ISSN: 2306-5737E-ISSN: 2658-4069
Acta Linguistica Petropolitana
Transactions of the Institute for Linguistic Studies
ISSN: 2306-5737E-ISSN: 2658-4069
Acta Linguistica Petropolitana
Transactions of the Institute for Linguistic Studies 

Myc. tu-wo, Hom. θύος and the vocalism of s-stems in Proto-Indo-European

DOI:10.30842/alp23065737181444462
PDF, 843.95 kb
Vine Brent. Myc. tu-wo, Hom. θύος and the vocalism of s-stems in Proto-Indo-European. Acta Linguistica Petropolitana. 2022. 18(1): 444–462.

A neuter s-stem based on PIE *dʰu̯ eh₂- '(produce) smoke' is well-attested from the earliest Greek: Myc. tu-wo /tʰu(u̯ )os/ 'aromatic substance' (incense, perfume), pl. tu-we-a ~ tu-we-a₂ /tʰu(u̯ )eha/, Hom.+ θύος (pl. θύεα) 'burnt offering(s)'. But a “face-value” Transponat PIE nom./acc. *dʰúh₂-os, obl. *dʰuh₂-es- violates the standard Erlangen model of accent-ablaut patterns in the inflection of athematic formations, where an s-stem with zero-grade root is anomalous (cf. [Schindler 1975]): s-stems belong to the “proterokinetic” inflectional type, with ideal structure nom./acc. R(é)-os, obl. R(Ø)-és-. Greek has other s-stems with zero-grade root; but most are transparently secondary, e.g. βάρος 'weight' (Hdt., Aesch.+) ← βαρύς 'heavy' (Hom.+). For θύος, the only available secondary pattern is the deverbative one, i.e., θύος ← θύω 'offer, sacrifice (a victim)' (Hom.+). Nevertheless, Greek deverbative s-stems are otherwise mostly late. Given the early attestation of Myc. tu-wo and Hom. θύος, these forms may continue an inherited s-stem, for which the anomalous zero-grade root vocalism invites further comment. Such a structure is not isolated. Schindler [1975: 264–265] had already identified two probable PIE s-stems with pervasive zero-grade root, i.e. *sríHg-os 'cold, frost' (Gk. ῥῖγος, Lat. frīgus) and *púH-os 'pus' (Gk. πύος, Lat. pūs). And it may be possible to add another such item, i.e. Ved. dúvas- 'gift, offering', better assigned (as *dúH-es-) to 2. deu- '(religiös) verehren etc.' [IEW: 218–219] than to the questionable construct *deh₃u- 'give'.

Recent scholarship has leveled significant criticism against the Erlangen model (the “paradigmatic” approach), with proterokinetic inflection itself as a major target (cf. [Kümmel 2014]), in favor of a new theory of Indo-European accent (the “compositional” approach, cf. [Kiparsky 2010]). Yet this revisionist discussion has had nothing to say about aberrant s-stems with zero-grade root vocalism. What, then, can be said about s-stems like *sríHg-es-, *púH-es-, and (if the analyses here are correct) *dʰúh₂-es- and *dúH-es-?

Beside *sríHg-es-, no full grade is attested for any of the root's nominal or verbal forms. Despite Stüber [2002: 152], there is no reason to regard *sriHg- as a “secondary root” with unspecified origin. Much the same picture appears for *púH-es-; the idea [Stüber 2002: 200] that the pervasive zero grade reflects an early “generalization” based on a primordial ablauting paradigm is merely an article of faith. For the root of *dʰúh₂-es-: full-grade forms are virtually unattested, and the uncertainty about the root shape ([LIV1] *dʰeuh₂- vs. [LIV2] *dʰu̯ eh₂-) is symptomatic. All of this is strongly reminiscent of other PIE “non-apophonic zero-grade roots”, of which the bestknown is *bʰuH- 'be, become', in the classic analysis by Jasanoff [1997]. Cf. also PIE *suH-i̯ u- ~ *suH-nu- 'son', notorious precisely for its failure to conform to expectations about proterokinetic inflection, much as with the zero-grade s-stems. For the underlying verbal root ([LIV2] ?*seu̯ H- 'gebären'), no verbal full grades are attested, and there are no nominal forms with arguably archaic full grades. Additional cases probably exist, e.g. *ḱu̯ eh₁- 'swell' [LIV2: 339–340], with no verbal full grades, symptomatic Schwebeablaut material, and a zero-grade proterokinetic men-stem in Gk. κῦμα 'wave'.

