(4.) Of imperatives onlyputa, used adverbially (2438,c),ave,have(805; Quint. i, 6, 21; but Martial scanshavē) as a salutation andcave, used as an auxiliary (1711), show the short final vowel in classical Latin. Elsewhere the long vowel has been restored, asamā,monē(845).(5.) According to this rulecalēfaciō,malēdīcōchanged tocalefaciō,maledīcō.131.A long final vowel is shortened when an enclitic is added to the word: assiquidemfromsī;quoquefromquō.132.A long vowel is regularly shortened, in the classical period, before final-tand-mand, in words of more than one syllable, also before finalrandl.Thus,soror,sister, for Plautus’ssorōr, from the stemsorōr-(487);ūtar,I may use, for Plautus’sūtār(cf.ūtāris);bacchanalfor Plautus’sbacchanāl;animal,exemplarfrom the stemsanimāl-(530) andexemplār-(537); but the long vowel is retained in the monosyllablesfūr,thief,sōl,sun;pōnēbat,he placed, for Plautus’spōnēbāt(cf.pōnēbās);iūbet,he commanded, for Plautus’siūbēt;eram,I was, buterās;rēxerim,I may have ruled, butrēxerīs(877);-umin the genitive plural of-o-stems is for-ūm(462);mēnsam,table, for*mēnsāmfrom the stemmensā-;rem, fromrē-(rēs),spemfromspē-(spēs).TRANSFER OF QUANTITY.133.(1.) In a few cases the length of the vowel has been transferred to the following consonant, the length of which is then indicated by doubling it (81): as,litteraforlītera,LEITERAS;IuppiterforIūpiter;parricīdaforpāri-cīda,murder of a member of the same clan(*pāro-,member of a clan, Doricπᾶός,a relative);cuppaforcūpa,barrel. The legal formulasī pāret,if it appear, was vulgarly pronouncedsī parret(Festus).(2.) Since the doubled unsyllabici(i̭) between vowels (23;166, 9;153, 2) is commonly written single, thevowelpreceding it is often erroneously marked long: as,āiōwrongly foraiō,i.e.ai̭i̭ō,I say;māiorwrongly formaior,i.e.mai̭i̭or,greater;pēiorwrongly forpeior,i.e.pei̭i̭or,worse;ēius,of him,cūius,of whom,hūius,of him, all wrongly foreius,cuius,huiusi.e.ei̭i̭us,cui̭i̭us,huii̭us(153, 2). In all these words the firstsyllablewas long but not the vowel.VARIATIONS OF QUANTITY.134.(1.) In some foreign proper names and in a very few Latin words the quantity of a vowel varied. Vergil hasSȳchaeusandSychaeuswithin six verses; alsoĀsiaandAsia,LavīniumandLāvīnius; so alsoglōmus(Lucr.),glomus(Hor.);cōturnīx(Plaut., Lucr.),coturnīx(Ov.).(2.) Sometimes such variations in vowel quantity are only apparent: thus, the occasional long final-ēof the active infinitive (darē,prōmerē) has probably a different origin from the usual-ĕ. For metrical lengthening, see2505.QUANTITATIVE VOWEL GRADATION.135.The same stem often shows a long vowel in some of its forms and a short vowel in others. In most cases these variations of quantity were not developed on Latin soil but inherited from a much earlier period. Such old inherited differences in vowel quantity are calledquantitative vowel gradation.(1.) Instances of this areprōfor*prōd(149; cf.prōdesse) andpro-(Greekπρό);nēandne-innescius; the couplesregō,I rule, andrēxī;vehō,I draw,vēxī;veniō,I come,vēnī, where the long vowel is characteristic of the perfect stem (862);vocō,I call, andvōx,voice;regō,I rule, andrēx,ruler;legō,I read, andlēx,bill;sedeō,I sit, andsēdēs,seat;fidēs,confidence, andfīdō,I trust;dux(cf.ducis),leader, anddūcō,I lead, where verb and noun are differentiated by the quantity of the root vowel; and many others.(2.) Sometimes the reduction of the vowel in certain forms amounts to complete loss, as in the adverbial ending-is-inmagis(346,363) compared with the comparative suffix-ios,-iōs(Nom.-ior, Genit.-iōris); in the oblique cases of the stemcarōn-(nomin. sg.carō,497), where the suffix becomes-n-(545), genitivecar-n-is; in the suffix-ter, which becomes-tr-in all cases but the nom. sg. (pater,patris, etc.,470,487); in the feminine-tr-ī-c-to the suffix-tor-; but the nom. sing.Caecīlis(465) forCaecīliosis probably due to syncope.QUALITATIVE VOWEL CHANGES.136.(1.)ibefore anrwhich goes back to an earlier voiceds(154) was changed toe: as,cineris,of ashes, for*cinisis, from the stemcinis(491);Faleriī, for*Falisiī, cf.Falis-cus; (formed likeEtrūria, for*Etrūsia, cf.Etrūs-cī).(2.) In the nominative singular of compounds likeiūdex,judge(fromiūsanddīcere),comes,companion(fromcom,with, andīre,go), theiof the second member of the compounds is changed toe(470) after the analogy of words likeartifex,artisan, etc. (107,d).137.ebefore-gn-becamei: as,īlignus, from the stemīlec-(cf.īlex).138.ebefore the guttural nasal (62) followed by a guttural mute was changed toi: as,septingentī, fromseptem;singulī, from the stemsem-insemel(for the assimilation ofmsee164, 3);obtingō(925),I attain, for*óbtengō(104,c) from*ob-tangō(104,e).139.A similar change took place in the group-enl-which became first-inl-and then-ill-: as,*signilum, diminutive ofsīgnum(forī, see122,c), first changed by syncope (111) from*signilumto*sign̥lum, then to*sigenlum(172, 3), then to*siginlum, and finally tosigillum.140.obeforencbecameu: as,homunculus,manikinfor*homonculus, from the stemhomon-(485);nūncupāre,name, for*nōn-cupāre(nōn-fornōm-(164, 3) = syncopatednōmen);hunc,him, for*honc, fromhom-ce(662).141.obeforelfollowed by any consonant savelwas changed tou: as,cultus,tilled, for*coltus, fromcolere;multa,fine, for old Latinmolta. Butobeforellis retained: as,collis,hill.142.ebefore gutturall(60) was changed too: as,solvō,I undo, from*seluō(se-, as inse-cordia,luō= Greekλύω);culmen,top, for*celmen, from*cellōinex-cellō;volō,I wish, for*velō; buteis preserved before dentall(60): as invelle,velim(773). Beforelfollowed by any consonant savelthisochanges tou(141): as,vult.143.In a number of words, notably invoster,your,vorsus,turned,vortex,eddy, andvotāre,forbid, the forms withowere replaced, about the second centuryB.C.by forms withe: as,vester,versus,vertex,vetāre(Quint. 1, 7, 25).ASSIMILATION.144.In a few cases a vowel is influenced by the vowel of a neighbouring syllable: as,nisi,unless, for*nesi;iīs, foreīs,to them(671,674);diī,diīs,gods, fordeī,deīs(450);nihil,nothing, for*nehil;homō,man, for*hemō(cf.nēmō, fromne-hemō,118); see also104,d;105,i.QUALITATIVE VOWEL GRADATION.145.The same stem often shows different vowels in different forms. In most of these cases this difference was inherited from a very early period and continued in the Latin. Such old inherited variation of the quality of the stem-vowel is calledqualitative vowel gradation. The qualitative variations may be accompanied by quantitative changes (135).Often the verb and the noun are thus distinguished by different vowels: as,tegō,I cover, andtoga,a garment,toga;precor,I beg, andprocus,suitor, cf. Englishto singanda song,to bind, anda bond. The different tenses of some verbs show a like gradation: as,capiō,I take,cēpī;faciō,I make,fēcī, cf. EnglishI sing,I sang;I bring,I brought. The same occurs in derivation: asdoceō,I teach, by the side ofdecet;noceō,I harm, by the side ofnex(nec-s). The two vowels which occur most frequently in such gradation areeando: as in stems in-o-,domine,dominus(fordominos); as variable vowel (824);genos(genus,107,c) in the nom. sg. by the side of*genes-in the oblique cases (gen.generisfor*genesis,154);honōsby the side ofhones-inhones-tus;modus,measure, for*modos(originally a neuter-s-stem likegenus(487,491), but transferred later to the-o-declension), by the side ofmodes-inmodes-tus,seemly. See187.