Page:Alexander Macbain - An Etymological Dictionary of the Gaelic Language.djvu/40

From Wikisource
Jump to navigation Jump to search
This page has been proofread, but needs to be validated.
xvi.
Outlines of Gaelic etymology.
(2) Intervocalic v. This disappears in G. leaving the vowels to coalesce with varying results, thus:—
a. ‑ivo- produces , as in beò, *givo‑s, Lat. vivus, or ia in biadh (*bïvoto‑n, cf. dia), dian.
b. ‑evo- produces , as in ceò, *skevo‑, Eng. shower; deò, W. dywy, *devo‑, Lat. fûmus, eòrna. Stokes gives cliù as *klevos, Thurney­sen as kloves‑.
c. ‑ovi- gives nuadh, *novios, ‑ovo- in crò (*krovos), ‑ovṇ- in òg.
d. ‑avi- in ogha (*pavios); dàth (*daviô); ‑avo- in clò.
e. ‑eivi- in glè, ‑eivo- in dia.

(3) Post-consonantal v.

a. After liquids it becomes bh. See garbh, marbh, searbh, tarbh, dealbh, sealbh, meanbh, banbh.
b. After explosives it disappears save after d, (ꬶv): feadhbh, widow, O. Ir. fedb, faobh, baobh. For gv, see g below.
c. After s, it sometimes disappears, sometimes not. Thus piuthar is for *svesôr, O. Ir. siur, whereas in searbh (*svervo‑s), solus (but follas), seinn, etc., it dis­appears.

The Consonant Vowels.

These are , , , ; , , ṇ̄, ṃ̄. The regular representation of , in G. is ri, li (mutated forms being rea, rei, lea, lei). See the following regular forms: bris, britheamh, fri, lit; also the modified forms—bleath, bleogh­ainn, breith, cleith, dreach, leamhann, leathan (?), sreath.

The numerous Gaelic a forms of I. E. e roots containing liquids fall to be noticed here. Some of them Brugmann explains as glides before sonants, somewhat thus: G. mair, remain, O. Ir. maraim, would be from mṛra‑, root mer, Lat. mora; so sgar from sker; garbh, marbh.

Add the following:—alt, carbad. (Lat. corbis), bàrr, bard, cairt, garg, mall, dall, sgàird (Lat. muscerda), tart, tar; fras, flath, fraigh, graigh, braich. With modified vowels in—coille (*caldet‑), doire, foil, goile, goirid, sgoilt.

The long vowels and appear regularly as (?) . See làn (*pḹ‑no‑, Skr. pūrnas), slàn, tlàth, blàth. Long seems to appear as ār in dàir, màireach, fàireag (?).25

Vocalic n and m may be looked for in G. samhail, which Brugmann explains as sṃmḷli‑s, in tana, thin; reversed in magh and nasg.

Compensatory plays a great part in G., appearing usually as eu (ao). We have ceud, hundred, W. cant, deud, W. dant, teud,

25 See Supplement to Outlines of Gaelic Etymology.