In sum, neuter s-stems with pervasive zero-grade root represent a hitherto neglected contributor to the reevaluation of proterokinetic inflection and, more broadly, the reappraisal of the “Erlangen” (paradigmatic) approach to the reconstruction of accent and ablaut in athematic inflectional categories.

Keywords
Myc. tu-wo, Gk. θύος, s-stems, zero grade, Erlangen model, proterokinetic inflection, non-apophonic roots
References
Blanc 2018
A. Blanc. Les adjectifs sigmatiques du grec ancien: Un cas de métamorphisme dérivationnel. Innsbruck: Institut für Sprachen und Literaturen der Universität Innsbruck, 2018.
Byrd 2015
A. M. Byrd. The Indo-European Syllable. Leiden: Brill, 2015.
DELG
P. Chantraine. Dictionnaire étymologique de la langue grecque: Histoire des mots. 2 éd. Paris: Klincksieck, 1999.
DMic.
Fr. Aura Jorro. Diccionario micénico. Vol. 1–2. Madrid: Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Científicas, 1985/1993.
EDAIL
Hr. K. Martirosyan. Etymological Dictionary of the Armenian Inherited Lexicon. Leiden: Brill, 2010.
EDG
R. S. P. Beekes, with the assistance of L. van Beek. Etymological Dictionary of Greek. Leiden; Boston: Brill, 2010.
EDHIL
A. Kloekhorst. Etymological Dictionary of the Hittite Inherited Lexicon. Leiden: Brill, 2008.
EWAia
M. Mayrhofer, Etymologisches Wörterbuch des Altindoarischen. Heidelberg: Winter, 1986–2001.
Fortson 2010
B. W. Fortson IV. Indo-European Language and Culture: An Introduction. 2 ed. Malden, MA: Wiley-Blackwell, 2010.
GEW
Hj. Frisk. Griechisches etymologisches Wörterbuch. Heidelberg: Winter, 1960–1972.
Hackstein 1995
O. Hackstein. Untersuchungen zu den sigmatischen Präsensstammbildungen des Tocharischen. Göttingen: Vandenhoeck & Ruprecht, 1995.
Hale 2010
M. Hale. Návyasā vácaḥ: To praise with a really old word. R. Kim, N. Oettinger, E. Rieken, M. Weiss (eds.). Ex Anatolia Lux: Anatolian and IndoEuropean Studies in Honor of H. Craig Melchert on the Occasion of his Sixty-Fifth Birthday. Ann Arbor: Beech Stave, 2010. P. 85–97.
IEW
J. Pokorny. Indogermanisches etymologisches Wörterbuch. Bern: Francke, 1959–1969.
Jasanoff 1991
J. H. Jasanoff. The ablaut of the root aorist optative in Proto-IndoEuropean. Münchener Studien zur Sprachwissenschaft. 1991. Vol. 52. P. 101–122.
Jasanoff 1997
J. H. Jasanoff. Where does Skt. bhávati come from? D. Disterheft, M. E. Huld, J. A. C. Greppin, E. C. Polomé (eds.). Studies in Honor of Jaan Puhvel, Part One: Ancient Language and Philology. Washington, DC: Institute for the Study of Man, 1997. P. 173–186.
Kashima 2019
K. Kashima. Nominal evidence for the Proto-Indo-European verbal root *bʰu̯ eh₂ 'become'. D. M. Goldstein, St. W. Jamison, Br. Vine (eds.). Proceedings of the 30th Annual UCLA Indo-European Conference. Bremen: Hempen, 2019. P. 123–39.
Keydana 2013
G. Keydana. Proterokinetische Stämme, Akzent und Ablaut. G. Keydana, P. Widmer, Th. Olander (eds.). Indo-European Accent and Ablaut. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum, 2013. P. 31–62.
Keydana et al. 2013
