Indian Antiquary Vol 62

Author(s): Richard Carnac Temple, Charles E A W Oldham, S Krishnaswami Aiyangar, Devadatta Ramkrishna Bhandarka
Publisher: Swati Publications

Page 308

$$ 252-254]
ON THE MODERN INDO-ARYAN VERNACULARS
(APRIL, 1933
has to be referred to the Skr. vinganah, so also in certain compound numerals formed with Skr. panica-, Pr. panna., five, and Skr. sapta-, Pr. sátta-, seven, the first a becomes ai in H.P. NB.Bg.O. and A. as in H. paštis, thirty-five, saitis, thirty-seven. This can hardly be due to epenthesis, as we have the same change in H. paitális, forty-five, and saitális, forty-seven. The reason of the change of a to ai in these cases is unknown to me.
202. In Dardic, ai, so far as its derivation can be traced, is due to epenthesis, as in My.ainch, Kš. ach', an eye, or to crasis, as in Bš. ai, is, and (?) the Dardic termination stai, stē, etc. (Ps.L. 27 ff.).
In Kš. ai is interchangeable with o, as in aith, or oth, eight (Av. ašta., Skr. asta-). The origin of the i in this word is obscure. Interesting, as compared with H. paitis, pastālis, quoted in $ 251, are Kš. påtsateh, thirty-five, and patsalājih, forty-five, pronounced pötsao in both cases. In püntsh, twenty-fiv, the ai or ö has become il owing to the following ü-mätni (§ 236). So Kš, rain, or rön, a woman's husband (? ramanaka-, through *rabanaka-, *rayanaya.) has its sg. nom. rön (written and pronounced rün"), ag. rön (wr, and pr. rin), abl. raini or röni, and the base kait- or köt-, how much ?, has its sg. nom. kaitu (written and pronounced kūts), its pl. nom. kaiti (wr. and pr. küt), and its fem. sg. nom. kaits* (wr, and pr. klits) (see $$ 126, 232, 236).
IAV. al. 253. This diphthong occurs only in Tss. See $ 110.
IAV. o. 254. IAV. 0. This vowel, pronounced like the first o in promote,' and not like the o of hot,' is most often a shortening of 7. But it also has other derivations. It is said not to occur in Assamese (8 113) or in Gujarāti (LSI. IX, ii, 329), but instances are given in G.Ph., such as kothár, a granary (p. 352), govál, a herdsman, sohag, good fortune (p. 355). In such cases it is due to pre-accentual shortening of 7. It has not been noted by Marathi gram. marians. M. (Kon) when written in the Kanarese character possesses signs for both o and 0. But the latter is really o, and has not the sound of o dealt with in this section.
o<a, 109. It is well known that in Bengali a is generally pronounced as o, but in some few words, especially when followed by i, it is pronounced as o. Thus haitē, to be, pr. hoitē; balitē, to say, pr. bolile (LSI. V, i, 30). So also in most nonosyllables, such as ban, pr. bon or bön, a forest, man, pr. mon or mon, mind. In WBg. this change is extended to all words, and the vowel o is everywhere substituted for ő as the sound of a. See LSI. V, i, 70, where the letter is written 7, as a transliteration of Bengali writing, but the sound is that of o, not of 7. It may be added that in EBg. a is pronounced as å, not o or o (8205). But o more frequently represents an earlier w, than a by itself; or perhaps it would be more correct to say that oand a both represent a epenthetically affected by a following u. Cf. for example Ap. mahu, my, as compared with the very common Hindi, Eastern Hindi, and Bihari, mohi or mwahi, me. In this respect the condition of affairs regarding o and wa (and also o and wi) is much the same as that regarding e and yo, and è and yu (S$ 239, 245). In EH. and the eastern dialects of H. o and now are interahangeable, as in mohi or mucahi, in tohi or traki, thee, and in wohi or wahi, him (LSI. VI, 14). East of EH, we have in B. only mohi, but as we co West and South into Bundelkhand, mohi tends to disappear and moahs tends to be the established form, though mohi also occurs (Cf. LSI. IX, i, 478).
In Eastern Pahāļi o and wa are similarly interchangeable, as in hos or hatas, thou art (LSI. IX, iv, 22). Here the original form of the root was hav. In Central Pahari we shall see that o is frequently derived from 7, and this o again becomes ua in dialects. Thus CPh. (Km.) bojo, a load, dial. buaj; ghoro, a horse, diai, ghway. Also in standard Km. itself, when o is followed by a it becomes wd. Thus, roco, a loaf, pl. rwdfa.
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