Reconstruction:Proto-Indo-European/gʰe

This Proto-Indo-European entry contains reconstructed terms and roots. As such, the term(s) in this entry are not directly attested, but are hypothesized to have existed based on comparative evidence.

Proto-Indo-European

Particle

*g⁽ʰ⁾e or *g⁽ʰ⁾o or *g⁽ʰ⁾i

Postpositional intensifying particle: indeed, at any rate, in fact

Usage notes

The particle was indeclinable in Proto-Indo-European. Some daughter languages, particularly Italic, added pronominal inflection later, as also occurred with the particles *de, *h₂ew, and *ḱe. This particle could either be postposed to the word it intensified (e.g. *Hyód-gʰe wóyde “that which he knows”) or that it otherwise modified (e.g. *né-gʰí “not at all, not indeed”), or it could begin discourse in which it is placed before everything else (e.g. *gʰí … “of course, …”). The presence or lack of aspiration as well as the ablaut grade appear to have been completely arbitrary, and may have been subject to dialectal variation.

Reconstruction notes

Dunkel splits the material in unaspirated^[1] and aspirated^[2] forms, though indicating that the Baltic particles can derive from both. See also *ǵʰí.

Derived terms

*gʰo-h₁^[2]
- Proto-Indo-Iranian:
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan:
    - Sanskrit: घा (ghā)
- Proto-Italic:
  - Latin: *hō- (in hōc (“hither”) and hōrsum)
*h₂éw ge (see there for further descendants)
*né g(ʰ)o, *né g(ʰ)i (“not at all”, combined with *né) (compare *neǵʰí)
- Proto-Balto-Slavic: *negi
  - Latvian: nedz (“neither, nor”)
  - Lithuanian: nègi (“not at all”)
  - Old Prussian: neggi
- Proto-Germanic:
  - Old Saxon: nec (“neither”)
- Proto-Indo-Iranian:
  - Proto-Indo-Aryan:
    - Sanskrit: न घ (ná gha)

Descendants

Proto-Balto-Slavic: *ge (< *g(ʰ)e)
- Proto-Slavic: *že (see there for further descendants)
Proto-Balto-Slavic: *go (enclitic emphatic particle) (< *g(ʰ)o)
- Old Lithuanian: -ga
- Proto-Slavic: *-go (as in *jego, gen.sg. of *jь)
Proto-Germanic: *-k
- Gothic: -𐌺 (-k)
Proto-Hellenic: *ge
- Ancient Greek: γε (ge, “at least, at any rate, only; in fact”)
Proto-Indo-Iranian: *ǰʰa (< *gʰe), *gʰa (< *gʰo)
- Proto-Indo-Aryan: *źʰa, *gʰa
  - Sanskrit: ह (ha), घ (gha) (see there for further descendants)
Proto-Italic: *ho^[3] (see there for further descendants)
>? Proto-Tocharian: (< *g(ʰ)o)
- Tocharian B: ka (“just, scarcely”)

References

^ Dunkel, George E. (2014), “-gó 'gerade, eben; wenigstens'”, in Lexikon der indogermanischen Partikeln und Pronominalstämme [Lexicon of Indo-European Particles and Pronominal Stems] (in German), volume 2: Lexikon, Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter, →ISBN, pages 279-283
↑ ^2.0 ^2.1 Dunkel, George E. (2014), “*-gʰo 'wahrlich, in der Tat'”, in Lexikon der indogermanischen Partikeln und Pronominalstämme [Lexicon of Indo-European Particles and Pronominal Stems] (in German), volume 2: Lexikon, Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter, →ISBN, pages 283-288
^ De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “hic, haec, hoc”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 284: “PIt. *χo, *χa(-ī), *χod”

[LIPP_go-1] Dunkel, George E. (2014), “-gó 'gerade, eben; wenigstens'”, in Lexikon der indogermanischen Partikeln und Pronominalstämme [Lexicon of Indo-European Particles and Pronominal Stems] (in German), volume 2: Lexikon, Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter, →ISBN, pages 279-283

[LIPP_gho-2] 2.0 ^2.1 Dunkel, George E. (2014), “*-gʰo 'wahrlich, in der Tat'”, in Lexikon der indogermanischen Partikeln und Pronominalstämme [Lexicon of Indo-European Particles and Pronominal Stems] (in German), volume 2: Lexikon, Heidelberg: Universitätsverlag Winter, →ISBN, pages 283-288

[3] De Vaan, Michiel (2008), “hic, haec, hoc”, in Etymological Dictionary of Latin and the other Italic Languages (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 7), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 284: “PIt. *χo, *χa(-ī), *χod”

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