Original scientific paper

Germanic loanwords in Proto-Slavic: questions of relative chronology

Ranko Matasović ; Filozofski fakultet Sveučilišta u Zagrebu, Zagreb

Abstract

It is argued that the study of Germanic loanwords can provide us with the relative chronology of certain sound changes in Proto-Slavic. Since the Germanic neuters become masculines in Proto-Slavic, it is argued that the majority of them was borrowed before barytone neutra (e.g. PIE *dhwórom 'door') became masculines (OCS dvorъ) by virtue of Illič-Svityč's rule. It is also argued that most Germanic loanwords entered Proto-Slavic before the operation of Dybo's law, by which stress was shifted from non-acute initial syllable to the following syllable. This is a consequence of the fact that Proto-Germanic and Gothic had word-initial stress, whereas almost all Germanic loanwords with the short initial syllable were oxytona in Proto-Slavic.

Keywords

comparative accentology; Slavonic languages; Proto-Slavic; Indo-European; Germanic

Hrčak ID:

165460

URI

https://hrcak.srce.hr/165460

Publication date:

18.6.2001.

Article data in other languages: croatian

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