Revue celtique - National Library of Scotland

BIBLIOGRAPHIE.
Verlust und Auftreten der P in den celtischen Sprachen, von
E. WlNDlSCH.
A récent number of the Beitr. zur vergl. Sprachforschung (VIII, 1-48)
contains a paper, by Professer Windisch of Heidelberg, which is cer-
tainly, next to Ebel's mémorable essay on Declension (Beitr., I, 155),
the most important of the shorter contributions that hâve yet been made
to Ceitic philology. It deals with the loss and the upgrowth of P in Irish
and Welsh. I cannot agrée in W.'s theory as to the total loss of indo-
germanic P in thèse languages : he deals only with one of the cases in
which p has grown up in neo-Celtic; and his paper is disfigured by
some errors in détail. But on the whole it is as complète and sound
in substance as it is clear in expression and arrangement.
The paper is divided into three parts. In the first Windisch déclares
that not a single Irish or British word has hitherto been shewn to hâve
preserved indo-germanic P « als solches. » Hitherto, perhaps, no one
ever thought it necessary to do so. If by 'indo-germanic P' he means a
simple p, a p standing alone, uncombined with itself or any other con-
sonant, he is probably rightas to Irish, but he is clearly wrong as to the
British languages. Compare :
W. pall 'defectus' with Ohg. fal gen. falles, Lith. pùlti ' to fall '.
Pelechi (gl. clavae) with Gr. •TréXsy./.ov, Skr. paraçu.
Pell 'procul' 'remotus' with TCîpaîoç, Skr. para.
Pêr 'dulcis' with Lai. pirum.
Perchu 'venerari', perclien 'possessor', with Lith. perku 'kaufe', prékis
'preis'.
Poues (gl. quies), with Trauw, tzchùo^koli. Ebel, G. C.^ 1053.
Prid 'carus' with Skr., prî, prînami, Zend/n, Goth. frijôn.
Pwyo 'ferire' with Tcat'w, Lat. pavio.
Corn, pals, Br. paot 'beaucoup', 'plusieurs', Gaelic pailt, with the root
PAR, Curtius Grundz., n" 366.
Windisch then cites some 30 Ceitic words in which a p has clearly
been lost. As to thèse I remark as follows :