Gafilhsaggws

[llama_nom]

Hails Arthur,

The least I could do...  The 'e' in my proposed 'weggs' was meant to
be a long vowel /e:/ which corresponds to ON /a:/, in this case
mutated to /æ:/.  I'm guessing the vowel was shortened (due to the
consonant cluster?) and raised (due to the nasal?).  But where each of
these changes happened, in English or Danish (cf. Da. vinge), I'm not
sure.  I notice that all your examples of i : e merge in Appalatian
have a nasal after them.  Does the same happen in other environments,
e.g. 'pit' : 'pet'?  The Gothic cognate of 'feather' would be *fiþra,
feminine o-stem.  Which would alliterate nicely, accusative: fiþros
falþanans (or dative: fiþrom falþanaim).  OHG fedarah might be Go.
*fiþrak- or *fiþrah-, depending what this suffix is.  Have you seen
any explanation for that?  According to Grimm, LG fittek is borrowed
from High German (as shown by the medial consonant).  Other words, OS
fetherhamo, OE feþerhama, ON fjaðrhamr, although Grimm says that these
"drückt mehr das ganze gefieder aus."  Go. *fiþrahama?

aLlarma_aNemone_aNomomaly
(Ack, you've set me mutating now...)



--- In gothic-l at yahoogroups.com, Arthur Jones <arthurobin2002 at ...> wrote:
>
> Hails,
>    
>   I would like to thank the Gothic List members who contributed
their condolences and their fine Gothic thoughts on the occasion of my
Mother's passing.
>    
>   Mom would have thoroughly enjoyed the discussion of nouns,
declensions, dative and accusative absolutes, gerundives, and
reconstructions that several of you have built up over the past few
days! Indeed, you have done her great honour.
>    
>   Especially, I would like to thank LLama_Nomandans, Michael Erwin,
Ualarauans, Pituxalina, and others for joining in. Imagine a wake in
an extinct language! 
>    
>   Incidentally: I notice once more that reconstructing "wings" in
Gothic served to run us by the e>i process again (weggs - wiggs -
vaegg - wing). I am gaining am impression that, perhaps, predominant
Gothic dialects such as that (or those) incorporated by Wulfila were
intentionally left a bit archaic at the time --mid fourth Century-- to
create a sense of unity, as well as the aura of respect usually shown
to tribal elders and their older speech patterns. In fact, the e>i
changes might have been considerably more advanced in the spoken
vernacular of the time. 
>    
>   In other languages, the e>i transition is anything but complete:
Take, e.g., Appalachian English, in most dialects of which "pen" and
"pin" are homophones, as are "many - minny", "men - min", etc. 
>    
>   As to "wings", would a reconstruction based on archaic forms of
the NHD (Neuhochdeutsch) "Fittich" be a possible? As LLama_Nomerabilis
has pointed out, the MFO (Most Frequently Occurring) Gothic word could
well have been a "feather" relative: hence, perhaps "fedarahs" or similar?
>    
>   Thanks again, all.
>    
>   Arthur
>    
>    
> 
> 
> [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]
>







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