G. Keydana, P. Widmer, Th. Olander (eds.). Indo-European Accent and Ablaut. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum, 2013.
Kim 2013
R. I. Kim. Metrical grid theory, internal derivation, and the reconstruction of PIE nominal accent paradigms. G. Keydana, P. Widmer, Th. Olander (eds.). Indo-European Accent and Ablaut. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum, 2013. P. 63–105.
Kiparsky 2010
P. Kiparsky. Compositional vs. paradigmatic approaches to accent and ablaut. St. W. Jamison, H. Cr. Melchert, Br. Vine (eds.). Proceedings of the 21st Annual UCLA Indo-European Conference. Bremen: Hempen, 2010. 137–181.
Kiparsky forthcoming
P. Kiparsky. Accent and ablaut. To appear in: A. Garrett, M. Weiss (eds.). Handbook of Indo-European Studies. Oxford; New York: Oxford University Press.
Kümmel 2000
M. J. Kümmel. Das Perfekt im Indoiranischen: Eine Untersuchung der Form und Funktion einer ererbten Kategorie des Verbens und ihrer Weiterentwicklung in den altindoiranischen Sprachen. Wiesbaden: Reichert, 2000.
Kümmel 2014
M. J. Kümmel. Zum “proterokinetischen” Ablaut. N. Oettinger, Th. Steer (eds.). Das Nomen im Indogermanischen: Morphologie, Substantiv versus Adjektiv, Kollectivum. Wiesbaden: Reichert, 2014. P. 164–179.
LIV1
H. Rix (ed.). Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben: Die Wurzeln und ihre Primärstammbildungen. Wiesbaden: Reichert, 1998.
LIV2
H. Rix (ed.). Lexikon der indogermanischen Verben: Die Wurzeln und ihre Primärstammbildungen. 2. Aufl. Wiesbaden: Reichert, 2001.
Lundquist 2015
J. Lundquist. On the accentuation of Vedic -ti- abstracts: Evidence for accentual change. Indo-European Linguistics. 2015. Vol. 3. P. 42–72.
Lundquist 2017
J. Lundquist. Archaisms and Innovations in the Songs of Homer. PhD Dissertation. University of California, Los Angeles, 2017.
Lundquist 2021
J. Lundquist. Penelope's αἰνοπαθῆ (σ 201): Very old or very young? Journal of Greek Linguistics. 2021. Vol. 21. P. 193–223.
Lundquist, Yates 2018
J. Lundquist, A. D. Yates. Proto-Indo-European morphology. J. Klein, Br. Joseph (eds.). Handbook of Comparative and Historical Indo-European Linguistics. Berlin: De Gruyter, 2018. P. 2079–2195.
Meier-Brügger 1989
M. Meier-Brügger. Verbaute schwundstufige -s- Neutra in der griechischen Wortbildung. Historische Sprachforschung. 1989. Vol. 102. P. 58–61.
Meiser 1986
G. Meiser. Lautgeschichte der umbrischen Sprache. Innsbruck: Institut für Sprachwissenschaft der Universität Innsbruck, 1986.
Meissner 2006
T. Meissner. S-stem Nouns and Adjectives in Greek and ProtoIndo-European: A Diachronic Study in Word Formation. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2006.
Melena 2014
J. L. Melena. Mycenaean writing. Y. Duhoux, A. Morpurgo Davies (eds.). A Companion to Linear B: Mycenaean Greek Texts and their World. Louvain-la-Neuve: Peeters, 2014. P. 1–186.
NIL
D. S. Wodtko, Br. Irslinger, C. Schneider. Nomina im indogermanischen Lexikon. Heidelberg: Winter, 2008.
Nussbaum 1999
A. J. Nussbaum. *Jocidus: An account of the Latin adjectives in -idus. H. Eichner, H. Chr. Luschütsky, Compositiones Indogermanicae in Memoriam Jochem Schindler. Prague: Enigma, 1999. P. 377–419.
