Ancient Quenya Phonetics P27: initial [ɣ] before [l], [r] sometimes became a vowel
AQ. initial [ɣ] before [l], [r] sometimes became a vowel; [ɣ{rl}V₁-] > [V₁{rl}V₁-]
It seems that, after it became spirantal, an initial [ɣ] from [g] before a liquid sometimes became syllabic and became a vowel. This is distinct from its normal development, where it simply vanished. This rare development shows up only in a few, mostly archaic forms, as described in both the Outline of Phonetic Development [OP1] from the 1930s and the Outline of Phonology [OP2] from the 1950s:
In Q. dr, gr > r, gl, dl > l, but also ǝr, ǝl with ǝ redeveloping as full vowel appear, alaure beside laure, glaire [beside] laire (OP1: PE19/37).
The same result was also usual for gr, gl; but there are traces especially in AQ and in archaic forms used in poetic PQ of another development. It appears that at the stage ʒr, ʒl the ʒ sometimes became syllabic and vocalic, producing an indeterminate [a] that later became a full vowel of a quality decided by the vowel immediately following the l or r. Thus *glawarē "sheen of gold" > prim. Q glaurē, ʒlaurē > AQ, PQ laurē beside †alaurē (OP2: PE19/79).
Indications of this development can also be found in the Comparative Tables [CT] of phonetic development from the 1930s, where initial gr became ar or r, and initial gl became aly or ly (PE19/21). The second development is a bit strange and I can find no other sign of it (apparently initial gl > ly). In CT, Tolkien original wrote gl > Q[uenya] al, ly and L[indarin] al, l, the last of these matching the development in OP1 and OP2.
It seems that the syllabic spirant first became ǝ and then developed a vowel of the same character as the following vowel in the word. In addition to the AQ. alaurē example given above, other examples include:
- ✶grauk- > Q. arauko “demon” beside more common rauko (WJ/415).
- [deleted entry] ᴹ√GLINDI > ᴹQ. ilin “pale blue” (Ety/GLINDI).
[Hat tip to Lokyt for pointing out these two examples out to me.]
Conceptual Development: I can find no sign of similar syllabification of initial [ɣ] in Tolkien conception of Early Qenya in the 1910s and 1920s.
Comments
There are at least two more…
There are at least two more explicit examples: RUK > grauk- > arauko and GLIND > ilin.
BTW am I missing something, or are the results of initial g-strengthening + vocalisation indiscernable from a simple augmentation (save for cases like this arauko, where an augmented form would of course be urauko)?
In reply to There are at least two more… by Lokyt
Those are both excellent…
Those are both excellent examples and I missed both of them! I will update the entry.
And yes, I agree that the Quenya results would in many cases be indistinguishable from a vowel augment, but they could still be detected by comparison with Sindarin where the gl, gr would be preserved.
In reply to There are at least two more… by Lokyt
Edits posted above ^^
Edits posted above ^^