Sound changes from Proto-Indo-European edit
The phonological changes from Proto-Indo-European (PIE) to Proto-Celtic (PC) may be summarized as follows.[1] The changes are roughly in chronological order, with changes that operate on the outcome of earlier ones appearing later in the list.
Late PIE edit
These changes are shared by several other Indo-European branches.
- *e is colored by an adjacent laryngeal consonant:
- Palatovelars merge into the plain velars:
- Epenthetic *a is inserted after a syllabic sonorant if a laryngeal and another sonorant follow (R̥HR > RaHR)
- Laryngeals are lost:
- before a following vowel (HV > V)
- following a vowel in syllables before the accent (VHC´ > VC´)
- following a vowel before a consonant, or word finally, resulting in compensatory lengthening, thus (VHC > V̄C, VH# > V̄#)
- between plosives in non-initial syllables (CHC > CC)[2]
- Two adjacent dentals become two adjacent sibilants (TT > TsT > ss)[2]
Italo-Celtic edit
The following sound changes are shared with the Italic languages in particular, and are cited in support of the Italo-Celtic hypothesis.[4]
- Dybo's rule: long close vowels are shortened (or a laryngeal is lost) before resonant + stressed vowel. Note that something like Dybo's rule seems to have also operated in Germanic (Old English wer < *wiHró-).[5]
- Possibly, post-consonantal laryngeals are lost when before pre-tonic close vowels:
- CHiC´ > CiC´
- CHuC´ > CuC´
- Development of initial stress, following the previous two changes. But note that this seems to have been an areal feature, shared, for example with the Indo-European Germanic languages and the non-Indo-European Etruscan language.[6]
- Possibly, vocalization of laryngeals to *ī between a *CR cluster and consonantal *j (CRHjV > CRījV)
- Syllabic laryngeals become *a (CHC > CaC)[2]
- Syllabic resonants before a voiced unaspirated stop become *Ra (R̥D > RaD)
- *m is assimilated or lost before a glide:
- mj > nj
- mw > w
- *p assimilates to *kʷ when another *kʷ follows later in the word (p…kʷ > kʷ…kʷ).[7] But Matasovic points out that: A) this change may have occurred late in Celtic; B) it seems not to have operated on some words in Irish; and C) a very similar assimilation (though in reverse) also occurred in Germanic.[8]
One change shows non-exact parallels in Italic: vocalization of syllabic resonants next to laryngeals depending on the environment. Similar developments appear in Italic, but for the syllabic nasals *m̥, *n̥, the result is Proto-Italic *əm, *ən (> Latin em ~ im, en ~ in).
- Word-initially, HR̥C > aRC
- Before voiceless stops, CR̥HT > CRaT
- CR̥HV > CaRHV
- CR̥HC > CRāC[2]
Early PC edit
- Sequences of velar and *w merge into the labiovelars (it is uncertain if this preceded or followed the next change; that is, whether gw > b or gw > gʷ, but Schumacher 2004 argues on p. 372 that this change came first; moreover, it is also found in Proto-Italic, and thus arguably belongs to the previous section):
- kw > kʷ
- gw > gʷ
- gʰw > gʷʰ
- gʷ > b[3]
- Aspirated stops lose their aspiration and merge with the voiced stops (except that this counterfeeds the previous change, so *gʷʰ > *gʷ doesn't result in a merger; that is, the change *gʷʰ > *gʷ must crucially happen after the sound change gʷ > b has been completed):[9]
- *e before a resonant and *a (but not *ā) becomes *a as well (eRa > aRa): *ǵʰelH-ro > *gelaro > *galaro / *gérH-no > *gerano > *garano (Joseph's rule).