(B.) CONSONANT CHANGE.146.In a number of words which belong more or less clearly to the stem of the pronounquo-(681),cu-(157), the initialchas disappeared beforeu: as,uter,which of the two,ubĭ,where,unde,whence(711). For the conjunctionut,utī,that, connection with this pronominal stem is much more doubtful. Thec-appears in the compounds withsīandnē̆: as,sī-cubī(cf.sī-quidem,sī-quandō),sī-cunde,nē-cubi,ne-cunde,ne-cuter.147.dvaries in a few words withl: as old Latindacruma,tear, for laterlacrima;dingua,tongue, for laterlingua;odor,smell, by the side ofoleō,I smell.148.Very rarely, before labials, finaldof the prepositionadvaries withr: as, old Latinarfuērunt,they were present, for lateradfuērunt(2257);arvorsum,against, foradvorsum. The only instances of this in classical Latin arearbiter,umpire, andarcēssō(970),I summon, which showsrbefore a guttural.149.(1.) Final d after a long vowel disappeared in classical Latin: thus, in the ablative singular of-ā-and-o-stems (426), and in the ablative-accusative formsmēd,tēd,sēd(648). The prepositionsprōandsē(1417) originally ended in-dwhich is still seen inprōdesse,be of advantage,prōd-īre,go forth;sēd-itiō,a going-apart,sedition. According to the grammarians, the negativehaudpreserved itsdbefore vowels, but lost it before consonants (1450).(2.) Late inscriptions confuse final-dand-t: asFECID(729),ALIVTforaliud. But in very old Latin-din the third person singular seems to be the remnant of a secondary ending (cf. the Greek distinction of primary-ταιand secondary-το).150.In a number of wordsfvaries dialectically withh. In some of thesefappears to have been original, in othersh: as, old Latinfordeum,barley, for classicalhordeum; old Latinhaba,bean, for classicalfaba. The wordfīlum,thread, appears as*hīluminnihil,nothing, for*ne-hīlum.151.hbeing a weak sound (58) was often lost between two like vowels, especially in rapid utterance: as,nīl,nothing,prēndere,take,vēmēns,rapid, by the side ofnihil,prehendere,vehemēns; and alwaysnēmō,nobody, for*ne-hemō,no man.152.In some wordshbetween two vowels is not original, but goes back to a guttural aspirategh. Before consonants this guttural appears: as,vehō,I draw,vectus(953) from a stemvegh-,trahō,I drag,tractus(953) from a stemtragh-.153.(1.)vnot infrequently disappeared between two like vowels: as,dītior,richer, fordīvitior;sīs(Cic.O.154), forsī vīs(774);lātrīna, forlavatrīna;fīnīsse, forfīnīvisse;dēlēram, fordēlēveram; and later also in perfect forms in which the preceding and following vowel differed: as,amāsse, foramāvisse. The abbreviated forms of the perfects in-vī(890) were common in Cicero’s (O.157) and Quintilian’s (1, 6, 17) time.valso disappeared beforeoindeorsum,seorsum.(2.) Old and original unsyllabici(82;83) disappeared everywhere between vowels. Wherever unsyllabiciappears between vowels it represents doublei̭i̭, and is the result of the assimilation ofgtoi̭(166, 9), ordtoi̭(166, 9), or of the combination of twoi̭’s: as inei-i̭us,quoi̭-i̭us(eius,quoius=cuius,688). See23;166, 9. In all these cases the firsti̭joined to the preceding vowel (83) formed with it a diphthong, and the syllable is thus long (133, 2).(3.) The combinations of unsyllabic (83)ṷwith the voweluand of unsyllabici̭with the voweliwere avoided in classical Latin; see52.(4.) In composition, unsyllabic (82)i̭after a consonant became syllabic inquoniam,since, forquomi̭am(164, 5), andetiam,also, foreti̭am(both compounds withiam).154.In early Latinsbetween two vowels was voiced (75), and in the fourth centuryB.C.this voicedschanged intor. According to Cicero (Fam.9, 21, 2) L. Papīrius Crassus, consul in 336B.C., changed his family namePapīsiustoPapīrius. Old inscriptions show frequentlysforr: as,ASA,altar,AVSELII. This change of intervocalicstorplays an important part in declension, conjugation, and derivation: as,Nominativeiūs,right, genitiveiūris;spērō,I hope, derived fromspēs;nefārius,wicked, fromnefās;gerō,I carry, from a stemges-which appears inges-sī,ges-tus(953);erō,I shall be, from the stemes-inesse; the subjunctive ending-semines-semappears as-remafter vowels: as,stārem; the infinitive ending (894,895)-seines-seappears as-reafter vowels: as,legere, for*legese,to read,stāre, for*stāse,to stand. Where all oblique cases show-r-and only the nominative singular-s, the latter is sometimes changed to-rby analogy: as,arbor,tree,honor,honour, for originalarbōs,honōs, by analogy to the oblique casesarboris,arborī,honōris,honōrī, etc. (487,488). The final-sof the prefixdis-follows this rule: as,dir-imō,I take apart, for*dis-emō; but an initials-of the second member of a compound remains unchanged: as,dē-sinō,I stop.155.Wherever intervocalicsis found in classical Latin it is not original, but the result (a.) of earlier-ns-: as,formōsus,handsome, forformōnsus(63); (b.) of earlier-ss-(170, 7): as,ūsusfor*ūssus,use(159);causa,thing, forcaussa(Quint. 1, 7, 20); or (c.) it occurs in borrowed words likeasinus,ass. (d.) There are a few words in which anrin a neighbouring syllable seems to have prevented the change: asmiser,miserable(173).156.Before theodescribed in142quchanged toc: as,incola,inhabitant, for*inquola, from*inquela; the stemquel-appears inin-quil-īnus,lodger.157.Asvbeforeu(107,c), soquwas not tolerated beforeu, but changed toc.Hence when, about the beginning of our era, theoofquom,when,sequontur,they followed, changed tou(107,c), they becamecum,secuntur; thusequosbutecus,horse(452);reliquombutRELICVM,the rest;loquor,I speak, butlocūtus(978). Much later, in the second century of our era, the grammarians restored thequbeforeuby analogy to those forms in the paradigm in whichqucame before other vowels: as,sequunturforsecunturby analogy tosequor,sequeris,sequitur,sequimur,sequimini, etc.;equus,equum, forecus,ecum, by analogy toequī,equō,eque,equōrum,equīs,equōs.158.qubefore consonants or when final changed toc: as,relictusfrom the stemliqu-,leave(present,linquō,938);ac,and, for*atc, by apocope fromatque;nec,nor, by apocope fromneque. See also*torctus(170, 3),quīnctus(170, 4).159.When in the process of early word formation atwas followed by anothert, the combinationtt, unless followed byr, changed toss: as,obsessus,besieged,sat upon, for*obsettus, from*obsed-tus(cf.sedeō). After long vowels, nasals, and liquids this doublesswas simplified tos(170, 7): as,ūsusfrom*ūt-tus,used(cf.