Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/-lós

*(Ø)-lós^[1][2][3]

1. Forms agent nouns from verbal roots.
2. Forms diminutive nouns from noun stems.
3. Forms adjectives with the sense “pertaining to …” (alternative form of *-rós)

   Synonyms: *-nós, *-rós, *-yós

• *-l̥
• *-ōl
• *-rós

• *-e-lós (also *-o-lós?)
  • Proto-Balto-Slavic: *-elas, *-alas
    • Lithuanian: *-alas
    • Proto-Slavic: *-ъlъ,^{[note 1]} *-ьlъ^{[note 2]} (see there for further descendants)
  • Proto-Celtic: *-elos
  • Proto-Germanic: *-ilaz^{[note 2]} (see there for further descendants)
  • Proto-Hellenic: *-elós
    • Ancient Greek: -ηλος (-ēlos), ⇒? -ήλας (-ḗlas)
  • Proto-Italic: *-elos, *-olos
    • Faliscan: -𐌄𐌋𐌏𐌔 (-elos)
    • Latin: -ulus,^{[note 1]} ⇒? -ilis^{[note 2]} (i-stem) (see there for further descendants)

• *-eh₁-lós
  • Proto-Balto-Slavic: *-ēˀlas
    • Proto-Slavic: *-ělъ
  • >? Proto-Hellenic: *-ēlos
    • >? Ancient Greek: -ηλος (-ēlos), ⇒? -ήλας (-ḗlas)
  • Proto-Italic: *-ēlos
    • ⇒ Latin: -ēla f

• *-eh₂-lós
  • Proto-Balto-Slavic: *-āˀlas
    • Proto-Slavic: *-alъ
  • Proto-Celtic: *-ālos (see there for further descendants)
  • >? Proto-Hellenic: *-ālos
    • >? Ancient Greek: -ηλος (-ēlos), ⇒? -ήλας (-ḗlas)

• ⇒? *-i-los (or perhaps originally thematicized from an old suffix *-yl̥)
  • ⇒ *h₂eḱilo-
  • Proto-Armenian: *-ilos
    • Old Armenian: -իլ (-il), -իղ (-ił)
  • >? Proto-Balto-Slavic: *-ilás
    • >? Proto-Slavic: *-ьlъ^{[note 2]} (see there for further descendants)

• ⇒? *-u-los^{[note 3]}
  • Proto-Albanian: *-ula
    • Albanian: -ull
  • >? Proto-Germanic: *-ulaz (see there for further descendants)
  • >? Proto-Indo-Iranian: *-ulás, *-urás
    • Proto-Iranian: *-ulah, *-urah (diminutive suffix)
      • ⇒ Proto-Iranian: *-urahakah
      • Kurdish:

        Central Kurdish: ـوول (-ûl)

        Northern Kurdish: -ûl

      • Classical Persian: ـوله (-ûla)

        Iranian Persian: ـوله (ûle)

• Proto-Balto-Slavic: *-lás, *-las
  • Proto-Slavic: *-lъ (see there for further descendants)
• Proto-Celtic: *-los
• Proto-Germanic: *-laz
• Proto-Hellenic: *-lós, *-los
  • Ancient Greek: -λός (-lós), -λος (-los)
• Proto-Indo-Iranian: *-lás, *-las, *-rás, *-ras
  • Proto-Indo-Aryan: *-lás, *-las, *-rás, *-ras
    • Sanskrit: -ल (-la), -र (-ra)
  • Proto-Iranian: *láh, *-lah, *-ráh, *-rah
• Proto-Italic: *-los
  • Latin: -lus
• Proto-Tocharian: *-le

Notes

The variety of derived forms is usually explained as absorption of the stems from different noun types (o-, eh₂-, i- and u-stems) into the suffix, or as influence from verbal suffixes. Germanic *-a- ~ *-i- ~ *-u- alternation may simply result from a type of umlaut or varying reflexes of a schwa.