PIE words for sexual organs

[George Hinge]

Rick Mc Callister suggested
> How 'bout a form ancestral to English "balls", Gaelic palla [sp?],
>perhaps *bhel-; or are these later developments? Gaelic palla "penis" is
>obviously borrowed (or expressively mutated) but the meaning is different
>from English
> I believe Theo Vennemann mentioned similar forms in Afroasiatic

The English 'ball' is traditionally derived from the IE root *bhel- "swell",
cf. Pokorny 120-2, i.e.  *bhol-n-; a deminutive of 'ball' (which in the most
Germanic languages has the polite meaning only) is to be found in Old
English 'bealluc' "testicle". Pokorny also cites the Old High German
'arsbelli' "buttocks" (with umlaut).

The zero grade, *bhl-no-, is represented by Greek 'phallo/s' (if not from
*bhl-ios), Phrygian 'ba(m)balon', 'ballion',  Old Irish 'ball' "limb,
member", and English 'bull', which has kept in some Germanic Dialects a more
explicit sexual denotation: Pokorny cites Hessisch 'bulle' "vulva", and I
can add from my own language, Danish, the colloquial 'bolle' "have
intercourse with".

The e grade, *bhel-no- is represented (so Pokorny) by Middle High German
'(ars)bille', Dutch 'bil' "buttocks" and Hessisch 'bille' "penis".
It is interesting how the same root can generate different meanings such as
"penis" and "testicle" on the one hand and "vulva" and "podex" on the other.
I don't know if the Gaelic <palla> can be derived from OI 'ball'.

George Hinge
The Department of Greek and Latin
The University of Aarhus, Denmark
oldgh at hum.au.dk