ūtor);scānsus,climbed, from*scant-tusfor*scandtus(cf.scandō).In this way arose a suffix-sus(906,912) for the past participle of verbs ending in a dental, and this spread to other verbs (912): asmānsus,stayed, frommaneō(1000),pulsus,pushed, frompellō(932). The regular participles of these two verbs still appear in the derivative verbsmantāreandpultāre, which presuppose the past participles*mantusand*pultus(371). If the doublettwas followed byrit changed tost: as,assestrīxfrom*assettrīx, while*assettorchanged toassessor.160.But wherever the combinationttarose in historical times it remained unchanged: as,attineō;cette, syncopated forcé-d(i)te, i.e. the particlece(93, 3) which is here proclitic, and the imperativedate,give.161.Initialdv(dṷ) changed tob, unless thev(ṷ) was converted into the corresponding vowel: as,bis,twice, for*dṷis(cf.duo);bidēnsfor*dṷidens, by the side of old Latinduidēnswith vocalicu;bonus,good, fordṷonus, by the side of trisyllabicduonus;bellum,war, for*dṷellum, by the side ofduellumwith vocalicu;bēs,two thirds, for*dṷēs(2427). Cicero (O.153) notes that the change ofduellumtobellumaffected even the proper nameDuellius(name of the admiral who won the naval victory over the Carthaginians in 260B.C.) which was changed toBellius. Plautus always scansdṷellumdisyllabic with synizesis (2503).CHANGES OF CONSONANT GROUPS.162.Many groups of consonants undergo changes in order to facilitate their pronunciation in rapid speech. These changes involve (a.) Assimilation of consonants; (b.) the development of consonantal glides; (c.) the loss of one member of the group; and (d.) the development of a vowel between the consonants.ASSIMILATION.163.Of two successive consonants belonging to different syllables (175), the first is, as a rule, assimilated to the second (regressive assimilation), rarely the second to the first (progressive assimilation). A consonant may be assimilated, either entirely or partially, to another consonant.Assimilation is very common in prepositions prefixed to a verb.164.Partial assimilation. (1.) A voiced mute before an unvoiced consonant became unvoiced: as,rēx,king, for*rēgs(cf.rēgis);rēxī,I guided, for*rēgsī(cf.regō);rēctus,guided, for*rēgtus;scrīpsī,I wrote, for*scrībsī(cf.scribō);scrīptus,written, for*scribtus;trāxī,I dragged, for*trāghsī;tractus,dragged, for*traghtus(152). The spelling did not always conform to this pronunciation: as,urbs,city, pronouncedurps(54) but spelled withbby analogy to the oblique casesurbis,urbem, etc.;obtineō,I get, pronouncedoptineō.(2.) An unvoiced mute before a voiced consonant became voiced. The prepositionsob,ab,sub, for*op,*ap,*sup, owe their finalbto their frequent position before voiced mutes: as,obdūcō,abdīcō,sub dīvō. The forms*op(still preserved inop-eriō,I close,1019)*ap(preserved inap-erio,I open,1019; cf. Greekἀπό) and*sup(preserved in the adjectivesupīnus,supine) were then crowded out byob,ab, andsub.(3.) Nasals changed their place of articulation to that of the following consonant. Thus, dentalnbefore the labialspandbbecame labialm: as,imbibō,I drink in,impendeō,I hang over. Labialmbefore the gutturalscandgbecame gutturaln(62): as,prīnceps,leader,singulī,severally(the original labials appear inprīmus,semel(138));huncfor*homce(662). Labialmbefore the dentalst,d,sbecame dentaln: as,cōnsecrō,I consecrate, fromcom(cum) andsacrō;tantus,so great, fromtam;quondam,once, fromquom;tandem,at length, fromtam. But sometimes the etymological spelling was retained: as,quamdiū,as long as. Butmdoes not change tonbeforetorsin the inflection of verbs and nouns, wheremt,msdevelop intompt,mps(167): as,sūmptus,sūmpsī, fromsūmō.(4.)pandbbeforenchanged tom: as,somnus,sleep, for*sop-nus(cf.sopor);omnis,all, for*op-nis(cf.opēs);Samnium, for*Sabnium(cf.Sabīnī).(5.)mbefore unsyllabici(i̭) becamen: as,quoniam(with vocalici;153, 4),since, for*quoni̭amfromquom iam(1882);coniungō,I join together, for*comiungō.(6.)cbetweennandl, and beforem, changed tog: as,angulus,corner, with anaptyctical (172) vowelufor*anglus, from*anclus(cf.ancus);segmentum,section, from the stemsec-insecāre.165.It appears that at a very early period the neighbourhood of a nasal changed an unvoiced mute into a voiced one: as,ē-mungō,I clean out, by the side ofmūcus;pangō,I fix, by the side ofpāc-inpāx,peace(gen.pāc-is).166.Entire assimilation.(1.) One mute is assimilated to another: thusporbtoc: as,suc-currō,I assist;tordtoc: as,sic-cus,dry(cf.sit-is,thirst),accipiō,I accept;dtog: as,agglūtinō,I glue on;tordtoqu: as,quicquam,anything;tordtop: as,appellō,I call;quippe,why?(1690).(2.) A mute is assimilated to a spirant: thus,ptofinofficīna,workshop, for*opficīna, syncopated form of*opificīna;dtof: as,afferō,I bring hither; whentis thus assimilated tosthe result isssafter a short vowel, andsafter a long vowel (170, 7) or when final (171); as, in the-s-perfects,concussī,I shook, for*concutsī(concutiō,961);messuī,I mowed, for*metsuī(metō,835);suāsī,I advised, for*suātsī(suādeō,1000);clausī,I shut, for*clautsī(claudō,958);haesī,I stuck, forhaes-sī(868) fromhaerēre, stemhaes-(154); in the same waypossum,I can, for*potsum(cf.pot-est,752);prōsum,I am of advantage, for*prōtsum(cf.prōd-esse);legēns,reading, for*legents(from the stemlegent-, cf. genitivelegent-is). Ansis never assimilated to a followingt: as,haustus,drained(1014), from the stemhaus-, presenthauriō(154). Forms like the rarehausūrus(Verg.) are made after the analogy of dental stems.(3.) One spirant,s, is assimilated to another,f: as,difficilis,difficult,differō,I am unlike, fromdisandfacilis,ferō.(4.) A mute is assimilated to a nasal: thusdtominmamma,woman’s breast, from the stemmad-(cf.madeō,1006);rāmus,branch,rāmentum,splinter, from the stemrād-(cf.rādō,958) with simplification of the doublemafter the long vowel.dtoninmercēnārius,hireling, from the stemmercēd-,reward, (formercennarius, see133, 1);ptominsummus,highest, from the stemsup-(cf.super). A progressive assimilation ofndtonnbelongs to the Oscan dialect, and occurs only very rarely in Latin: as,tennitur(Ter.),distennite(Plaut.) See924;950.(5.) One nasal,n, is assimilated to another,m: asimmōtus,unmoved. But anmbeforenis never assimilated: as,amnis,river.(6.)Mutes or nasals are assimilated to liquids; thusntol: as,homullus,manikin, for*homon-lus(cf.homun-culus);ūllus(274);dtol: as,sella,seat, for*sed-lafrom the stemsed-(cf.sedeō);caelum,chisel, from the stemcaed-(cf.caedō) with simplification of the doublelafter the diphthong (170, 7);ntor: as,irruō,I rush in; and with progressive assimilationnto a precedingl: as,tollō,I lift, for*tolnō(833);fallō,I cheat(932);pellō,I push(932). But no assimilation is to be assumed forparricīda, which does not stand forpatricīda(133, 1).(7.) One liquid,r, is assimilated to another,l: as,pelliciō,I lead astray(956), for*per-liciō;agellus,small field, for*agerlos;pūllus,clean, from*pūrlos(cf.pūrus,clean).(8.) A spirant,s, is assimilated to a preceding liquid invelle,wish, for*velse,ferre,carry, for*ferse(the infinitive ending-seappears ines-se,895);facillimus,easiest, for*facilsimus(345);sacerrimus,holiest, for*sacersimus(344). But wherelsandrsare not original but the result of lightening (170, 3;10) they remain unchanged: as,arsī,I burnt, for*artsīfrom the stemard-(cf.ardeō,1000);alsī,I felt cold, for*alcsīfrom the stemalg-(cf.algeō,1000).