Page:An introduction to Indonesian linguistics, being four essays.djvu/299

Rh pair"; χaru, "dig", as a WB, but mogaru, the verb "to dig". In Nias also the rule is not strictly observed.

VIII. The Mentaway law. We always find the media b, never w instead of it. As initial the media g always appears, but in the interior of words g and ɣ interchange pretty irregularly. An examination of the whole of Morris' texts shows that the word for "banana (plantain)" occurs four times under the form of bago and twice under that of baɣo. "The media d is mostly a variant in pronunciation for r" (Morris).

IX. The Hova law. In Hova, Original IN initial g > h, hence hántuna < Original IN gantuṅ, "to hang", and húruna < Original IN guluṅ, "to roll". But Original IN k also becomes h, hence Hova húditra < Original IN kulit, "skin". When the prefix ma + nasal is put before h < k, the h < k disappears in conformity with § 16, hence manuditra, "to peel". But if this same prefix appears before h < g, the g reappears, hence maṅgúruna, "to roll". But here too there have been changes based on analogy, for from hántuna is formed manántuna, instead of the maṅgántuna which one would have expected. From húdina < Original IN guliṅ, "to turn", is formed the verb manúdina, but the substantive saṅgúdina, "top".

Comparisons with Indo-European. 156. We do not find many parallels in IE to the four principal IN laws.

I. The IE indeterminate vowel turns into i or a (Brugmann KvG, § 127), just as in IN a and i (inter alia) result from é, but after the description in § 53 we cannot absolutely identify the pěpět with the IE indeterminate vowel.

II. In contrast with the IN r, the IE r is a very constant sound. III. The hamzah plays but a very small part in IE. Just