Rau 2014
J. Rau. The history of the Indo-European primary comparative. N. Oettinger, Th. Steer (eds.). Das Nomen im Indogermanischen: Morphologie, Substantiv versus Adjektiv, Kollectivum. Wiesbaden: Reichert, 2014. P. 327–341.
Rieken 1999
E. Rieken. Untersuchungen zur nominalen Stammbildung des Hethitischen. Wiesbaden: Harrassowitz, 1999.
Sandell 2013
R. Sandell. “Proterokinetic” inflection, *o/e-ablaut, and the post-lexical phonology of PIE. Handout, University of California, Los Angeles, 2013.
Schindler 1975
J. Schindler. Zum Ablaut der neutralen s-Stämme des Indogermanischen. H. Rix (ed.). Flexion und Wortbildung. Wiesbaden: Reichert, 1975. S. 259–267.
Stüber 2002
K. Stüber. Die primären s-Stämme des Indogermanischen. Wiesbaden: Reichert, 2002. de Vaan 2005 — M. de Vaan. Review of Stüber 2002. Kratylos. 2005. Vol. 50. P. 60–65.
Villanueva Svensson 2013
M. Villanueva Svensson. Two Baltic irregular preterites: Lith. dãvė 'gave', ėm̃ ė 'took'. Baltistica. 2013. Vol. 48(2). P. 225–244.
Vine 2004
Br. Vine. On PIE full grades in some zero-grade contexts: *-tí-, *-tó-. J. Clackson, B. A. Olsen (eds.). Indo-European Word Formation. Copenhagen: Museum Tusculanum, 2004. P. 357–379.
Vine 2006
Br. Vine. On 'Thurneysen-Havet's Law' in Latin and Italic. Historische Sprachforschung. 2006. Vol. 119. P. 211–249.
Vine 2008
Br. Vine. Hocus, pocus: locus, focus! Paper presented at the 27th East Coast Indo-European Conference (Univ. of Georgia), 2008.
Vine 2009
Br. Vine. A yearly problem. K. Yoshida, Br. Vine (eds.). East and West: Papers in Indo-European Studies. Bremen: Hempen, 2009. P. 205–224.
Vine 2016
Br. Vine. Latin bēs/bessis 'two-thirds of an as'. A. M. Byrd, J. DeLisi, M. Wenthe (eds.). Tavet Tat Satyam: Studies in Honor of Jared S. Klein on the Occasion of His Seventieth Birthday. Ann Arbor: Beech Stave, 2016. P. 324–330.
Vine 2021
Br. Vine. Latin fimus/fimum 'fumier' et PIE *-mo- secondaire. A. Blanc, I. Boehm (eds.). Dérivation nominale et innovations dans les langues indo-européennes anciennes. Lyon: Maison de l'Orient et de la Méditerranée – Jean Pouilloux, 2021. P. 241–252.
Weiss 2020a
M. Weiss. Outline of the Historical and Comparative Grammar of Latin2. Ann Arbor: Beech Stave, 2020.
Weiss 2020b
M. Weiss. Observations on the Dvenos inscription and the feminine pronoun *si. Paper presented at the UCLA Graduate Seminar in Indo-European Studies (March 5, 2020).
Yamazaki 2019
Y. Yamazaki. The root vocalism of Lith. dãvė, dial. dẽvė 'gave' revisitied. A. A. Catt, R. I. Kim, Br. Vine (eds.), QAZZU warrai: Anatolian and Indo-European Studies in Honor of Kazuhiko Yoshida. Ann Arbor: Beech Stave, 2019. P. 410–419.
Yates 2017
A. D. Yates. Lexical Accent in Cupeño, Hittite, and Indo-European. PhD Dissertation, University of California, Los Angeles, 2017.
Keywords
Myc. tu-wo, Gk. θύος, s-stems, zero grade, Erlangen model, proterokinetic inflection, non-apophonic roots
ScopusSCImago Journal & Country RankE-Library.ruCrossRefCyberLeninkaVAKERIH Plus