(9.)ganddwere assimilated to a following unsyllabici(i̭) the result being (153, 2)ii(i̭i̭); thuspeiior,worse, for*ped-i̭or, from the stemped-(532), whence also the superlativepessimusfor*petsimus(166, 2);maiior,greater, for*mag-i̭or(the stemmag-appears inmagis);aiiō,I say, for*ag-i̭ō(the stemag-appears inad-ag-ium,prōd-ig-ium,219). These forms were pronounced by Cicero with doubledi̭(23), and traces of the spelling with doubleiiare still found (23), though in common practice only oneiis written (153, 2). On the confusion of syllabic quantity with vowel quantity in these words, see133, 2.CONSONANTAL GLIDES.167.Pronunciation of two successive consonants is sometimes facilitated by the insertion of a consonant which serves as a glide. Such insertion is not frequent.In inflection apwas thus developed betweenmands, betweenmandl, and betweenmandt(elsewheremtchanged tont, see164, 3): as,sūmpsī,I took,sūmptus,taken, fromsūmerefor*sūmsī,*sūmtus; and in the corresponding forms ofcōmō,dēmō,prōmō(953);exemplum,pattern, for*exemlumfrom the stemem-,take(cf.eximere,103,a).DISAPPEARANCE.168.A word may be lightened by the disappearance of an initial, a medial, or a final consonant.Disappearance of an initial consonant is sometimes calledAphaeresis, of a medial,Syncope, of a final,Apocope.169.Initial disappearance.(1.) Initialtlchanged tol: as,lātus,borne, for*tlātusfromtollō(187,917).(2.) Initialgnchanged ton: as,nātus,born, for earlierGNATVSfrom the stemgen-,gnā(187);nōscō,I find out, forgnōscō,GNOSCIER(897);nārus,knowing, for the more frequentgnārus,nāvus,active, forgnāvus. Cf. the compoundscō-gnātus,cō-gnōscō,ī-gnārus,ī-gnāvus(170, 6) which preserve theg. ButGnaeusretained itsG.(3.) Initialdwhen followed by consonanti(i̭), disappeared: as,Iovis,Iūpiter, for*Di̭ovis,*Di̭ūpiter. Where theiwas vocalic,dwas retained: as,dīus.(4.) Initialstl-first changed tosland then tol: as, Old Latinstlocus,place,stlīs,law-suit(Quint. 1, 4, 16),STLOC,SLIS, classicallocus,līs; alsolātus,wide, for*stlātus. That a form*slocusexisted is proved byīlicō(698,703) from*in-slocō,on the spot(170, 2).170.Medial Disappearance.(1.)c,g,p, andbdisappear beforesfollowed by an unvoiced consonant: as,sescentī,six hundred, for*sexcentīfromsex;illūstris,resplendent, for*illūcstrisfromlūceō;discō,I learn, from*dicscōfor*di-tc-scō(834), a reduplicated present from the rootdec-(cf.decet) likegignō(from the rootgen-), andsīdō(for*si-sd-ō,170, 2, from the rootsed-,829). Sometimes prepositions follow this rule: as,asportō,I carry off, for*absportō,suscipiō,I undertake, for*subscipiō(subsformed fromsublikeabsfromab;sub-cipiōgivessuccipiō); occasionally alsoecferō, forexferō,I carry out. But more frequently prepositional compounds remain unchanged: as,obscūrus,dark;abscēdō,I withdraw. In some words the lost consonant has been restored by analogy: as,sextus,sixth, for*sestus(cf.Sēstius) aftersex;textor,weaver, for*testoraftertexō.(2.)sbefore voiced consonants was voiced (75) and is dropped. If a consonant precedes thesthis is dropped also. In either case the preceding vowel is lengthened. Voicedsalone is dropped: as,prīmus,first, for*prīs-mus(cf.prīs-cus);cānus,gray, for*casnus(cf.cas-cus); adverbpōne,behind, for*posne(cf.pos,1410);dīlābī,glide apart, for*dislābi;īdem,the same, forISDEM(678);iūdex,judge, foriūsdex;trēdecim,thirteen, for*trēsdecim. And with subsequent shortening of the final syllable (130, 3)abin,goest thou?forabisn(e);viden,seest thou?forvidēsn(e). Voicedswith the preceding consonant is dropped: as,trādūcō,I lead across,trānō,I swim across, fortrānsdūcō,trānsnō; but in these prepositional compounds the-nswas often retained: as,trānsmittō,I send across;sēnī,six each, for*secsnī;sēmēnstris,every six months, forsecsmēnstris;sēvirī,the Board of Six, forsecsvirī;āla,wing, for*acsla(cf.ax-illa, Cic.O.153);māvolō(779) formagsvolōfrommagisvolō,396;tōles(plural),goiter, for*tōnsles(cf.tōnsillae,tonsils);pīlum,pestle, for*pīnslumfrompīnsere,crush; two consonants and voicedsare dropped inscāla,stair, for*scand-sla(cf.scandō).(3.)cfalls away when it stands between a liquid andt,s,m, orn: as,ultus,avenged, for*ulctusfromulc-iscor(980);mulsīfor*mulcsīfrom bothmulgeō,I milk, andmulceō,I stroke; similarly other stems in-cand-g(1000,1014);quernus,oaken, for*quercnusfromquercus;tortus,turned, for*torctusfromtorqueō(for the change ofqutoc, see158); forfortis,brave,forctisis found in old Latin.(4.)cdrops out when it stands betweennandt: as,quīntus,fifth, for olderquīnctus(2412), fromquīnque(for the change ofqutoc, see158; for the longīinquīnque, see122,b). But verbs having stems in-ncor-ngretain thecin their past participles: as,vīnctus,bound, fromvincīre(1014);iūnctus,joined, fromiungere(954). Inpāstus(965)chas dropped out betweensandt.(5.) The group-ncn-was simplified to simple-n-, and the preceding vowel was lengthened: as,quīnī,five each, for*quīnc-nī(317);cō-nīveō,wink and blink, forcon-cnīveō.(6.)nbeforegnwas dropped and the preceding vowel lengthened: as,ī-gnōscō,I forgive, for*in-gnōscō,cō-gnōscō,I know, for*con-gnōscō. In this manner (170, 5; 6) arises a formcō-by the side ofcon-(122,e): as,cō-nectō,cō-nubium,cō-ligātus(Gell. 2, 17, 8).(7.) In the imperial age,ssafter long vowels and diphthongs was regularly changed tos: as,clausī,I closed;ūsus,used(166, 2); but alwaysēsse,to eat(769);llchanged tolafter diphthongs: as,caelum,chisel(166, 6); also when preceded byīand followed byi: as,vīlla,country-place, butvīlicus(adject.);mille,thousand, butmīlia(642). Elsewherellwas retained after long vowels: as,pūllus(166, 7),clean;rāllum,ploughshare, fromrādōwith suffix-lo-(209). In Cicero’s time (Quint. 1, 7, 20) the spelling was stillcaussa(155,b),matter;cāssus(930),fallen;divīssiō(cf.912),division. Vergil also, according to Quintilian, retained the doubled consonants, and the best manuscripts of both Vergil and Plautus frequently showllandssfor laterlands, as do inscriptions: as,PROMEISSERIT,he might have promised(49B.C.);ACCVSSASSE,to have accused.(8.) After a long voweldwas dropped before consonantu(v): as,svāvis,sweet, for*svādvisfromsvād-(cf.svādeō).(9.)rbeforestwas dropped: as,tostus,roasted(1004) for*torstusfrom the stemtors-(cf.torreowith assimilated-rs-,166, 8).(10.)-rts-changed to-rs: as,arsī,I burnt, for*artsī(1000).-rcsc-changed to-sc-: as,poscō,I demand, for*porcscō(834).(11.) Inipse,self, for*is-pse, anshas disappeared before-ps-(12.) (12.)d(t) disappears betweenrandc: as,cor-culumforcord(i)-culum(275).171.Final Disappearance.(1.) A word never ends in a doubled consonant: as,esfor*es-s,thou art, which Plautus and Terence still scan as a long syllable; and the following cases of assimilation:terfor*terrfrom*ters(cf.terr-uncius,a quarter of anās,a farthing,1272, for*ters-uncius,166, 8);fār,spelt, for*farr, from*fars(489);fel,gall, for*fell, from*fels(482); inmīles,soldier, for*mīlessfrom*mīlets(cf. Gen.mīlitis,477) the final syllable is still long in Plautus.hoc,this, for*hoccfrom*hod-c(e)(the neuter*hodfrom the stemho-, asistud,illud(107,c) fromisto-,illo-) counts as a long syllable even in classical poetry.
