Blair Collection > Celtic studies

IG Introduction.
become d: id, illud, quid, etc. In the Gothic it occurs in tlic
pi'onouns is, si, ita; English he, she, it; Old Irish e, si, ed; Gothic
sa, so, thata, Anglo-Saxon se, seo, ihiit =:Greek 6, »j, to for tot =
Sanskrit tat. In the O. H. German it becomes z: Gothic third
person of the pronoun masc. is, neuter ita = 0. H. German masc.
{r sometimes er, neuter iz, sometimes ez. In the Gothic blindata,
godata, O .'K.Gcxm.-diW plintaz, guotaz, M.H. German hlindez, guo-
tez, the endmg ata, as above observed, is a suffixed pronoim,
and cannot consequently be considered as a proof that t was the
sign of the neuter, in other than the pronominal declension. In
many cases the neutral t has been replaced by 7n or n, which,
however, belonged originally to the accusative singular.
The grammatical signs or endings cannot always be directly
affixed to stems ; this is especially the case with those beginning
with a consonant, and where the stem ends consonantally. If
in such cases the ending were affixed directly, the final stem-
consonant would be rendered liable to change, and the mo-
dification may proceed so far as to render the stem unrecogni-
zable. Therefore a vowel is introduced between the stem and
the ending, which originally had a mere phonetic function,
and possessed no etymological or grammatical signification.
The vowel by itself is always short, and consesequently very
changeable. It is often an extremely difficult problem to dis-
tinguish between the vowel thus added and a derivational
vowel, and therefore between a derivational and stem-form. It
is also an important one : for this vowel, though originally having
no stem-forming or derivational character, has gradually come
to be looked upon as an integral part of the stem -ending,
and has even penetrated where it was not absolutely required.'^
It will be useful to call this stem-forming vowel in nominal
stems the Declension Voioel, in order to distinguish it fi'om a
second vowel which is sometimes used as a mere copulative in
the oblique cases, and which is never an integral part of the stem-
ending. A similar stem-forming vowel is found in verbal stems.
Forms which must be looked iipon as trne stems are, however,
" In Finnish nearly all the stems arc two-syllabled. The first or root syllable
is accentuated, the second has a short vowel auslaut. This short vowel, unlike
the root-vowel, which is invariable, sounds differently according as the stem is
pronominal or verbal. It is a mere rliy thmical addition to the root which some-
times acquires the signification of a derivational suffix, and has consequently a
striking analogy to the declension vowel of tlio Indo-European languages, and
makes Finnish stems appear very much like those in tlie Gotliic, wliich will be
described furtlier on as vocalic middle forms. The affixation of tliis vowel is
the only mode of stem-formation in tlic Finnish; in Hungarian it has been to a
great extent obliterated. It would be extremely interesting to trace this rhyth-
mical stem-forming vowel through tlie whole Finno-Tatarian Family. Here
however, it would be out of place to dwell furtlier on the analog.v.