Pre-Basque phonology

[Max Dashu]

Along similar lines, what's your take on Mari: has this name been
assimilated from Maria, or does it have older folk roots? The former has
seemed likely to me, but then  Andra Mari has a rather different character
than the Virgin Mary.

>The female given name <Maite> is
>the usual Basque equivalent of the Spanish name <Maria Teresa>,
>resulting from an accidental similarity in form between this name and
>the Basque word <maite>, which I would gloss as `beloved', not as
>`love'.

Max Dashu