(4.) Of imperatives onlyputa, used adverbially (2438,c),ave,have(805; Quint. i, 6, 21; but Martial scanshavē) as a salutation andcave, used as an auxiliary (1711), show the short final vowel in classical Latin. Elsewhere the long vowel has been restored, asamā,monē(845).
(5.) According to this rulecalēfaciō,malēdīcōchanged tocalefaciō,maledīcō.
131.A long final vowel is shortened when an enclitic is added to the word: assiquidemfromsī;quoquefromquō.
132.A long vowel is regularly shortened, in the classical period, before final-tand-mand, in words of more than one syllable, also before finalrandl.
Thus,soror,sister, for Plautus’ssorōr, from the stemsorōr-(487);ūtar,I may use, for Plautus’sūtār(cf.ūtāris);bacchanalfor Plautus’sbacchanāl;animal,exemplarfrom the stemsanimāl-(530) andexemplār-(537); but the long vowel is retained in the monosyllablesfūr,thief,sōl,sun;pōnēbat,he placed, for Plautus’spōnēbāt(cf.pōnēbās);iūbet,he commanded, for Plautus’siūbēt;eram,I was, buterās;rēxerim,I may have ruled, butrēxerīs(877);-umin the genitive plural of-o-stems is for-ūm(462);mēnsam,table, for*mēnsāmfrom the stemmensā-;rem, fromrē-(rēs),spemfromspē-(spēs).
TRANSFER OF QUANTITY.
133.(1.) In a few cases the length of the vowel has been transferred to the following consonant, the length of which is then indicated by doubling it (81): as,litteraforlītera,LEITERAS;IuppiterforIūpiter;parricīdaforpāri-cīda,murder of a member of the same clan(*pāro-,member of a clan, Doricπᾶός,a relative);cuppaforcūpa,barrel. The legal formulasī pāret,if it appear, was vulgarly pronouncedsī parret(Festus).
(2.) Since the doubled unsyllabici(i̭) between vowels (23;166, 9;153, 2) is commonly written single, thevowelpreceding it is often erroneously marked long: as,āiōwrongly foraiō,i.e.ai̭i̭ō,I say;māiorwrongly formaior,i.e.mai̭i̭or,greater;pēiorwrongly forpeior,i.e.pei̭i̭or,worse;ēius,of him,cūius,of whom,hūius,of him, all wrongly foreius,cuius,huiusi.e.ei̭i̭us,cui̭i̭us,huii̭us(153, 2). In all these words the firstsyllablewas long but not the vowel.
VARIATIONS OF QUANTITY.
134.(1.) In some foreign proper names and in a very few Latin words the quantity of a vowel varied. Vergil hasSȳchaeusandSychaeuswithin six verses; alsoĀsiaandAsia,LavīniumandLāvīnius; so alsoglōmus(Lucr.),glomus(Hor.);cōturnīx(Plaut., Lucr.),coturnīx(Ov.).
(2.) Sometimes such variations in vowel quantity are only apparent: thus, the occasional long final-ēof the active infinitive (darē,prōmerē) has probably a different origin from the usual-ĕ. For metrical lengthening, see2505.
QUANTITATIVE VOWEL GRADATION.
135.The same stem often shows a long vowel in some of its forms and a short vowel in others. In most cases these variations of quantity were not developed on Latin soil but inherited from a much earlier period. Such old inherited differences in vowel quantity are calledquantitative vowel gradation.
(1.) Instances of this areprōfor*prōd(149; cf.prōdesse) andpro-(Greekπρό);nēandne-innescius; the couplesregō,I rule, andrēxī;vehō,I draw,vēxī;veniō,I come,vēnī, where the long vowel is characteristic of the perfect stem (862);vocō,I call, andvōx,voice;regō,I rule, andrēx,ruler;legō,I read, andlēx,bill;sedeō,I sit, andsēdēs,seat;fidēs,confidence, andfīdō,I trust;dux(cf.ducis),leader, anddūcō,I lead, where verb and noun are differentiated by the quantity of the root vowel; and many others.
(2.) Sometimes the reduction of the vowel in certain forms amounts to complete loss, as in the adverbial ending-is-inmagis(346,363) compared with the comparative suffix-ios,-iōs(Nom.-ior, Genit.-iōris); in the oblique cases of the stemcarōn-(nomin. sg.carō,497), where the suffix becomes-n-(545), genitivecar-n-is; in the suffix-ter, which becomes-tr-in all cases but the nom. sg. (pater,patris, etc.,470,487); in the feminine-tr-ī-c-to the suffix-tor-; but the nom. sing.Caecīlis(465) forCaecīliosis probably due to syncope.
QUALITATIVE VOWEL CHANGES.
136.(1.)ibefore anrwhich goes back to an earlier voiceds(154) was changed toe: as,cineris,of ashes, for*cinisis, from the stemcinis(491);Faleriī, for*Falisiī, cf.Falis-cus; (formed likeEtrūria, for*Etrūsia, cf.Etrūs-cī).
(2.) In the nominative singular of compounds likeiūdex,judge(fromiūsanddīcere),comes,companion(fromcom,with, andīre,go), theiof the second member of the compounds is changed toe(470) after the analogy of words likeartifex,artisan, etc. (107,d).
137.ebefore-gn-becamei: as,īlignus, from the stemīlec-(cf.īlex).
138.ebefore the guttural nasal (62) followed by a guttural mute was changed toi: as,septingentī, fromseptem;singulī, from the stemsem-insemel(for the assimilation ofmsee164, 3);obtingō(925),I attain, for*óbtengō(104,c) from*ob-tangō(104,e).
139.A similar change took place in the group-enl-which became first-inl-and then-ill-: as,*signilum, diminutive ofsīgnum(forī, see122,c), first changed by syncope (111) from*signilumto*sign̥lum, then to*sigenlum(172, 3), then to*siginlum, and finally tosigillum.
140.obeforencbecameu: as,homunculus,manikinfor*homonculus, from the stemhomon-(485);nūncupāre,name, for*nōn-cupāre(nōn-fornōm-(164, 3) = syncopatednōmen);hunc,him, for*honc, fromhom-ce(662).
141.obeforelfollowed by any consonant savelwas changed tou: as,cultus,tilled, for*coltus, fromcolere;multa,fine, for old Latinmolta. Butobeforellis retained: as,collis,hill.
142.ebefore gutturall(60) was changed too: as,solvō,I undo, from*seluō(se-, as inse-cordia,luō= Greekλύω);culmen,top, for*celmen, from*cellōinex-cellō;volō,I wish, for*velō; buteis preserved before dentall(60): as invelle,velim(773). Beforelfollowed by any consonant savelthisochanges tou(141): as,vult.
143.In a number of words, notably invoster,your,vorsus,turned,vortex,eddy, andvotāre,forbid, the forms withowere replaced, about the second centuryB.C.by forms withe: as,vester,versus,vertex,vetāre(Quint. 1, 7, 25).
ASSIMILATION.
144.In a few cases a vowel is influenced by the vowel of a neighbouring syllable: as,
nisi,unless, for*nesi;iīs, foreīs,to them(671,674);diī,diīs,gods, fordeī,deīs(450);nihil,nothing, for*nehil;homō,man, for*hemō(cf.nēmō, fromne-hemō,118); see also104,d;105,i.
QUALITATIVE VOWEL GRADATION.
145.The same stem often shows different vowels in different forms. In most of these cases this difference was inherited from a very early period and continued in the Latin. Such old inherited variation of the quality of the stem-vowel is calledqualitative vowel gradation. The qualitative variations may be accompanied by quantitative changes (135).
Often the verb and the noun are thus distinguished by different vowels: as,tegō,I cover, andtoga,a garment,toga;precor,I beg, andprocus,suitor, cf. Englishto singanda song,to bind, anda bond. The different tenses of some verbs show a like gradation: as,capiō,I take,cēpī;faciō,I make,fēcī, cf. EnglishI sing,I sang;I bring,I brought. The same occurs in derivation: asdoceō,I teach, by the side ofdecet;noceō,I harm, by the side ofnex(nec-s). The two vowels which occur most frequently in such gradation areeando: as in stems in-o-,domine,dominus(fordominos); as variable vowel (824);genos(genus,107,c) in the nom. sg. by the side of*genes-in the oblique cases (gen.generisfor*genesis,154);honōsby the side ofhones-inhones-tus;modus,measure, for*modos(originally a neuter-s-stem likegenus(487,491), but transferred later to the-o-declension), by the side ofmodes-inmodes-tus,seemly. See187.
