etruscan as an anatolian language (sound laws)- g forni

Sod. Glott. Mil., 14 giugno 2010 1 Copyright G. Forni 2010

Etruscan as an Anatolian (non-Hittite) Language

Gianfranco [email protected]


Agenda

Methodology and sources Sound correspondences Grammar correspondences Lexical correspondences Genetic correspondences Conclusions Next steps


Methodology

A language L belongs to family F if most of its basic lexicon and morphemes can be derived from proto-F through regular sound laws and strict semantic correspondences


Sources Giuliano Bonfante, Larissa Bonfante - The Etruscan Language: An

Introduction, Revised Editon Manchester University Press, 2002 G. Facchetti - Appunti di morfologia etrusca - Olschki 2002 - ISBN

8822251385 G. Facchetti - L'enigma svelato della lingua etrusca - Newton Compton,

2000 Helmut Rix - Il problema del retico - Atti del Convegno della Societ

Italiana di Glottologia "Variet e continuit nella storia linguistica del Veneto" - ottobre 1996

Mallory, Adams - The Oxford Introduction to Proto-Indo-European and the Proto-Indo-European World - Oxford, 2006 - ISBN: 978-0199296682

A. Kloekhorst Etymological Dictionary of the Hittite Inherited Lexicon Brill 2008 ISBN 978-9004160927

M. de Vaan - Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the Other Italic Languages Brill 2008 ISBN 978-9004167971


Input data

Of all lexical items for which Etruscologists have proposed a gloss, 145 belong to basic lexicon

97% of such basic terms have an IE etymology

20 grammar morphemes have also been assigned a value by Etruscologists

95% of them have an IE etymology


Key sound laws from pIE to Etruscan C > C CC- > CVC- di, ti, gi > zi; g > z b- > f-; g- > h-; d- > - t > ; k, k > c, (> h?); p > p, (> h?) d > t tr > [] : /i, mn > mr


Sample grammar correspondences -al genitive < *-(o)lo- as in Lydian (siuv-ala of the god) -s genitive < *-s -i locative < *-i -i feminine < *-iha -n accusative (in pronouns) < *-m -pi towards < *h1opi -c, - and < *-ke -m and: cf. Hitt. ma and, but, Lyc. me

Melchert: One of the most famous features of the Anatolian Indo-European languages is the widespread use of an inflected adjective [] in place of the genitive case


Sample lexical correspondences

ar-, er- do, move, rise < *h3er-, *h1er- ati mother < *anti (cf. HLuw /anati/ mother) avil year < *h2ei-wo- time (Lat. aevum) cap- take < *kap- (Lat. capi) car-, cer- do < *ker- cil people, nation < *kei-uo- (Lat. culits) enas of us < *n- + gen. s far-, har- inside, enter < *per- far(a)n(a)- generate < *perh3-i- (Lat. partus)



he- here < *ge- (Lat. hi-c) ica, eca, ca this < *(h1)i-, h1e- + *ke- (Hitt. k

this) ita, eta, ta that < *(h1)i-, h1e- + *to- lupu die, go < *h1leud- go away, die, with *-ud-

> -up- as in Lat. lber < *h1leudero- lu field < *lu-to- mi I, mini, mene me < *h1m(e)n- me (accus. &

oblique), extended to nominative as in HLuw, Lyd & Lyc (but not Hitt.!)



mul(u)- offer: cf. Lyd mwnda- offerings (for the dead)', HLuw. /malwa-/ ritual offer', Lyc mle-sacrificial offer', Mil. mla-, mle- 'sacrifice, offer'

mur- dwell < *morh2- (Lat. moror) nefts nephew < *h2nep-t- (not a Latin loan: is

also found in Lemnian nao-) net- inner organs < *h1en-h1eh1tr- puia wife < *pot-niha rasna Etruscan nation < *h3rg-no- (Lat. regnum)



tam- home < *dem- / *dom-; cf. Lyc., HLuw. tama- home, building'

