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From: librik@netcom.com (David Librik)
Subject: Re: Fate of PIE 'P' in Celtic languages
Message-ID: <librikDG0Cq0.K8o@netcom.com>
Organization: Icy Waters Underground, Inc.
References: <44qqna$66t@central.co.nz>
Date: Fri, 6 Oct 1995 03:37:12 GMT
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Sender: librik@netcom9.netcom.com

kevdaly@central.co.nz (Kevin Daly) writes:

>   OK folks, I was wondering if somebody could help me with something:
>PIE /p/ became zero in Celtic, but the Irish word for 'seven' is 'seacht' 
>(with nasal mutation of intial consonant of following 
>noun)...corresponding to Latin 'Septem', English 'Seven' etc...This suggests 
>that in the original common Celtic form of this word /p/ did not disappear, 
>but was replaced by /kw/ or /k/...Does anybody know anything about this?
>I can only assume it is a special case affecting /pt/ consonant clusters.
>I would be interested to know if there is a general pattern of PIE 'pt' 
>becoming 'cht' in Irish. 

I knew this $90 copy of Lewis and Pedersen would come in handy someday.
OK, from p. 26-27, Henry Lewis and Holger Pedersen, _A Concise Comparative
Celtic Grammar_, Goettingen: Vandenhoek & Ruprecht, 1989 (1961).

Para 29.  IE. _p_ (Lat., Gk. _p_, Gmc. _f_, Arm. _h-_, lost, _-w-_, Sanskr. _p_)
	was in Celt. treated differently from all other IE. explosives.  It
	became throughout a spirant, first a bilabial _f_; an echo of this
	is found in the development of _sp_ and in the _w_ diphthong resulting
	from _op_ before _n_ (Para 32).  Before _s_ (Para 25) and _t_ (Para 31)
	_f_ became /x/; elsewhere it became _h_, which disappeared entirely.
	The same applies to IE. _ph_.

Para 31.  (_p_ before _s_ and explosives).  _ps_ v. Para 25. -- _pt_ gave
	C. _ft_ > _xt_, and this has remained in Ir.; in Brit. _x_ coalesced
	with the preceding vowel giving a diphthong or a long vowel:
	Ir. _secht_ 'seven'  MlW. _seith_ etc.  Para 24,2  cf. G. _sextametos_
	'seventh'; Ir. _necht_ gl. neptis  W. _nith_  OCo. _noit_ (influenced
	by masc. _noi_)  OBr. _nith_ gl. nepta  MnBr. _niz_ (? G. _Neptacus_,
	with _pt_ = _ft_): Lat. _neptis_ 'grand-daughter'  OHG. nift 'niece'
	Skr. _napti:_ 'grand-daughter';  Ir. _richt_ 'form'  W. _rhith_:
	_*pr.ptu-_, cf. Gk. _pre/po:_ 'am conspicuous' Arm. _erewim_
	'I appear', _eres_ (_-ps-_) 'face'; -- Ir. _cacht_ 'servant'
	W. _caeth_ 'slave, captive'  OCo. m. _caid_, f. _caites_  MlBr.
	_quaez_ 'captive' MnBr. _keaz_ 'unlucky, wretched, dear'
	G. _Moenia-coeptus_ (? _Moenicaptus_):  Lat. _captus_ 'captive'
	OHG. _haft_; -- Ir. _o/chtar_, _uachtar_ 'upper part'  W. _uthr_
	'wonderful, tremendous': _*ouptro-_ to Goth. _iup_ 'upwards'
	Ir. _o/s_, _uas_ < _*oup-su_ (Para 25,1).

"Concise" is definitely the right adjective.  The idea is that p > f,
then f > 0 usually, except before _s_ and _t_ where f > x.  In Brythonic
(Welsh, Cornish, Breton), x > 0 with compensatory lengthening/diphthongization
of the preceding vowel.  In Irish _x_ has stayed (spelled "ch").  The
reference to "Para 24,2" just after the discussion of 'seven' refers to
the fact that _seith_ is one of the few Welsh words where initial _s_ hasn't
become _h_.  (Another interesting thing about Irish _seacht_ is what's
implied by that "a": despite being preceded by an _e_ -- it was IE. _septm._,
remember -- the combination _xt_ resists palatalization.  P. 100, Para 170,2.)

By "explosive" I think they mean "obstruent" or "stop."  I kind of like
the idea of reconstructing Proto-Indo-European explosives, though.  You
could use the laryngeals to make good roaring noises.

- David Librik
librik@cs.Berkeley.edu