146.In a number of words which belong more or less clearly to the stem of the pronounquo-(681),cu-(157), the initialchas disappeared beforeu: as,
uter,which of the two,ubĭ,where,unde,whence(711). For the conjunctionut,utī,that, connection with this pronominal stem is much more doubtful. Thec-appears in the compounds withsīandnē̆: as,sī-cubī(cf.sī-quidem,sī-quandō),sī-cunde,nē-cubi,ne-cunde,ne-cuter.
147.dvaries in a few words withl: as old Latindacruma,tear, for laterlacrima;dingua,tongue, for laterlingua;odor,smell, by the side ofoleō,I smell.
148.Very rarely, before labials, finaldof the prepositionadvaries withr: as, old Latinarfuērunt,they were present, for lateradfuērunt(2257);arvorsum,against, foradvorsum. The only instances of this in classical Latin arearbiter,umpire, andarcēssō(970),I summon, which showsrbefore a guttural.
149.(1.) Final d after a long vowel disappeared in classical Latin: thus, in the ablative singular of-ā-and-o-stems (426), and in the ablative-accusative formsmēd,tēd,sēd(648). The prepositionsprōandsē(1417) originally ended in-dwhich is still seen inprōdesse,be of advantage,prōd-īre,go forth;sēd-itiō,a going-apart,sedition. According to the grammarians, the negativehaudpreserved itsdbefore vowels, but lost it before consonants (1450).
(2.) Late inscriptions confuse final-dand-t: asFECID(729),ALIVTforaliud. But in very old Latin-din the third person singular seems to be the remnant of a secondary ending (cf. the Greek distinction of primary-ταιand secondary-το).
150.In a number of wordsfvaries dialectically withh. In some of thesefappears to have been original, in othersh: as, old Latinfordeum,barley, for classicalhordeum; old Latinhaba,bean, for classicalfaba. The wordfīlum,thread, appears as*hīluminnihil,nothing, for*ne-hīlum.
151.hbeing a weak sound (58) was often lost between two like vowels, especially in rapid utterance: as,nīl,nothing,prēndere,take,vēmēns,rapid, by the side ofnihil,prehendere,vehemēns; and alwaysnēmō,nobody, for*ne-hemō,no man.
152.In some wordshbetween two vowels is not original, but goes back to a guttural aspirategh. Before consonants this guttural appears: as,vehō,I draw,vectus(953) from a stemvegh-,trahō,I drag,tractus(953) from a stemtragh-.
153.(1.)vnot infrequently disappeared between two like vowels: as,dītior,richer, fordīvitior;sīs(Cic.O.154), forsī vīs(774);lātrīna, forlavatrīna;fīnīsse, forfīnīvisse;dēlēram, fordēlēveram; and later also in perfect forms in which the preceding and following vowel differed: as,amāsse, foramāvisse. The abbreviated forms of the perfects in-vī(890) were common in Cicero’s (O.157) and Quintilian’s (1, 6, 17) time.valso disappeared beforeoindeorsum,seorsum.
(2.) Old and original unsyllabici(82;83) disappeared everywhere between vowels. Wherever unsyllabiciappears between vowels it represents doublei̭i̭, and is the result of the assimilation ofgtoi̭(166, 9), ordtoi̭(166, 9), or of the combination of twoi̭’s: as inei-i̭us,quoi̭-i̭us(eius,quoius=cuius,688). See23;166, 9. In all these cases the firsti̭joined to the preceding vowel (83) formed with it a diphthong, and the syllable is thus long (133, 2).
(3.) The combinations of unsyllabic (83)ṷwith the voweluand of unsyllabici̭with the voweliwere avoided in classical Latin; see52.
(4.) In composition, unsyllabic (82)i̭after a consonant became syllabic inquoniam,since, forquomi̭am(164, 5), andetiam,also, foreti̭am(both compounds withiam).
154.In early Latinsbetween two vowels was voiced (75), and in the fourth centuryB.C.this voicedschanged intor. According to Cicero (Fam.9, 21, 2) L. Papīrius Crassus, consul in 336B.C., changed his family namePapīsiustoPapīrius. Old inscriptions show frequentlysforr: as,ASA,altar,AVSELII. This change of intervocalicstorplays an important part in declension, conjugation, and derivation: as,
Nominativeiūs,right, genitiveiūris;spērō,I hope, derived fromspēs;nefārius,wicked, fromnefās;gerō,I carry, from a stemges-which appears inges-sī,ges-tus(953);erō,I shall be, from the stemes-inesse; the subjunctive ending-semines-semappears as-remafter vowels: as,stārem; the infinitive ending (894,895)-seines-seappears as-reafter vowels: as,legere, for*legese,to read,stāre, for*stāse,to stand. Where all oblique cases show-r-and only the nominative singular-s, the latter is sometimes changed to-rby analogy: as,arbor,tree,honor,honour, for originalarbōs,honōs, by analogy to the oblique casesarboris,arborī,honōris,honōrī, etc. (487,488). The final-sof the prefixdis-follows this rule: as,dir-imō,I take apart, for*dis-emō; but an initials-of the second member of a compound remains unchanged: as,dē-sinō,I stop.
155.Wherever intervocalicsis found in classical Latin it is not original, but the result (a.) of earlier-ns-: as,formōsus,handsome, forformōnsus(63); (b.) of earlier-ss-(170, 7): as,ūsusfor*ūssus,use(159);causa,thing, forcaussa(Quint. 1, 7, 20); or (c.) it occurs in borrowed words likeasinus,ass. (d.) There are a few words in which anrin a neighbouring syllable seems to have prevented the change: asmiser,miserable(173).
156.Before theodescribed in142quchanged toc: as,incola,inhabitant, for*inquola, from*inquela; the stemquel-appears inin-quil-īnus,lodger.
157.Asvbeforeu(107,c), soquwas not tolerated beforeu, but changed toc.
Hence when, about the beginning of our era, theoofquom,when,sequontur,they followed, changed tou(107,c), they becamecum,secuntur; thusequosbutecus,horse(452);reliquombutRELICVM,the rest;loquor,I speak, butlocūtus(978). Much later, in the second century of our era, the grammarians restored thequbeforeuby analogy to those forms in the paradigm in whichqucame before other vowels: as,sequunturforsecunturby analogy tosequor,sequeris,sequitur,sequimur,sequimini, etc.;equus,equum, forecus,ecum, by analogy toequī,equō,eque,equōrum,equīs,equōs.
158.qubefore consonants or when final changed toc: as,relictusfrom the stemliqu-,leave(present,linquō,938);ac,and, for*atc, by apocope fromatque;nec,nor, by apocope fromneque. See also*torctus(170, 3),quīnctus(170, 4).
159.When in the process of early word formation atwas followed by anothert, the combinationtt, unless followed byr, changed toss: as,obsessus,besieged,sat upon, for*obsettus, from*obsed-tus(cf.sedeō). After long vowels, nasals, and liquids this doublesswas simplified tos(170, 7): as,ūsusfrom*ūt-tus,used(cf.ūtor);scānsus,climbed, from*scant-tusfor*scandtus(cf.scandō).
In this way arose a suffix-sus(906,912) for the past participle of verbs ending in a dental, and this spread to other verbs (912): asmānsus,stayed, frommaneō(1000),pulsus,pushed, frompellō(932). The regular participles of these two verbs still appear in the derivative verbsmantāreandpultāre, which presuppose the past participles*mantusand*pultus(371). If the doublettwas followed byrit changed tost: as,assestrīxfrom*assettrīx, while*assettorchanged toassessor.
160.But wherever the combinationttarose in historical times it remained unchanged: as,attineō;cette, syncopated forcé-d(i)te, i.e. the particlece(93, 3) which is here proclitic, and the imperativedate,give.