- Epenthetic *i is inserted after syllabic liquids when followed by a plosive:
- Epenthetic *a is inserted before the remaining syllabic resonants:
- All remaining nonsyllabic laryngeals are lost.[7]
- ē > ī[7]
- ō > ū in final syllables[7]
- Long vowels are shortened before a syllable-final resonant (V:RC > VRC); this also shortens long diphthongs. (Osthoff's law)[7]
Late PC edit
- Plosives become *x before a different plosive or *s (C₁C₂ > xC₂, Cs > xs)[11]
- p > b before liquids (pL > bL)[11]
- p > w before nasals (pN > wN)[11]
- p > ɸ (except possibly after *s)[11]
- ō > ā[11]
- ey > ē (but not in Celtiberian or Lepontic)[11]
- ew > ow[11]
- uwa > owa[11]
Examples edit
| PIE | PC | Example | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIE | Proto-Celtic | Old Irish | Welsh | |||||
| *p | *ɸ | *ph₂tḗr | *ɸatīr | father | athir | edrydd | cf. home (< *ɸatrijo-) | |
| *t | *t | *tréyes | *trīs | three | trí | tri | ||
| *k, ḱ | *k | *kh₂n̥-e- *ḱm̥tom |
*kan-o- *kantom |
sing hundred |
canaid cét /kʲeːd/ |
canu cant | ||
| *kʷ | *kʷ | *kʷetwores | *kʷetwares | four | ceth(a)ir | pedwar | ||
| *b | *b | *h₂ébōl | *abalom | apple | uball | afal | ||
| *d | *d | *derḱ- | *derk- | see | derc | eye | drych | sight |
| *g, ǵ | *g | *gleh₁i- *ǵen-u- |
*gli-na- *genu- |
to glue jaw |
glen(a)id giun, gin |
(he) sticks fast mouth |
glynu gên |
adhere jaw |
| *gʷ | *b | *gʷenh₂ | *bena | woman | ben | O.W. ben | ||
| *bʰ | *b | *bʰére- | *ber-o- | carry | berid | (he) carries | adfer cymeryd[12] |
to restore to take |
| *dʰ | *d | *dʰeh₁i- | *di-na- | suck | denait | they suck | dynu, denu | |
| *gʰ, ǵʰ | *g | *gʰh₁bʰ-(e)y- *ǵʰelH-ro- |
*gab-i- *galaro- |
take sickness |
ga(i)bid galar |
(he) takes sickness |
gafael galar |
hold grief |
| *gʷʰ | *gʷ | *gʷʰn̥- | *gʷan-o- | kill, wound | gonaid | (he) wounds, slays | gwanu | stab |
| *s | *s | *sen-o- | *senos | old | sen | hen | ||
| *m | *m | *méh₂tēr | *mātīr | mother | máthir | modryb | cf. aunt | |
| *n | *n | *h₂nép-ōt- | *neɸūts | nephew | niad | nai | ||
| *l | *l | *leyǵʰ- | *lig-e/o- | lick | ligid | (he) licks | llyo, llyfu | |
| *r | *r | *h₃rēǵ-s | *rīgs | king | rí (gen. ríg) | rhi | ||
| *j | *j | *h₂yuh₁n-ḱós | *juwankos | young | óac | ieuanc | ||
| *w | *w | *h₂wl̥h₁tí- | *wlatis | rulership | flaith | gwlad | country | |
| PIE | PC | Example | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| PIE | PC | Old Irish | Welsh | ||||||
| *a, *h₂e | *a | *h₂ep-h₃ōn- | *abū acc. *abonen |
river | aub | afon | |||
| *ā, *eh₂ | *ā | *bʰréh₂tēr | *brātīr | brother | bráthir | brawd | |||
| *e, h₁e | *e | *sen-o- | *senos | old | sen | hen | |||
| *H | between consonants[13] |
*a | *ph₂tḗr | *ɸatīr | father | athir | edrydd | cf. home | |
| *ē, eh₁ | *ī | *weh₁-ro- | *wīros | true | fír | gwir | |||
| *o, Ho, h₃e | *o | *Hroth₂o- | *rotos | wheel | roth | rhod | |||
| *ō, eh₃ | in final syllable | *ū | *h₂nép-ōt- | *neɸūts | nephew | niæ | nai | ||
| elsewhere | *ā | *deh₃no- | *dāno- | gift | dán | dawn | |||
| *i | *i | *gʷih₃-tu- | *bitus | world | bith | byd | |||
| *ī, iH | *ī | *rīmeh₂ | *rīmā | number | rím | rhif | |||
| *ai, h₂ei, eh₂i | *ai | *kaikos *seh₂itlo- |
*kaikos *saitlo- |
blind age |
cáech — |
one-eyed — |
coeg hoedl |
empty, one-eyed age | |
| *(h₁)ei, ēi, eh₁i | *ei | *deywos | *deiwos | god | día | duw | |||
| *oi, ōi, h₃ei, eh₃i | *oi | *oynos | *oinos | one | óen oín; áen aín |
un | |||
| *u | before wa | o | *h₂yuh₁n-ḱós | *juwankos > *jowankos |
young | óac | ieuanc | ||
