a strong/weak pair in Paleo-Basque, as they *never* alternate in combinatory forms.