161.Initialdv(dṷ) changed tob, unless thev(ṷ) was converted into the corresponding vowel: as,bis,twice, for*dṷis(cf.duo);bidēnsfor*dṷidens, by the side of old Latinduidēnswith vocalicu;bonus,good, fordṷonus, by the side of trisyllabicduonus;bellum,war, for*dṷellum, by the side ofduellumwith vocalicu;bēs,two thirds, for*dṷēs(2427). Cicero (O.153) notes that the change ofduellumtobellumaffected even the proper nameDuellius(name of the admiral who won the naval victory over the Carthaginians in 260B.C.) which was changed toBellius. Plautus always scansdṷellumdisyllabic with synizesis (2503).
CHANGES OF CONSONANT GROUPS.
162.Many groups of consonants undergo changes in order to facilitate their pronunciation in rapid speech. These changes involve (a.) Assimilation of consonants; (b.) the development of consonantal glides; (c.) the loss of one member of the group; and (d.) the development of a vowel between the consonants.
ASSIMILATION.
163.Of two successive consonants belonging to different syllables (175), the first is, as a rule, assimilated to the second (regressive assimilation), rarely the second to the first (progressive assimilation). A consonant may be assimilated, either entirely or partially, to another consonant.
Assimilation is very common in prepositions prefixed to a verb.
164.Partial assimilation. (1.) A voiced mute before an unvoiced consonant became unvoiced: as,rēx,king, for*rēgs(cf.rēgis);rēxī,I guided, for*rēgsī(cf.regō);rēctus,guided, for*rēgtus;scrīpsī,I wrote, for*scrībsī(cf.scribō);scrīptus,written, for*scribtus;trāxī,I dragged, for*trāghsī;tractus,dragged, for*traghtus(152). The spelling did not always conform to this pronunciation: as,urbs,city, pronouncedurps(54) but spelled withbby analogy to the oblique casesurbis,urbem, etc.;obtineō,I get, pronouncedoptineō.
(2.) An unvoiced mute before a voiced consonant became voiced. The prepositionsob,ab,sub, for*op,*ap,*sup, owe their finalbto their frequent position before voiced mutes: as,obdūcō,abdīcō,sub dīvō. The forms*op(still preserved inop-eriō,I close,1019)*ap(preserved inap-erio,I open,1019; cf. Greekἀπό) and*sup(preserved in the adjectivesupīnus,supine) were then crowded out byob,ab, andsub.
(3.) Nasals changed their place of articulation to that of the following consonant. Thus, dentalnbefore the labialspandbbecame labialm: as,imbibō,I drink in,impendeō,I hang over. Labialmbefore the gutturalscandgbecame gutturaln(62): as,prīnceps,leader,singulī,severally(the original labials appear inprīmus,semel(138));huncfor*homce(662). Labialmbefore the dentalst,d,sbecame dentaln: as,cōnsecrō,I consecrate, fromcom(cum) andsacrō;tantus,so great, fromtam;quondam,once, fromquom;tandem,at length, fromtam. But sometimes the etymological spelling was retained: as,quamdiū,as long as. Butmdoes not change tonbeforetorsin the inflection of verbs and nouns, wheremt,msdevelop intompt,mps(167): as,sūmptus,sūmpsī, fromsūmō.
(4.)pandbbeforenchanged tom: as,somnus,sleep, for*sop-nus(cf.sopor);omnis,all, for*op-nis(cf.opēs);Samnium, for*Sabnium(cf.Sabīnī).
(5.)mbefore unsyllabici(i̭) becamen: as,quoniam(with vocalici;153, 4),since, for*quoni̭amfromquom iam(1882);coniungō,I join together, for*comiungō.
(6.)cbetweennandl, and beforem, changed tog: as,angulus,corner, with anaptyctical (172) vowelufor*anglus, from*anclus(cf.ancus);segmentum,section, from the stemsec-insecāre.
165.It appears that at a very early period the neighbourhood of a nasal changed an unvoiced mute into a voiced one: as,ē-mungō,I clean out, by the side ofmūcus;pangō,I fix, by the side ofpāc-inpāx,peace(gen.pāc-is).
166.Entire assimilation.(1.) One mute is assimilated to another: thusporbtoc: as,suc-currō,I assist;tordtoc: as,sic-cus,dry(cf.sit-is,thirst),accipiō,I accept;dtog: as,agglūtinō,I glue on;tordtoqu: as,quicquam,anything;tordtop: as,appellō,I call;quippe,why?(1690).
(2.) A mute is assimilated to a spirant: thus,ptofinofficīna,workshop, for*opficīna, syncopated form of*opificīna;dtof: as,afferō,I bring hither; whentis thus assimilated tosthe result isssafter a short vowel, andsafter a long vowel (170, 7) or when final (171); as, in the-s-perfects,concussī,I shook, for*concutsī(concutiō,961);messuī,I mowed, for*metsuī(metō,835);suāsī,I advised, for*suātsī(suādeō,1000);clausī,I shut, for*clautsī(claudō,958);haesī,I stuck, forhaes-sī(868) fromhaerēre, stemhaes-(154); in the same waypossum,I can, for*potsum(cf.pot-est,752);prōsum,I am of advantage, for*prōtsum(cf.prōd-esse);legēns,reading, for*legents(from the stemlegent-, cf. genitivelegent-is). Ansis never assimilated to a followingt: as,haustus,drained(1014), from the stemhaus-, presenthauriō(154). Forms like the rarehausūrus(Verg.) are made after the analogy of dental stems.
(3.) One spirant,s, is assimilated to another,f: as,difficilis,difficult,differō,I am unlike, fromdisandfacilis,ferō.
(4.) A mute is assimilated to a nasal: thusdtominmamma,woman’s breast, from the stemmad-(cf.madeō,1006);rāmus,branch,rāmentum,splinter, from the stemrād-(cf.rādō,958) with simplification of the doublemafter the long vowel.dtoninmercēnārius,hireling, from the stemmercēd-,reward, (formercennarius, see133, 1);ptominsummus,highest, from the stemsup-(cf.super). A progressive assimilation ofndtonnbelongs to the Oscan dialect, and occurs only very rarely in Latin: as,tennitur(Ter.),distennite(Plaut.) See924;950.
(5.) One nasal,n, is assimilated to another,m: asimmōtus,unmoved. But anmbeforenis never assimilated: as,amnis,river.
(6.)Mutes or nasals are assimilated to liquids; thusntol: as,homullus,manikin, for*homon-lus(cf.homun-culus);ūllus(274);dtol: as,sella,seat, for*sed-lafrom the stemsed-(cf.sedeō);caelum,chisel, from the stemcaed-(cf.caedō) with simplification of the doublelafter the diphthong (170, 7);ntor: as,irruō,I rush in; and with progressive assimilationnto a precedingl: as,tollō,I lift, for*tolnō(833);fallō,I cheat(932);pellō,I push(932). But no assimilation is to be assumed forparricīda, which does not stand forpatricīda(133, 1).
(7.) One liquid,r, is assimilated to another,l: as,pelliciō,I lead astray(956), for*per-liciō;agellus,small field, for*agerlos;pūllus,clean, from*pūrlos(cf.pūrus,clean).
(8.) A spirant,s, is assimilated to a preceding liquid invelle,wish, for*velse,ferre,carry, for*ferse(the infinitive ending-seappears ines-se,895);facillimus,easiest, for*facilsimus(345);sacerrimus,holiest, for*sacersimus(344). But wherelsandrsare not original but the result of lightening (170, 3;10) they remain unchanged: as,arsī,I burnt, for*artsīfrom the stemard-(cf.ardeō,1000);alsī,I felt cold, for*alcsīfrom the stemalg-(cf.algeō,1000).
(9.)ganddwere assimilated to a following unsyllabici(i̭) the result being (153, 2)ii(i̭i̭); thuspeiior,worse, for*ped-i̭or, from the stemped-(532), whence also the superlativepessimusfor*petsimus(166, 2);maiior,greater, for*mag-i̭or(the stemmag-appears inmagis);aiiō,I say, for*ag-i̭ō(the stemag-appears inad-ag-ium,prōd-ig-ium,219). These forms were pronounced by Cicero with doubledi̭(23), and traces of the spelling with doubleiiare still found (23), though in common practice only oneiis written (153, 2). On the confusion of syllabic quantity with vowel quantity in these words, see133, 2.
