Reconstruction:Proto-Celtic/slimnos
Proto-Celtic
Alternative reconstructions
- *slimonos[1]
Etymology
Matasović compares with Latin līmō (“to polish”) and Old High German slīmen (“to polish”). Others have compared to Proto-Germanic *slīmą (“slime”), Latvian slienas (“saliva”), and Proto-Slavic *slina (“saliva”). For these a Proto-Indo-European root *sleyH- or *sleh₁y- can be reconstructed. The coexistence of forms *slimnos and *slimonos in Celtic, if correct, would point to the original ablauting paradigm *sléy(H)-mō ~ *sli(H)-mn-ós. Matasović prefers a suffix *-ono- on the traditional root *sley-.
Adjective
Inflection
| O/ā-stem | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | singular | dual | plural |
| nominative | *slimnos | *slimnou | *slimnoi |
| vocative | *slimne | *slimnou | *slimnoi |
| accusative | *slimnom | *slimnou | *slimnons |
| genitive | *slimnī | *slimnous | *slimnom |
| dative | *slimnūi | *slimnobom | *slimnobos |
| instrumental | *slimnū | *slimnobim | *slimnobis |
| feminine | singular | dual | plural |
| nominative | *slimnā | *slimnai | *slimnās |
| vocative | *slimnā | *slimnai | *slimnās |
| accusative | *slimnam | *slimnai | *slimnans |
| genitive | *slimnās | *slimnous | *slimnom |
| dative | *slimnai | *slimnābom | *slimnābos |
| instrumental | *? | *slimnābim | *slimnābis |
| neuter | singular | dual | plural |
| nominative | *slimnom | *slimnou | *slimnā |
| vocative | *slimnom | *slimnou | *slimnā |
| accusative | *slimnom | *slimnou | *slimnā |
| genitive | *slimnī | *slimnous | *slimnom |
| dative | *slimnūi | *slimnobom | *slimnobos |
| instrumental | *slimnū | *slimnobim | *slimnobis |
| Declension of the comparative | |||
|---|---|---|---|
| masculine | singular | dual | plural |
| nominative | *slimnyūs | *? | *slimnyoses |
| vocative | *slimnyūs | *? | *slimnyoses |
| accusative | *slimnyosam | *? | *slimnyosans |
| genitive | *slimnisos | *? | *slimnisom |
| dative | *slimnisei | *? | *slimnisbos |
| instrumental | *slimnisī | *? | *slimnisbis |
| feminine | singular | dual | plural |
| nominative | *slimnyūs | *? | *slimnyoses |
| vocative | *slimnyūs | *? | *slimnyoses |
| accusative | *slimnyosam | *? | *slimnyosans |
| genitive | *slimnisos | *? | *slimnisom |
| dative | *slimnisei | *? | *slimnisbos |
| instrumental | *slimnisī | *? | *slimnisbis |
| neuter | singular | dual | plural |
| nominative | *slimnis | *? | *? |
| vocative | *slimnis | *? | *? |
| accusative | *slimnis | *? | *? |
| genitive | *slimnisos | *? | *slimnisom |
| dative | *slimnisei | *? | *slimnisbos |
| instrumental | *slimnisī | *? | *slimnisbis |
Reconstruction notes
Matasović reconstructs the adjective as *slimonos, seemingly due to the o in Old Irish slemon. But that vowel could have easily been epenthetic in Old Irish (see also domun < *dubnos), and he fails to explain the lack of an o between the reflexes of the *m and the *n in Brythonic.
Descendants
- Proto-Brythonic: *llɨβ̃n
- Old Irish: slemon
- Irish: sleamhain
- Scottish Gaelic: sleamhainn
- Manx: shliawin
References
- ^ Matasović, Ranko (2009) “*slimono-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Celtic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 9), Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, page 346
- ^ R. J. Thomas, G. A. Bevan, P. J. Donovan, A. Hawke et al., editors (1950–present), “llyfn”, in Geiriadur Prifysgol Cymru Online (in Welsh), University of Wales Centre for Advanced Welsh & Celtic Studies
- ^ Zair, Nicholas (2012) The reflexes of the Proto-Indo-European laryngeals in Celtic, Leiden: Brill, →ISBN, pages 141-142