nom. plural before vowels (na h‑òighean = *sendâs augeis), also O’ H- of Irish; and it may be the origin in most cases of prothetic s.
(4) Pre-consonantal s. A prehistoric case of ‑sr is not forthcoming, but éirich comes from *ek-s-regô. Before l, m, and n the s disappears, and the liquid is doubled (m of Gaelic being for older mm), as already shown under these letters. Medial sv appears as f in the older language (see seinn), and it is still seen in tabhann (*to-sven‑), feabhas.
- Before the explosives, s is preserved before the tenues, which in the modern language become mediæ. The combination sp is not certain; but ‑sc becomes ‑sg (see fasgadh, seasg, measg, etc.), st becomes s (older ss) simply, as in seas (= *sisto‑), fois, fàs, dos, etc. Before the medials s becomes z, which see for results in Gaelic; *sg becomes g; sp becomes s.
(5) Post-consonantal s. After the liquid r the s is assimilated to the r, and the result is rr, as in bàrr, èarr, etc. From ‑ls- seemingly s results, at least in the later language; ‑ms, ‑ns become s with compensatory lengthening for the previous vowel; ‑ds becomes t, as in an t‑each (= *sindos eqos); Thn. adds fitir (= *vid-sar). For m-sh = mp, see under m.
- The explosives combine with the s and disappear into O. Ir. ss, now s, as in uasal (= *oups- or *ouks‑), lus, leas (*led-so‑), lios, as, out (= eks), and many others.
Gaelic preserved s intervocalic, therefore, arises from (1) st, as in seas; (2) from ‑ms, ‑ns, as in mìos; and (3) from ‑ps, ‑ts, ‑cs. Gaelic ‑st arises from this s by a sort of modern restoration of previous st, only, however, x may also become modern st (as in aiste, now aisde, out of her). Final x disappears, as in caora, sè.
I. E. z.
Even in I. E. this is assured only before the medial explosives. Thus G. nead, nest, is from I. E. nizdo‑s: so maide, brod, cead, gad, séid. Again ‑zg seems to have developed in G. into g; compare beag, biog, mèag, griogag, eagal (= ex-gal‑), rag.
§ 7. The Explosives or Mutes.
The I. E. explosives formed a possible sixteen in number between tenues, mediæ and the double set of aspirates (ph, bh, th, dh, kh, gh, qh, ꬶh). The tenues aspirate were “rare and of no importance” in the resulting languages, save only in Sanskrit and Greek. The mediæ aspirates are the predecessors of aspirates of the modern languages. But in the Celtic languages these media