ar there < *tor te- put < *deh1- (Lyc., Mil. ta-) t(e)v- see: cf. Lyc. *tewe- eye, Mil. tewe- meet,

see'

tin day < *deino- tiu(r) moon, month < *dei-wo- (Luw tiwa- Sun-

god) trin say! < *t(e)r- ui here < *to- + -i locative



tur- give (as a present) < *deh3-r- (gr. dron, arm. tur)

val- see < *wel- vatie- ask < *ged- vers- fire < *wer- (Hitt. war- burn) zen-, zin- do, produce < *genh1- ziv- live, alive < *gih3-we/o- zi- show, write < *dik- show


Numerals

u(n) 1 < *to- this ? zal, zel-, es(a)l- 2 < *dwi- + -al (cf. Lat. dulis) ? ci 3 [< *tri-, trey- hu, hut 4 < *k(e)tw(o)r (> *utur with

deglutination of ur -uple) ma, mac 5 < *mehan-ke and the hand? Or else

< *penke as Lat. elementum < gr. elephant- via Etruscan? Cf. also Italian gomito elbow < cubitum?


Corrispondenze lessicali (numeri) a 6 < *seks sem 7 < *sept + -p/- (as in 8 & 9) cezp, *usf- 8 < *h3(e)kteh3 (> *kto- > *kut- + -

p/- as in 7 & 9) nur- 9 < *h1newh1mn + -p/- (as in 7 & 8) >

*numr, with *mn > *mr as in Agamemnon > Amemrun and Mmnon > Memrun)

sar(-), ar, -zar 10 < *dekmt > *dehamn > *zehamr > *zear (-mn > -mr > -r as in nur-)


Correspondences in non-basic lexicon tarun-, tarna-, etc. Tarquinia: cf. Hitt. tarh u- 'to

prevail, conquer, be powerful'; Luw Tarhunt- 'Storm-god', Lyc trqqt- /trknt-/ 'Storm-god'

etera stranger, cliens, slave < *ndero- lower; cf. HLuw. andara-, Lyc., Mil. ntre- lower; possibly influenced by *h1e-tero- (Umbrian etr- other)

maru(n) maron (a magistrate): cf. Mil. mara- law, Lyc. maraza- judge

Porsenna: cf. Hitt. parna- 'leopard-man panti dish: cf. Hitt. ipantuwa- 'libation vessel zil- govern, hold an office: cf. Hitt. alli- 'head, chief,

notable


Genetic correspondences

Recent genetic studies (Piazza et al., 2007-2010) confirm that Tuscan women, men and cows (as well as Raetian cows) display statistically meaningful resemblances with their Anatolian counterparts:


Other Etruscoid people

Lemnos is very close to Anatolia

Raetians and Etruscans were probably separated by Celtic invasions


Conclusions Herodotus was right: Etruscans are Lydians (i.e.

from Anatolia) Sound laws are regular Most basic lexicon and grammar morphemes have

an IE etymology Some interesting isoglosses (mi/mini, -al, -m, -n,

ecc.) point to an Anatolian origin (prob. non-Hittite: cf. innovations such as mi and -al)

Recent genetic data corroborate the linguistic findings


Useful co-operations for further research

With anatolists (for vertical competencies, especially on non-Hittite Anatolian languages)

With etruscologists (for their philological competencies, useful to validate future attempts at etymologically-driven interpretations of currently obscure Etruscan terms)


Acid test

Can pIE (/Anatolian) be used as the key to interpret currently obscure Etruscan terms?

If so, this would be a strong confirmation, since the theory of Etruscan as an Anatolian language will turn out to be not just descriptive, but predictive as well


Likely inverted sound laws (Etr < pIE)For initial consonants only:

These correspondences can be used to identify possible pIE roots underlying currently obscure Etruscan terms

etruscan as an anatolian language (sound laws)- g forni

Documents

sample grammar correspondences

etruscan c c cc cvc

h1opi c

basic lexicon

etruscan language

lexical items

grammar morphemes

god s genitive