| elsewhere | *u | *srutos | *srutos | stream | sruth | ffrwd | |||
| *ū, uH | *ū | *ruHneh₂ | *rūnā | mystery | rún | rhin | |||
| *au, h₂eu, eh₂u | *au | *tausos | *tausos | silent | táue | silence (*tausijā) |
taw | ||
| *(h₁)eu, ēu, eh₁u; *ou, ōu, h₃eu, eh₃u |
*ou | *tewteh₂ *gʷeh₃-u-s |
*toutā *bows |
people cow |
túath bó |
tud M.W. bu, biw | |||
| *l̥ | before stops | *li | *pl̥th₂nós | *ɸlitanos | wide | lethan | llydan | ||
| before other consonants |
*al | *kl̥h₁- | *kaljākos | rooster | cailech (Ogham gen. caliaci) |
ceiliog | |||
| *r̥ | before stops | *ri | *bʰr̥ti- | *briti- | act of bearing; mind | breth, brith | bryd | ||
| before other consonants |
*ar | *mr̥wos | *marwos | dead | marb | marw | |||
| *m̥ | *am | *dm̥-nh₂- | *damna- | subdue | M.Ir. damnaid |
he ties, fastens, binds |
— | ||
| *n̥ | *an | *h₃dn̥t- | *danton | tooth | dét /dʲeːd/ | dant | |||
| *l̥H | before obstruents | *la | *h₂wlh₁tí- | *wlatis | lordship | flaith | gwlad | country | |
| before sonorants | *lā | *pl̥Hmeh₂ | *ɸlāmā | hand | lám | llaw | |||
| *r̥H | before obstruents | *ra | *mr̥Htom | *mratom | betrayal | mrath | brad | ||
| before sonorants | *rā | *ǵr̥Hnom | *grānom | grain | grán | grawn | |||
| *m̥H | (presumably with same distribution as above) |
*am/mā | *dm̥h₂-ye/o- | *damje/o- | to tame | daimid fodam- |
daimid - |
goddef | endure, suffer |
| *n̥H | *an/nā | *ǵn̥h₃to- ? | *gnātos | known | gnáth | gnawd | customary | ||
references edit
- ^ Matasović 2009, pp. 6–11.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Matasović 2009, p. 6.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Matasović 2009, p. 7.
- ^ Schrijver 2015, pp. 196–197.
- ^ Matasovic, R. (2009) Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic. Brill. p.7
- ^ Salmon, Joseph (1992) Accentual Change and Language Contact Stanford UP
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Matasović 2009, p. 8.
- ^ Matasovic 2009, pp. 11–12.
- ^ Cólera, Carlos Jordán (2007) "Celtiberian," e-Keltoi: Journal of Interdisciplinary Celtic Studies: Vol. 6, Article 17. p.759. Available at: https://dc.uwm.edu/ekeltoi/vol6/iss1/17 accessed June 21, 2023
- ^ a b Matasović 2009, pp. 7–8.
- ^ a b c d e f g h Matasović 2009, p. 9.
- ^ Welsh adfer 'to restore' < *ate-ber-, cymeryd < obsolete cymer < M.W. cymeraf < *kom-ber- (with -yd taken from the verbal noun cymryd < *kom-britu).
- ^ However, according to Hackstein (2002) *CH.CC > Ø in unstressed medial syllables. Thus, H can disappear in weak cases while being retained in strong cases, e.g. IE nom.sg. *dʰugh₂tḗr vs. gen.sg. *dʰugtr-os 'daughter' > early PC *dugater- ~ dugtr-. This then led to a paradigmatic split, resulting in Celtiberian gen.sg. tuateros, nom.pl. tuateres vs. Gaulish duxtir (< *dugtīr). (Zair 2012: 161, 163).
- Matasović, Ranko (2009). Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic. Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series, 9. Brill Academic Publishers. ISBN 978-90-04-17336-1.
- Matasović, Ranko (2011). Addenda et corrigenda to Ranko Matasović’s Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (PDF). Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series, 9. Brill Academic Publishers.
- Schrijver, Peter (2015). "Pruners and trainers of the Celtic family tree: The rise and development of Celtic in light of language contact". Proceedings of the XIV International Congress of Celtic Studies, Maynooth 2011. Dublin: Dublin Institute for Advanced Studies. pp. 191–219.
- Hackstein, Olav (2002). "Uridg. *CH.CC > *C.CC". Historische Sprachforschung. 115: 1–22.