CONSONANTAL GLIDES.
167.Pronunciation of two successive consonants is sometimes facilitated by the insertion of a consonant which serves as a glide. Such insertion is not frequent.
In inflection apwas thus developed betweenmands, betweenmandl, and betweenmandt(elsewheremtchanged tont, see164, 3): as,sūmpsī,I took,sūmptus,taken, fromsūmerefor*sūmsī,*sūmtus; and in the corresponding forms ofcōmō,dēmō,prōmō(953);exemplum,pattern, for*exemlumfrom the stemem-,take(cf.eximere,103,a).
DISAPPEARANCE.
168.A word may be lightened by the disappearance of an initial, a medial, or a final consonant.
Disappearance of an initial consonant is sometimes calledAphaeresis, of a medial,Syncope, of a final,Apocope.
169.Initial disappearance.(1.) Initialtlchanged tol: as,lātus,borne, for*tlātusfromtollō(187,917).
(2.) Initialgnchanged ton: as,nātus,born, for earlierGNATVSfrom the stemgen-,gnā(187);nōscō,I find out, forgnōscō,GNOSCIER(897);nārus,knowing, for the more frequentgnārus,nāvus,active, forgnāvus. Cf. the compoundscō-gnātus,cō-gnōscō,ī-gnārus,ī-gnāvus(170, 6) which preserve theg. ButGnaeusretained itsG.
(3.) Initialdwhen followed by consonanti(i̭), disappeared: as,Iovis,Iūpiter, for*Di̭ovis,*Di̭ūpiter. Where theiwas vocalic,dwas retained: as,dīus.
(4.) Initialstl-first changed tosland then tol: as, Old Latinstlocus,place,stlīs,law-suit(Quint. 1, 4, 16),STLOC,SLIS, classicallocus,līs; alsolātus,wide, for*stlātus. That a form*slocusexisted is proved byīlicō(698,703) from*in-slocō,on the spot(170, 2).
170.Medial Disappearance.(1.)c,g,p, andbdisappear beforesfollowed by an unvoiced consonant: as,sescentī,six hundred, for*sexcentīfromsex;illūstris,resplendent, for*illūcstrisfromlūceō;discō,I learn, from*dicscōfor*di-tc-scō(834), a reduplicated present from the rootdec-(cf.decet) likegignō(from the rootgen-), andsīdō(for*si-sd-ō,170, 2, from the rootsed-,829). Sometimes prepositions follow this rule: as,asportō,I carry off, for*absportō,suscipiō,I undertake, for*subscipiō(subsformed fromsublikeabsfromab;sub-cipiōgivessuccipiō); occasionally alsoecferō, forexferō,I carry out. But more frequently prepositional compounds remain unchanged: as,obscūrus,dark;abscēdō,I withdraw. In some words the lost consonant has been restored by analogy: as,sextus,sixth, for*sestus(cf.Sēstius) aftersex;textor,weaver, for*testoraftertexō.
(2.)sbefore voiced consonants was voiced (75) and is dropped. If a consonant precedes thesthis is dropped also. In either case the preceding vowel is lengthened. Voicedsalone is dropped: as,prīmus,first, for*prīs-mus(cf.prīs-cus);cānus,gray, for*casnus(cf.cas-cus); adverbpōne,behind, for*posne(cf.pos,1410);dīlābī,glide apart, for*dislābi;īdem,the same, forISDEM(678);iūdex,judge, foriūsdex;trēdecim,thirteen, for*trēsdecim. And with subsequent shortening of the final syllable (130, 3)abin,goest thou?forabisn(e);viden,seest thou?forvidēsn(e). Voicedswith the preceding consonant is dropped: as,trādūcō,I lead across,trānō,I swim across, fortrānsdūcō,trānsnō; but in these prepositional compounds the-nswas often retained: as,trānsmittō,I send across;sēnī,six each, for*secsnī;sēmēnstris,every six months, forsecsmēnstris;sēvirī,the Board of Six, forsecsvirī;āla,wing, for*acsla(cf.ax-illa, Cic.O.153);māvolō(779) formagsvolōfrommagisvolō,396;tōles(plural),goiter, for*tōnsles(cf.tōnsillae,tonsils);pīlum,pestle, for*pīnslumfrompīnsere,crush; two consonants and voicedsare dropped inscāla,stair, for*scand-sla(cf.scandō).
(3.)cfalls away when it stands between a liquid andt,s,m, orn: as,ultus,avenged, for*ulctusfromulc-iscor(980);mulsīfor*mulcsīfrom bothmulgeō,I milk, andmulceō,I stroke; similarly other stems in-cand-g(1000,1014);quernus,oaken, for*quercnusfromquercus;tortus,turned, for*torctusfromtorqueō(for the change ofqutoc, see158); forfortis,brave,forctisis found in old Latin.
(4.)cdrops out when it stands betweennandt: as,quīntus,fifth, for olderquīnctus(2412), fromquīnque(for the change ofqutoc, see158; for the longīinquīnque, see122,b). But verbs having stems in-ncor-ngretain thecin their past participles: as,vīnctus,bound, fromvincīre(1014);iūnctus,joined, fromiungere(954). Inpāstus(965)chas dropped out betweensandt.
(5.) The group-ncn-was simplified to simple-n-, and the preceding vowel was lengthened: as,quīnī,five each, for*quīnc-nī(317);cō-nīveō,wink and blink, forcon-cnīveō.
(6.)nbeforegnwas dropped and the preceding vowel lengthened: as,ī-gnōscō,I forgive, for*in-gnōscō,cō-gnōscō,I know, for*con-gnōscō. In this manner (170, 5; 6) arises a formcō-by the side ofcon-(122,e): as,cō-nectō,cō-nubium,cō-ligātus(Gell. 2, 17, 8).
(7.) In the imperial age,ssafter long vowels and diphthongs was regularly changed tos: as,clausī,I closed;ūsus,used(166, 2); but alwaysēsse,to eat(769);llchanged tolafter diphthongs: as,caelum,chisel(166, 6); also when preceded byīand followed byi: as,vīlla,country-place, butvīlicus(adject.);mille,thousand, butmīlia(642). Elsewherellwas retained after long vowels: as,pūllus(166, 7),clean;rāllum,ploughshare, fromrādōwith suffix-lo-(209). In Cicero’s time (Quint. 1, 7, 20) the spelling was stillcaussa(155,b),matter;cāssus(930),fallen;divīssiō(cf.912),division. Vergil also, according to Quintilian, retained the doubled consonants, and the best manuscripts of both Vergil and Plautus frequently showllandssfor laterlands, as do inscriptions: as,PROMEISSERIT,he might have promised(49B.C.);ACCVSSASSE,to have accused.
(8.) After a long voweldwas dropped before consonantu(v): as,svāvis,sweet, for*svādvisfromsvād-(cf.svādeō).
(9.)rbeforestwas dropped: as,tostus,roasted(1004) for*torstusfrom the stemtors-(cf.torreowith assimilated-rs-,166, 8).
(10.)-rts-changed to-rs: as,arsī,I burnt, for*artsī(1000).-rcsc-changed to-sc-: as,poscō,I demand, for*porcscō(834).
(11.) Inipse,self, for*is-pse, anshas disappeared before-ps-
(12.) (12.)d(t) disappears betweenrandc: as,cor-culumforcord(i)-culum(275).
171.Final Disappearance.(1.) A word never ends in a doubled consonant: as,esfor*es-s,thou art, which Plautus and Terence still scan as a long syllable; and the following cases of assimilation:terfor*terrfrom*ters(cf.terr-uncius,a quarter of anās,a farthing,1272, for*ters-uncius,166, 8);fār,spelt, for*farr, from*fars(489);fel,gall, for*fell, from*fels(482); inmīles,soldier, for*mīlessfrom*mīlets(cf. Gen.mīlitis,477) the final syllable is still long in Plautus.hoc,this, for*hoccfrom*hod-c(e)(the neuter*hodfrom the stemho-, asistud,illud(107,c) fromisto-,illo-) counts as a long syllable even in classical poetry.